Damaris escapes her father's drunken abuse, but she can't seem to escape her profound loneliness. Does the Bible hold the answer to both that and the question of why she is A Woman Named Damaris?
She was almost fifteen on the night she dared for the first time
to think of what life might be like away from the home. Pa again
had come home drunk and mean; the trauma of the subsequent scene
had been repeated as long as Damaris could remember. The idea that
she no longer needs to tolerate this, that maybe she's old enough
to manage on her own, is planted in her mind and begins to grow.
She must plan her escape carefully, but she must get away from
him.
When the opportunity comes, Damaris carries with her the strength
of her mother's love. Two treasures hidden for years from her
father--her grandmother's lacy golden brooch and her grandfather's
lovely watch--are Damaris's only legacy from her past. That and her
name. Her mother said it came from the Bible and had a special
meaning that she can't remember anymore. What difference might it
make?
But Damaris can't escape the "aloneness" that haunts her life of
the bitterness she feels when she sees others suffering,
particularly children. Ultimately, she must come to terms with her
past, learn to live in her present circumstances, and trust her
future to another Father.
SHE DISCOVERED MUCH MORE THAN THE MEANING OF HER NAME IN THAT
BOOK