Thank you, Mr. Walker, for your job offer. I accept your proposal, and I look forward to working with you.
Regards,
Claire Riley
What in the world would I do with two weeks off of work? As I put my phone into my purse, I looked out the window. Maybe I would come back there for a weekend on my own. Maybe I would take Anna’s advice and get a change of scenery. I looked forward to telling her all that had transpired in my life since our last appointment.
After getting my things packed up, I rolled my suitcase to sit by the door. I did one last look around the room and was pleased that I found a hair scrunchy that I nearly left behind. My phone buzzed from my purse, and upon retrieving it, I saw a text from my mother reminding me that they were leaving Alaska the next day and would be out of pocket whiletraveling. I took the cue and without thinking, dialed her number. She answered on the second ring.
“Hi, Mom.”
“Well, hello, Claire! How is my favorite daughter today?”
My mother’s cheery voice made me feel guilty for not calling more, though we did exchange texts frequently, except for this week. “I’m good, how are you?” My voice cracked as I felt my emotions betraying me. Why was I feeling upset again?
“Oh no, Claire. What’s wrong?” I could hear her television turn off in the background. “Let me put you on speakerphone. Your father is here, too.”
“Nothing... I’m feeling better now, actually. Today was a weird day, is all. It’s just good to hear your voice.” I felt like I was back home whenever we spoke. That daywasa bizarre day with Theo asking for another chance. There might have been a little more to it than that, like how, despite all of my progress, I felt like I was getting roped back into his manipulation and that scared me… But I really didn’t want to bring my parents down with my failures.
“Nothing that Theo can’t help with, I’m sure?” My mother was smiling as she spoke, I could tell.
“Actually...” I took a breath, thinking she had to see this coming. “We broke up.” I couldn’t have felt any stupider as I did right at that moment, but then my mother was exclaiming something to my father and said she was going to hand the phone off to him.
“Claire?”
I smacked the phone on my forehead, feeling overwhelmed. “Hi, Dad. Alaska sounds fun.” It was all I could muster up as my voice was betraying me once again.
“What’s this I hear about Theo?”
I knew it, he was disappointed in me again. I felt bad for him for disappointing him so much. “Yeah, it didn’t work out.” I sniffled again, but this time it was happy tears. “It’s for the best. We want different things.”
“Well, Claire. That certainly is a surprise.”
I knew it. That crushed him. “I’m so sorry, dad.” The tears came flowing, and I choked out my words.
“Claire, don’t cry. I don’t want to sound insensitive here, but I’m SO glad to hear you two are done. Your motherand I thought he was a pompous, egotistical jerk from the moment we met him.”
My jaw dropped to the floor. “You did? I thought... I thought you liked him— I mean, he’s just so into skiing and…”
“I only thoughtyouliked him, Claire. We may not have seen what you saw in him, but we just want you to be happy.”
My tears turned to joy. “Thank you, Dad. You don’t know how much that means to me.”
“Claire, I know I’ve made some mistakes in my life, and I wish I had you when I was younger, so I could relate to you better. But believe me when I say you are the biggest accomplishment of my life. I couldn’t be prouder of my daughter.”
I felt years of self-inflicted pain become undone. “There’s something else I wanted to tell you.” I remembered what Blake told me earlier, how Iwasa skier because I was there. My ability didn’t define the status of my participation. “I have taken up skiing, for real this time.”
My father gasped on the other end of the line. “Really? That’s great, kiddo. But...” There was a hesitancy in his voice, “Do you enjoy it?”
I was starting to realize just how well he knew me. “Yes, well… I think so. Sort of?” We both laughed. “It feels great to accomplish something. And I’m happy to tell you that I did the ‘Keith’s Kicker’ run in solo today. Didn’t fall or mess up once.”
“Claire! That’s a challengingBluerun! How fantastic. I’m so proud of you.” My mother echoed his sentiments in the background. “When you were little, maybe two or three years old, you hated the snow. When your mother tried to get you into your snowsuit, you asked to go swimming instead. I never pushed the snow on you because it’s not for everyone, Claire. And I always thought it was okay if it wasn’t your thing. But it sounds like you’ve conquered this, too, just like everything else you set your mind to.”
It was true, I really did hate the snow as a kid. But it had become like I didn’t know anything else. I thought about my week with Blake and smiled. “I will tell you what I really enjoy about skiing. There’s a thrill of catching speed while knowing you are in control of your skis; the joy of thegorgeous views, especially on bluebird days with not a cloud in the sky; the hot chocolate in the lodge is universally hot and amazing; and, the new cute guy I met doesn’t hurt, either.”
I could hear both my parents laughing on the other end of the phone, my mother clapping. “Do tell us the details, Claire! What’s his name?”
“His name is Blake Walker. And he’s the kindest man I’ve ever known.” Saying it out loud rang the bell of my heart. What was I doing? Why was I about to walk away from the perfect man for me? Theo had rattled me, making me think I wasn’t ready for something real, but God was greater than that.
