Now she was within about 3 feet of them. The oldest one played an acoustic guitar, the middle one played a keyboard, and the youngest played a set of drums. They still sang that song. "I will come to you, oh, I will come to you. We all need somebody we can turn to, whoa whoa. Someone who'll always understand. So if you feel that your soul is dyin', and you need the strength to keep tryin'. I'll reach out and take your hand." As they sang the last sentence, the oldest one, Isaac, looked at Danielle and reached out to her with his hand. She walked to him, slowly, raising her hand to meet his. Then...

Danielle woke up. Her mother was sitting next to her in their van, attempting to wake her. Danielle felt a very great disappointment as she sat up, realizing that all of what she'd just been through was a dream. No Hanson. No breath-taking field of flowers. No music. Just Danielle and the silence. She sighed and looked at her mother.

In sign language, she told her mother that she was having a wonderful dream. Danielle smiled. Her mother asked what her dream was about. Danielle laughed in her mind, but in sign language, she responded to her mother, "Just a dream about some guys". Donna, her mother, gave her a sly smile as if saying that she understood. Danielle rolled her eyes.

It turned out that Donna was trying to wake Danielle because they were going to eat brunch at a Perkin's in southern Missouri. In the van, Danielle quickly dressed into some black jeans and a black and white t-shirt that had "55" printed on it. She and her parents walked into the restaurant. They were seated and given menus. Danielle said that she had to go to the restroom, so Ralph and Donna excused her. She found her way to the ladies' room and went into the second stall, the first one was occupied. Danielle finished up and started to wash her hands. Suddenly she caught a glimpse of movement from the mirror. She looked at the movement and saw a slightly agitated, mid 30 year old woman trying to talk to her. Danielle turned around and, pointing to her ears, spoke the words, "I'm deaf," to the woman. The woman seemed surprised and the irritated look vanished from her face. Danielle noticed that her lips formed the words, "I'm sorry". She left the bathroom, leaving Danielle behind. Thinking about the incident, Danielle dried her hands and walked back to her table.

Her parents had already ordered drinks. They both got coffee and Danielle got orange juice. She took a look at the menu and decided on a bagel with cream cheese and a salad with ranch dressing. When Donna asked her daughter what she wanted to eat, Danielle pointed on the menu at what she wanted. Eventually, the waitress came by to take their orders. Danielle's father, Ralph, told the waitress what they wanted. She scribbled something down on a pad of paper and rushed off.

After about 7 minutes of talking, sign language and "normal", the waitress came back with their food. All three were starving, so they dug in. Soon, they were all finished, except Danielle wanted to bring a half of her bagel with her on the drive. The waitress gave her a small styrofoam container to put the food in. Danielle put her bagel into it and followed her parents to the restaurant's cashier counter to pay for their food. They paid and walked outside. Danielle didn't tell them about what happened in the bathroom.

The morning was clear and a little cool. Danielle opened the van door and got inside. She pulled on her black jacket with the hood. Ralph and Donna climbed into the van as well. The engine started and they pulled out of the parking lot. Danielle started to eat the half of her bagel that she'd put into the restaurant container. She sighed, thinking that within one day, they would be at their new home in Tulsa. She only hoped that time would come sooner.

Isaac looked up from his textbook. He'd been studying for Ashley's Europe quiz in the bedroom he and his brothers shared when he heard a noise coming from downstairs. He stood up and walked into the hallway, trying to figure out what was going on. Suddenly, he heard someone crying. Ike rushed down the stairs and into the TV room. The thump that he'd heard was Mackie falling down on the floor. He was now sitting on a chair, crying his eyes out, while Mrs. Hanson talked to him soothingly. She attempted to apply some ice to his bruised knee, but he cried out, "NO!!".

Isaac greeted his mother and brother while walking towards them. Mackenzie sniffled, wiping his nose with his shirtsleeve. Ike knelt down beside them, facing Mack. He made a funny face and, imitating Bullwinkle, asked him, "So, Mackie...what happened?"

Mackenzie giggled a little, though trying to hide it. Then he said, "Zacky put Legos on floor. I trip over dem and hurt my leg."

Isaac gave Mack a sympathetic look and responded, "Well, why don't you let Mommy kiss your booboo? It'll feel better."

Mackenzie grinned, looking at his mother. Diana kissed Mack's knee and started tickling his tears away. He laughed and all was forgotten. Mackenzie started playing with some of his toys. Diana and Isaac stood up, relieved. Diana said to Ike, "Thanks, Isaac. You're a life saver," and smiled wearily.

Ike replied modestly, "It was nothing," and grinned.

Diana returned to her cooking, Mackie returned to playing, and Isaac returned to his studies. Thirty minutes later, Diana called the Hanson family to the dining room table for dinner. Ike moved his books and sat down at "his chair". Each member of the family had a designated seat at the table. Diana and Walker sat at the ends of the large table and on the right side sat Isaac, Taylor, and Zac, on the left side sat Jessica, Avery, and Mack.

Mrs. Hanson had cooked steak and mashed potatoes, a favorite among most of the family. Everybody sat down. Walker suggested, "Hey, boys. Why don't you sing 'Amen' for us? For old times sake."

Reluctantly, the three decided to sing. Their parents HAD been the two who taught them to sing 'Amen' at the table before dinner. All six kids and the two parents held hands. Ike, Taylor, and Zac started to sing. After a moment or two, they finished and everyone began to eat the delicious food Diana had prepared. She was very pregnant, but still was able to cook, which was hard to believe. Diana just didn't think that she would be helping out around the house without preparing dinner and such things like that, even if she needed to rest a bit.

The family finished the food and carried their dishes to the sink. Isaac remembered that sometimes when he and Taylor and Zac had the responsibility of washing the dishes, they'd have written a song instead of doing the chore. He chuckled to himself. 'Those were the days,' Ike thought.

Afterwards, Walker took Mackenzie upstairs to go to bed. Avie and Jessie would stay up a little longer before going to bed as well. Isaac, Taylor, and Zac decided to practice in the garage to pass the time. They went into the garage, turned on the light, and closed the big garage door. Ike slipped on his guitar, Taylor got behind his keyboards, and Zac sat down behind his set of drums. He showed off, twirling his drumstick. Isaac rolled his eyes. He quickly tuned his guitar and they were set. Zac questioned, "Which song should we play?"

Taylor suggested, "Hey, let's play a song that we haven't done in awhile."

Zac, accepting the idea, came up with a more specific question, "Which song?"

The three thought a minute, then Isaac snapped his fingers and said, "What about Poison Ivy?"

They agreed and started on the song soon after.