About the Author
Cinda Wombles Pettigrew, RN, MHCA, is an energy consultant, spiritual counselor and teacher who assists others to consciously live their spirituality. Cinda and her husband Jim travel to many countries which affords her the opportunity to explore the deep spiritual and cultural heritage of the native people. When not traveling and writing, she enjoys tennis, boating on the Mississippi River and walking in the forest which surrounds their home.
Born in Australia, Dr. Robyn D. Warner is one of six sisters, and holds a Ph.D. in food science from the University of Wisconsin. A Research Scientist at the Victorian Institute for Animal Sciences, her love of nature frequently leads to adventures in the Australian outback with her geographer husband, Peter. She enjoys spending her leisure time bird watching, bushwalking, and camping in the wilderness.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
From Prologue: Mid 1800's off the coast of Victoria, Australia: The sea was very dark today. An eerie calm encompassed the ship. Joanna sat staring, straining to see past the waves to the horizon, looking for land. They should be very close now. The journey had been long and hard and all aboard were anxious to reach their destination. Joanna was sitting in her favorite spot on the bowsprit. She had to be careful not to let her mother see her or she'd be in trouble. Her mother thought it was much too dangerous, that she would slip and fall through the ropes. Not so, Joanna felt quite secure here, enveloped by the huge knots of thick rope. This was her spot, Joanna had decided, because it was her ship. Had not her father, the ship's captain, named the ship, The Joanna, for her? She was extremely proud to be sailing toward her new home on her own ship.
She often daydreamed about the day they would arrive in the new country. There would be lots of people at the port eagerly awaiting their arrival. The Joanna was a famous ship on its second voyage and people would be excited by the prospect of news from their homeland. The ship was stocked with a cargo of goods not readily available in the new land, which her father planned to sell when he arrived. Joanna wondered what her new home would be like and if she would have many friends. The voyage had been rather lonely, as there were few other children on board and none her age. The adults hadn't been much fun; many had been sick most of the way. Joanna was never sick and she pretty much had the run of the ship except when her mother felt well enough to come looking for her. Joanna hid from her as much as possible. It was much more fun to tie knots with the sailors and listen to their tales of distant lands, than doing cross stitch next to her mother's bed as her mother lay moaning, suffering from the constant rocking motion of the waves.
As Joanna sat staring at the horizon, she suddenly realized the sky had darkened and she could scarcely see the difference between sky and sea. She heard the sailor from the lookout cry the warning of a storm approaching. "All hands on deck! Batten down the hatches!" Joanna scrambled off the bowsprit. She knew better than to try to ride out the storm from there. The sea was turning rough quickly, and the wind was tearing through the sails. Everyone dashed about, shouting, and Joanna became frightened. Other storms had not seemed this scary. She hurried toward her parents' cabin slipping and falling as waves crashed over the bow. The cry, "Land Ho!" sounded and she was totally engulfed by water at the same moment.
When Joanna awoke, she was curled up in a little ball in someone's arms. She looked up, expecting to see her mother, and was startled to see a strange black face. She struggled to free herself and felt a sharp, shooting pain in her hip. The voice of the woman holding her was soothing, but Joanna could not understand her words. The woman's embrace felt warm and strong and Joanna calmed as she filled with a sense of security. Joanna looked around and realized they were on a sand dune overlooking a beach. She tried again to sit up, her hip collapsed and she cried out in pain. The black woman assisted her, supporting her hip so it didn't hurt so much. Joanna looked down the beach which was covered with broken wood, trunks, and other objects not recognizable. In the distance, she could barely see her father and two black people dragging something, or someone, across the beach. Overcome by pain and emotion, Joanna fainted.
