Legacy of the Dreams

Chapter 92 - Changes of All Sorts

The entire Abernathy family gathered at the Temple in Los Angeles on Saturday morning for Jessie's bat mitzvah. Everybody was there including Greg, Susan, Zack and Melody, Matt and Ashley, Alan, Cindy, Olivia and Noah, and Julie, Elliot and Jake.

To Greg's surprise, the Goodmans decided to come to the service too. He doubted Kevin or the children had ever been to a Jewish temple before, and he suspected Shelly tended to stay away, ever since her decision not to have her own bat mitzvah when she was a girl. He supposed they were there now due to Bert's urging. With his own birthday only a few weeks away, the young man was doing everything in his power to support Jessie in ways that sometimes surprised both families, including Greg.

One person who was present that Greg wasn't surprised to see, but everyone else was, was Reuben.

"I was in the area," he explained to the family vaguely after the service.

But when they initially sat down inside the temple and Reuben joined them, everyone looked at him in curiously.

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Greg, Alan, and Julie all participated in the service reading from the scrolls along with Jessie when the time came. Susan watched her proudly from her place amongst the congregation, sitting between Melody and Cindy. Cindy held Noah on her lap and initially he babbled loudly, providing a minor disruption during the service. That is until Melody leaned across Susan and tapped the baby's arm.

"Listen, Bobby," she told him seriously. "You prayed for this. Father listens. Your prayers are answered. Listen to Jessie."

At that, Noah fell silent, turning his eyes towards the front of the building where members of his family stood reading from the Torah. Susan watched, noting how intently he was staring at Jessie and noticing how he smiled when it was her turn to read. It was a moment Bobby would have been proud to see, and she couldn't help wondering if some of that pride and satisfaction was there in Noah's spirit, deep down inside.

Zack, Matt, and Ashley sat on Melody's other side, and they stared at both Noah and Melody, wondering at his behavior and her words. They listened particularly attentively when it was Jessie's turn to read, and after the service, everyone commented on how well she did.

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"See, I told you, you were ready," Zack said when he had a moment to lean into Jessie in the midst of all the well-wishers from the congregation after the service.

"Yeah, Jess. You did really good," Matt told her.

"Did I, Papa?" Jessie asked.

"You did," Greg assured her.

"Are we all going directly to Edwardo's?" Julie asked as the family gathered on the walk outside after the service.

"Yes, though our reservation isn't until one so you have time to come by the house first if you'd like," Susan offered.

Julie and Elliot exchanged a look with one another.

"We just may, Susan. Thank you," Elliot said.

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"Are we really going home first?" Ashley asked Matt as they stood a few steps away, standing on the outside of the knot of Gaffney family members all talking to Greg and Jessie.

"Yeah, probably. Like Mom said, the restaurant won't be ready for us for another couple of hours yet. It won't take us that long to get there," Matt said.

Eventually everybody was ready to leave. They all got in their various cars and formed a loose procession, with everyone following Greg and Susan to the Abernathy's house.