Earlier in Leyden

“Who is there?” A large group of boys jumped out of the dark screaming “Ga terug naar je eigen land, radicale ouwe hufter”. James stepped toward them to protect his daughter. Mary pulled her father’s arm and yelled: “Duck!” But it was too late. A large stone hit his forehead and he fell to the ground. Mary kneeled down next to him and cried, “Dad, say something, you are bleeding”. He was unconscious. They were on their way to the Jean Pesijn Hofje and had passed the Pieterskerk. James had just finished a meeting with John Robinson, the leader of their group. They talked about how much the Adventurers in England were willing to pay for goods and how many passengers would be able to come. James was a tailor whose livelihood was at stake because he was 63-years-old and he was labeled as a Separatist. Mary hoped they would be one of the “Strangers” chosen to go to the New World.

So did James….

Earlier in Oldenzaal

“Who is it?” Astrid pushed the door wide open and blurted out: “I want to go to America for a year”. The tall man with friendly blue eyes sitting in a leather chair tilted his head and looked amused. Toon Gordijn was the Head Master of 1300 students at Thijcollege. He had known Astrid for many years. She was a leader of Student Council and on many committees; everyone knew her. She arguably spent more time in meetings to organize events and fight for students’ rights than studying. In Holland, the relationship between teachers and students is very different and often much more friendly. Toon invited Astrid to sit down and offered her a piece of licorice.  He winked and said “Wait, you were one of the two students in the whole school who dropped English and now you want to go to America? Are you hoping a foreign language will slow you down?” Astrid hoped she could go to America to regroup and figure out what she wanted do next.

So did Toon….