Minnie Goes to Heaven (116)

(a novel continued)

“We’ll start with your testimonies,” Minnie said.

“Testimonies?” Bea and Shirley looked at her blankly.

“Why do you want to be baptized?”

“We saw a miracle and then we read some of the Bible and now I want to be baptized because that's what the Bible says to do.” Shirley summarized.

“That’s it for me too,” Bea said. “When that water changed to wine, I decided Jesus is real.”

“So,” Minnie said. She put one hand on each head. “I baptize you both in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Put your heads under the water.” Both, girls bobbed down below the water and popped right back up again. “Now, you are baptized.” 
At poolside, Nan and the others clapped.

The three climbed out of the water and wrapped themselves in towels. There weren’t enough chairs on the deck so they all sat around the edge of the pool with feet dangling in the water. They passed bags of chips and cookies. Nan poured the juice she had brought. “So how does it feel?” Melissa wanted to know.

“Great,” Shirley said. “I feel unnaturally happy.”

“Peaceful,” Bea said.

“I’ve never been baptized,” Melissa said.

Sue, Hannah and Brenda admitted they hadn’t been either.

“I’ve only been baptized as a baby,” Nan said.

“That goes for me as well,” Jill said. She looked at Minnie. “I bet that goes for you too.”

“Actually I was baptized in heaven,” Minnie said.

“Does that count?” asked Nan. “You said the whole thing could have been a vision.”

“It felt real at the time,” Minnie said. “I suppose I could get baptized again, just to be sure.”

So it came to be that Bea and Shirley baptized everyone else at the pool that day.