Deborah Diamond Driskill

The Garden of Youth: Against All Odds Deborah Diamond Driskill

Fifteen-year-old Allison Milan Flemings' manipulations to outwit her mother finally pay off big time. Allison never would stop at anything in order to get her way. Allison devises a plan to attend her friend's party at a hotel, forcing her eleven-year-old sister Meghan and manipulating her seventeen-year-old cousin Ian into coming along with her. What she does not know is what awaits them on the other side of the door. They discover that they have not arrived at a normal party, but an entrance into the Garden of Youth. They each experience the garden in a different way. Greeted by other young people from around the world, they realize that the garden is free from parental authority and guidance. Allison wants to return home. However, everything is not always as it appears in the garden. Once Allison realizes she desires parental guidance, the garden turns against her. The winds, river, and the residents of the garden plot to kill her along with her sister and cousin. When all hope is lost, Allison finally meets the Second Adam. He warns her of the dangers and pitfalls she will experience in returning home. The trials in the garden become a spiritual journey in bringing Allison, Meghan, and Ian back to youthful wholeness.