Read Online The Christmas Note by Donna VanLiere - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Donna VanLiere
Ads: Link
that right, Miriam?”
“Awfully tragic,” Miriam says, nodding at me.
I bite the inside of my cheek and feel so stupid. Why am I so emotional? These women are strangers! Gloria pushes Miriam out of the booth and then slides in next to me, putting her hand on my arm and keeping her voice low. “It’s harder to let go of a bad relationship than a good one. With a good one you’ve got sweet memories and kind words. With a bad one you just got a whole lot of unanswered questions and open wounds.” I keep my eyes on the table. I can’t speak and feel like a fool. “Don’t ever think that tears are a bad thing,” she says, somehow knowing that I feel like exploding. “Lord have mercy! I’ve cried buckets in my lifetime. But Miriam here doesn’t cry much.” She leans in and whispers. “Afraid it will melt the wax.” I laugh and Miriam hisses through her teeth. “I buried my first husband and cried myself sick. My son ran away from home and was gone seven years. I can’t begin to tell you how many tears I cried over that loss. Grief takes a while, but joy does come.” She wraps her arm around me and she’s as warm and soft and sweet-smelling as I imagined. She squeezes my shoulder and then smacks the table, the silverware bouncing in front of me. “I know! Why don’t you come on over for Christmas dinner? Miriam and I will be cooking for the whole gang, although Miriam doesn’t really cook. But she has always wanted to pretend to cook sweet potato casserole, so that’s what she’ll be doing this year.” I smile and Miriam shakes her head, unaffected.
I begin to say, “I don’t really know anyone and—”
“Now don’t make a lot of ballyhoo out of nothing,” Gloria says, “because you know Gretchen and now you know us. And you can plainly see that we’re about as simple as people come.”
“I wish you would speak for yourself, Gloria,” Miriam says.
I twist the napkin in my hand, glancing at Gloria. “Okay.” I can’t believe I’ve accepted an invitation to eat with strangers. “I’ll be baking a difference, by the way.”
She throws her arms in the air. “Gretchen asked you! Good girl!” She grabs her head as if a lightning bolt just struck her. “Did she tell you about Robert Layton?”
“I work for him, actually.”
She bangs the table again, and Miriam grabs her head this time. “Would you please stop making that confounded noise, Gloria!”
“Well, this is just downright providential! Of all the people to work for in this town and you’re working for somebody who can help you find your family.”
Family. The word lodges in my throat and heat breaks out on my back. The search sounds so easy when Gloria talks about it, and she makes me smile. “It all still seems so crazy,” I say. They’re looking at me, waiting for more. “All these years I thought it was just Ramona and me. Now … someone else is out there who may not even want to know about me. It’s a strange way to piece a family together.”
“What?” Gloria says. “It means that your siblings were adopted, and that’s the most powerful, beautiful story of love there is, isn’t that right, Miriam?” Miriam smiles. “Both of Miriam’s children are adopted, and they are two of the most loved kids I’ve ever met. Love is learned, you know, and your two siblings were loved long before they were even born and have grown up in families of love. I just know it. And that means they will only have love for you, too.”
I look at Miriam. “It’s true,” she says.
“For all I know, it’s going to be hard to track them down,” I say.
Gloria leans close to me. “Just keep a little faith, babe.” I don’t even react to that because I’ve never had any faith to begin with, let alone even a little of it. I wanted faith; the kind that Mrs. Schweiger had that just spilled over and out of her as natural as a breath, but I’ve never known what that’s like. Gloria seems to read my mind and moves her hand
“Awfully tragic,” Miriam says, nodding at me.
I bite the inside of my cheek and feel so stupid. Why am I so emotional? These women are strangers! Gloria pushes Miriam out of the booth and then slides in next to me, putting her hand on my arm and keeping her voice low. “It’s harder to let go of a bad relationship than a good one. With a good one you’ve got sweet memories and kind words. With a bad one you just got a whole lot of unanswered questions and open wounds.” I keep my eyes on the table. I can’t speak and feel like a fool. “Don’t ever think that tears are a bad thing,” she says, somehow knowing that I feel like exploding. “Lord have mercy! I’ve cried buckets in my lifetime. But Miriam here doesn’t cry much.” She leans in and whispers. “Afraid it will melt the wax.” I laugh and Miriam hisses through her teeth. “I buried my first husband and cried myself sick. My son ran away from home and was gone seven years. I can’t begin to tell you how many tears I cried over that loss. Grief takes a while, but joy does come.” She wraps her arm around me and she’s as warm and soft and sweet-smelling as I imagined. She squeezes my shoulder and then smacks the table, the silverware bouncing in front of me. “I know! Why don’t you come on over for Christmas dinner? Miriam and I will be cooking for the whole gang, although Miriam doesn’t really cook. But she has always wanted to pretend to cook sweet potato casserole, so that’s what she’ll be doing this year.” I smile and Miriam shakes her head, unaffected.
I begin to say, “I don’t really know anyone and—”
“Now don’t make a lot of ballyhoo out of nothing,” Gloria says, “because you know Gretchen and now you know us. And you can plainly see that we’re about as simple as people come.”
“I wish you would speak for yourself, Gloria,” Miriam says.
I twist the napkin in my hand, glancing at Gloria. “Okay.” I can’t believe I’ve accepted an invitation to eat with strangers. “I’ll be baking a difference, by the way.”
She throws her arms in the air. “Gretchen asked you! Good girl!” She grabs her head as if a lightning bolt just struck her. “Did she tell you about Robert Layton?”
“I work for him, actually.”
She bangs the table again, and Miriam grabs her head this time. “Would you please stop making that confounded noise, Gloria!”
“Well, this is just downright providential! Of all the people to work for in this town and you’re working for somebody who can help you find your family.”
Family. The word lodges in my throat and heat breaks out on my back. The search sounds so easy when Gloria talks about it, and she makes me smile. “It all still seems so crazy,” I say. They’re looking at me, waiting for more. “All these years I thought it was just Ramona and me. Now … someone else is out there who may not even want to know about me. It’s a strange way to piece a family together.”
“What?” Gloria says. “It means that your siblings were adopted, and that’s the most powerful, beautiful story of love there is, isn’t that right, Miriam?” Miriam smiles. “Both of Miriam’s children are adopted, and they are two of the most loved kids I’ve ever met. Love is learned, you know, and your two siblings were loved long before they were even born and have grown up in families of love. I just know it. And that means they will only have love for you, too.”
I look at Miriam. “It’s true,” she says.
“For all I know, it’s going to be hard to track them down,” I say.
Gloria leans close to me. “Just keep a little faith, babe.” I don’t even react to that because I’ve never had any faith to begin with, let alone even a little of it. I wanted faith; the kind that Mrs. Schweiger had that just spilled over and out of her as natural as a breath, but I’ve never known what that’s like. Gloria seems to read my mind and moves her hand
Similar Books
