Janie & The Test
I couldn't make sense of any of it. In chapel, Janie scribbled away in her journal as if she was taking a timed writing test. I overheard her muttered whispers in the hall on several occasions, things like "Do not awaken! Do not awaken!" or "Steadfast! Steadfast! Hold steadfast!" She was gone in the woods for stretches of time, doing who knows what, coming back exhausted and barely staying awake during study sessions. I wondered, "Has she lost it? Is our beloved Janie really going crazy?" What bothered me so much was that I seemed to be the only one who noticed. Then again, study groups didn't notice that kind of thing, and our Bible study was made up of girls who all had very different schedules. Additionally, Janie was living by herself this semester, so there was no roommate to comment on her frequent trips to the prayer closet. Maybe she was finally cracking under all the pressure of school and work. Finally, one day I could not handle all th