Fran grudgingly agreed. “They’re holding up,” he grumbled, still chafing at the delay. They watched the slow, painful progress of the two climbers and noticed Karl at times pulling Marian by her hands over the large, smooth boulders.
At last they reached the plateau. Their faces were drawn, streaked with dirt and grime. They dropped down wearily and Marian stretched out flat on her back as if she never expected to rise again. Her eyes were closed as she groaned, “I ache in every bone, every muscle of my body. It’s going to be years before I feel human again.”
As for Karl, his weariness soon left him. He rested as the others had and sat up. Wordlessly, he looked at the magnificent range of peaks jutting into the sky. Then he murmured something: “What wonders He has given us this day to behold,” adding the Hebrew words.
“Is that a prayer of thanksgiving?” Judy asked quietly.
Karl nodded.
Fran, always practical, broke in, “Have you eaten yet?”
“No,” Karl said as if awakened from a dream. “I’m glad you reminded me. I’m hungry as a bear.”
He reached into his rucksack and took out a brown paper bag and a daintily wrapped box.
“Better have something to eat, Marian,” he said, placing the package beside her.
“Thanks. I don’t want anything.”