The Heart Remembers by Al Lacy Page B

closer, we need to talk about names for our children.”
    There was a twinkle in Dane’s eyes. “Well, I have a good Bible name for our first-born son.”
    “You do?”
    “Uh-huh. Tiglath-pileser.”
    Her eyes bulged. “T-Tiglath-pileser? Tiglath-pileser!”
    “Yeah. Wouldn’t you just love little Tiglath-pileser Logan?”
    Tharyn clipped his chin playfully. “Well, of course I would. And how about you? When our first daughter is born, will you love little Secacah Logan? Secacah is a Bible name, you know.”
    He made a mock frown. “
Secacah
? I don’t recall any female in the Bible named Secacah.”
    “There isn’t. But there was a village in the wilderness of Judah by that name. It’s in the book of Joshua.”
    “But at least the name I suggested was the name of a
person
in the Bible. A
man
.”
    She snickered. “Well, you’re going to come as close to namingany son of ours Tiglath-pileser as I am of naming a daughter of ours
Secacah
!”
    They laughed together, then as a buggy pulled up in front of the office, Dane said, “I agree, though, we do need to talk about names for our children sometime soon.”
    They both looked at the couple in the buggy outside and saw that it was Jack and Sally Miller, who were members of their church. The Millers lived just a few blocks away, and Sally was due to give birth to their first child any day.
    As Jack hopped out of the buggy and was helping Sally down, Tharyn said, “Speaking of having babies, it looks like Sally is about to have hers.”
    “I’d say so,” said Dane, and hurried out to help Jack assist Sally into the office.
    As they came through the door, Tharyn looked at Sally with concern. “How far apart are the contractions, honey?”
    Sally winced and bent low. “Ab-about three minutes.”
    Tharyn closed the door behind them, then hurried ahead and opened the door to the back room.
    Minutes later, Sally was on a table in one of the curtained sections, and Dr. Dane said to her nervous husband, “Jack, you can go out to the waiting room. We’ll let you know when the baby is born, and you can come back in and see him or her and Sally.”
    “Okay,” said Jack, glancing at his wife, who was in the grip of another contraction. “She’s all right, isn’t she?”
    “Sure. What she’s experiencing is only natural.”
    When the fidgety Jack Miller was gone, Dr. Dane hurried to the counter where the wash basin was positioned.
    Sally was experiencing increased pain as the contractions were now coming no more than a minute apart. While Tharyn was collecting the necessary items to have on hand during and after childbirth, Dr. Dane was hurriedly making his own preparations.
    When he returned from the wash basin, he stood over Sally,who was just getting over another contraction. “Sally,” he said, “you’ll recall that in the last two or three months, you and I talked about administering chloroform if your pain became extreme. What do you think?”
    Though Sally was hurting a great deal, she said, “I want to bring my baby into the world without anesthetic if possible, Doctor. I’ll let you know if I need it.”
    Tharyn came in, wheeling the supply cart.
    Suddenly another contraction came on, and Sally gritted her teeth and let out a tiny wail.
    Tharyn grasped Sally’s hand and squeezed it tight. “Sally, take deep breaths and let them out slowly.”
    Sally looked up, and between breaths said, “You and … Dr. Logan have been married … three months, Tharyn. Any plans … for a baby yet?”
    While Sally was taking another deep breath, Tharyn said, “Not yet. Dr. Dane and I have agreed that we’ll give it a couple of years before we start our family.”
    As Sally was once again taking a deep breath, Tharyn glanced at her husband, who was positioned to deliver the baby when it started to come, then looked back at Sally. “Of course, the motherly instincts within me have aroused my desire every time I’ve assisted in childbirth since I first