“What’s that?”
“That you make a free spirit like me look like the moderate one.”
She narrows her eyes. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Oh, I fully intended it as such, babe. I love your love for life. It’s more than being free spirited. It is an intense way of living. Nothing can stop you, Frankie.”
She smiles, but there’s something behind her eyes for a second. But then it’s gone.
“You know what we should do first?” she says.
“What’s that?”
“The Voyage Behind the Falls!”
I think back, but I don’t remember doing this with my parents. It would be a first for me and for Frankie. I turn to her and smile. “That’s a great idea!”
*
“Frankie,” I shout over the rushing water. “This is a terrible idea.”
Frankie is standing at the edge of the boat with both arms wide open while the pounding water from the falls sprays her entire body. Despite wearing a rain poncho, my feet are soaked in my sandals, and I can barely open my eyes from the water pelting my face.
While Frankie looks like Rose from theTitanicmovie, I look like a steeped possum.
“Isn’t it incredible?” she says.
I turn my head away from the falls, protecting my face, and open my eyes. White water rushes on either side of the boat but my gaze travels downstream where I realize I am in the middle of two countries. The USA to my right and Canada to my left. There are majestic cliffs on both sides and tourists crowded along the railing. To my right, my eye catches a ray of light, and I realize it’s a rainbow shining through the mist.
I’ve focused on the negative so much lately that I’ve forgotten who I am. I am the lovechild of this beautiful world, and I have never seen Mother Nature more powerful than at this moment. My chest warms as I think of my parents, and I feel a pair of arms holding me tightly. I often think of my parents whenever I’m surrounded by natural beauty, but especially at the edge of the falls because they would have loved to be here, too. Closing my eyes, I see my mother and father standing next to me. They are dressed the same as the last time I saw them. My mother in her blue dress and my father in his khakis.
The vision of them slowly fades as the boat changes direction, bringing us back to the start of the ride.
“Are you all right?” Frankie asks, wrapping her arms around me. “You went quiet. I liked it better when you were yelling at me.”
I laugh. “Yeah. I’m good.”
Resting my head next to hers, I smile. “Thanks, Frankie. I really needed this. I’ve been stuck for a while, and I didn’t know how to get through it.”
“I know how you feel.”
“You do?”
“It’s not always easy for me, either.”
“What do you mean?” I worry I’ve been a terrible friend. I’ve noticed Frankie can be melancholy, but it goes away so quickly, I think that perhaps I didn’t really see it.
“Never mind,” she says, snapping her head up. “There’s still so much to do.”
“Frankie…” I plea. “You can tell me.”
“It’s nothing, really. Let’s go have some fun.”
I pause, hesitating to let her pull me off the boat now that it’s docked. But if she doesn’t want to talk about it, I really can’t force her. “I’m here whenever you need to chat. You know that, right?”
She smiles. “I know.”
Then she yanks my arm, and I stumble toward the exit. “Let’s go find someplace to eat,” she says. “I’m starving.”
