Daniel

By Nancy Allebach

When I first met Daniel, I wasn’t sure if he was even a human being. When I first saw him the words Big Foot, Yeti, and Sasquatch came to mind. Since he had been found lying by the side of the road in a very rural area, he could very well have been that elusive creature. Please, let me explain.

He was lying in a hospital bed with the sheets drawn up to just below his eyes. His feet were sticking out at the bottom of the bed, and the toenails looked like they belonged on a raptor. They were so long they had curled under the toes, and they were so black and thick it was hard to imagine how he could ever walk.

Under the nails were what appeared to be weeks of accumulated dirt and who knows what else.

The stark white hospital linens made Daniel look very dark and dirty. I could tell his hair was quite long, unwashed, and furling into natural dreadlocks. His facial hair was not limited to his beard area but seemed to sprout from every pore on his face. It was an assortment of colors ranging from black to red with some blonde. His form under the sheets filled the standard size hospital bed. There was very little space left on the mattress. His outline curved massively upwards from the bed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: May 26, 2022
• ISBN: 9781664266940

Nancy Allebach

Nancy Allebach worked at the hospital in her hometown for thirty-five years spending time in the secretarial field in the business office, pharmacy, medical records department, emergency room, and in accounting and payroll. Allebach has also written for the local newspaper, managed a bed and breakfast, served as an aide on school buses, and is now writing and publishing. She has one daughter, married, and three grandchildren.

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Copyright © 2022 Nancy Allebach.

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quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

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addresses or links contained in this book may have changed

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expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do

not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the

publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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All Scripture quotations are taken from THE MESSAGE,

copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson.

Used by permission of NavPress, represented by

Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6693-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6694-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022909150

WestBow Press rev. date: 05/20/2022

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While this book is a work of fiction, totally conceived from the mind of the author, it is based on an event that happened while the author was working in a hospital. All characters and events have been drawn from the depths of the author’s imagination of what could have been, what may have been, what really was, what should have never been. Some things came not only from the author’s imagination but from her heart, which is where the most important things always come from.

This book is actually based on a true story.

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Daniel 2:27: Daniel answered the King, no mere human can solve the king’s mystery, I don’t care who it is…no wise man, enchanter, magician, diviner. But there is a God in heaven who solves mysteries, and he has solved this one.

From The Message

Eugene Peterson

Dedication

This book is dedicated to everyone who has had happier, simpler times in their lives.

Acknowledgments

Betty Meinstereifel for reading the manuscript and giving me such wonderful encouragement to continue working on it, and to follow my instincts and dreams to see it become a real book. To her husband Carl who gave up his time also.

To Jeff Ottney who also read the manuscript and gave me encouragement.

To my beloved Keith, Beth, and CJ who put up with an awful lot—more than I can say here. That would be another book!

To Pastor Tim, a wonderful book connoisseur.

To my awesome sister-in-law Ann, who is a marvelous listener.

To Dan and Marie, no the book isn’t about you Dan, but I could do one about you.

My great publishing team at Westbow.

Helen, also a great listener. If Ann and Helen ever got together, I don’t know who would do the talking.

To all the unnamed supporters—a person never goes through life without hundreds and hundreds of those.

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W hen I first met Daniel, I wasn’t sure if he was even a human being. When I first saw him the words Big Foot, Yeti, and Sasquatch came to mind. Since he had been found lying by the side of