I believe, above the storm, the smallest prayer will still be heard; I believe that someone in the great somewhere hears every word. - “I Believe,” sung by Frankie Laine

The story goes that a mother heard her daughter’s tale of struggles, went to the kitchen, filled three pots with water, placed each over a hot fire, and the pots boiled. In one, she placed carrots; in another, eggs; and in the last went coffee.

Later, she turned off the burners, placed carrots in a bowl, eggs in a bowl, and ladled coffee into a cup.

“Tell me what you see,” the mother asked her daughter. “Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

Adversity Knocks
Mother had her feel the carrots, which were now soft; then peel a shell to find a firm, hard-boiled egg. The daughter sipped coffee and smiled at its rich aroma and asked, “What does it mean?”

Mother explained that each of the items had faced the boiling water. The carrot was strong, and became softened. The fragile egg was hardened by the boiling water. The coffee changed the water itself. Mother asked: “When adversity knocks, are you the carrot that wilts; the egg that becomes hardened after some trial; or the coffee bean, which rises to another level?”

Brooke Pernice would savor the “coffee” every time.

Make a Difference
Brooke’s aim is to “try and lead as many people as I can to the Lord - to inspire them to make a difference in this world.” Her entrepreneurial plan is to “sing and speak about the Lord as much as I can and wherever I can.”

She admits her Catholic religion and faith play a major part in her music and her ministry. “When I was 7, the Lord told me I would lead a worldwide ministry through music. In June 2006, He told me I would see when the time was right. In October 2006, He told me it was time to do concerts and public speaking.”

All this, despite Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA), a genetic degenerative retinal disease having affected the rods and cones of her eyes. She has joined Chicago Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee to promote LCA awareness through his Project 3000. Lee has a child with LCA. Also, Brooke works with the Foundation Fighting Blindness to raise money for a cure by joining its Visionwalk program.

Nervous? Her?
An ardent fan of country music, her favorite song is "Have You Forgotten", by Darryl Worley, recalling events surrounding 9/11. Tennessee Ernie Ford is another favorite.

Her practice sessions take up to two hours a day with vocal coach David Reuther, with her band during rehearsals, or “by myself doing vocal exercises and practicing new songs.” In between home-school courses in Murrieta, Calif., Brooke regards singing hymns as required homework, too.

She doesn't get nervous in front of a crowd, such as at the Jacksonville (Fla.) Landing. It doesn't seem to faze her that she's only 13 and cannot see the audience, including Mayor John Peyton.

Brooke was in Florida with her dad, PGA Tour golfer Tom Pernice Jr.; she helped tee off The Players Championship. Dad was among those applauding.

In his wheelchair in Jacksonville, FL, Herb Drill heads Able Me & Associates. His e-mail address is herbdrill@ableme.com. He has Muscular Dystrophy.