Julie Peters could barely contain the heady euphoria that enveloped her. She was newly engaged to Mark, the love of her life. Her human interest news story about Yanno Theologos—rumored to be John the Apostle, still alive on the Isle of Patmos—had been picked up by Great Destinations Magazine, and an incredible job offer followed. Now, she found herself on assignment in Cross Creek, Florida, walking in the footstep of her literary heroine, American novelist Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.

Straight ahead was the main house. Her imagination soared. What would it be like to take up residence in a dilapidated Cracker home, to pump water from an outdoor well, to take showers under the rain running off a tin roof?

Julie tried to picture herself living in this place. She wondered if she could do without the many conveniences she enjoyed; to cook meals on a wood- burning stove, pick fresh vegetables from her own garden, and in the evening, relax on a front porch swing with nothing but the screech of crickets and the hoot of owls for entertainment?

A sudden sadness washed over Julie. Marjorie was gone now, and all that remained was the impression that someone had lived there at one time. Julie shook away her reverie and walked toward the sprawling farmhouse. This was the moment she'd been waiting for over the last week. This was more than an assignment—this was a lesson in life.