Going Home

Faith without works …
Thalia Allen has lost her mind. At least that’s what her granddaughter thinks. And what her friends think. Sometimes, she thinks so, too. How could she have invited a homeless man to move into her home?

During her thirty-year career, sometimes only her dream of retirement and travelling the world kept her sane. That dream was dashed only months into her retirement, when she assumed custody of teenaged, and wild, Mishay. Two years later, they have settled into a routine of constant school and church activities.
Hurricane Katrina blew into New Orleans. Then, the levees broke, flooding the city. As its disbelieving residents suffered unspeakable horror, the rest of the nation watched the government’s impotent response. Thousands of Americans gave aid and comfort in ways big and small. More than 4,000 evacuees found shelter in the Austin Convention Center. At her pastor’s urging, Thalia volunteers at the shelter, dragging a reluctant Mishay along.
Joe Lambert just wants to go home. Living in a shelter and other people’s clothes has rubbed him raw. A proud man who works for what he wants, Joe refuses to accept hand-outs and pity. When Thalia offers him work, he jumps on it. But when she invites him to move into her home, even Joe wonders if she has lost her mind.