On a crisp Sunday morning, Theo goes to St. James for the eleven o’clock service, noticing the sanctuary’s ordered beauty and the weight of history held in its walls. The organ prelude settles the room as Father Lundy begins.

The service is abruptly disrupted by crashing glass and shouting at the back of the sanctuary. Ellen storms in, dragging her bicycle, insulting the ushers and demanding to find Theo, while stunned congregants watch and multiple 911 calls bring police sirens toward the church.

Mrs. Ocie Van Blarcum calmly steps between Ellen and the crowd, recognizes her from soup lines and shelters, and treats her as a wounded soul rather than a troublemaker. With quiet authority, Mrs. Van Blarcum orders church leaders to tell the arriving policemen to leave and invites Ellen to sit with her family, though Ellen insists she is there for “Mr. Theo.”

Theo steps forward and greets Ellen warmly, then guides Ellen and the bicycle down the center aisle to a seat. Father Lundy reframes the chaos as a “teachable moment,” calling for silence before prayer, and the organist plays “All Things Bright and Beautiful” as the congregation turns inward, chastened and newly reverent.

Afterward, the church agrees on a practical arrangement: Theo will sit in the last row on the aisle so Ellen can park her bicycle beside the pew if she comes again. Ellen begins attending regularly; after one week of insisting on bringing the bike to Communion, Theo convinces her it will be safe at the pew with him and Mrs. Van Blarcum guarding it, and he persuades her to arrive on time from then on.