She looked around, spying the boxes she had carefully stored. Each now had its place and the size of the closet made for easy organization. Hats and coats there, a vacuum and cleaning rags there and plenty of extra shelves and cubby holes for boxes and bags. She stood with her hands on her hips and smiled. “And a good place for Christmas presents,” she thought. She looked up at the light; “one thing I forgot to dust,” she smirked. She slid the simple chair at the back of the closet beneath the light, grabbed hold of a thick wooden shelf and pulled herself up. A quick dusting now finished, her hand again reached for the shelf, but this time, she drew back quickly, startled. What had she touched? The thought of a spider unsettled her, made her shiver, but her curiosity was more than she could tame.
Lifting herself up on her toes, she craned her neck to see what she touched, reaching out gently. Her fingers gingerly nudged a small package; a wrapped one, she could now tell. Vicki pulled it forward and stepped off the chair. The blue wrapping was faded and the bow thin from years of neglect, yet with a look to the tag on the side, it was obvious what it was; a Christmas present. She stepped into the light of the hall and closed the door behind. The light of day fully revealed the neglect this little package had endured. She turned the tag over to read the name; Willy.
*
The day dawned to a soft rain coming in from the sea on a gentle breeze. She could feel the change in the air as day by day, the month began to slip away. Autumn would quickly be upon them, and here in New England, that meant cold. She stamped her feet to keep them warm, her slippers offering little protection against the wet breeze. She looked up and down the street, the ocean providing a perfect backdrop for the coming season. She had grown up in the South, away from the harsh realities of winter and this would be a new experience. “Nope, no kids yet.”
The morning gave way to noon and as she sipped warm coffee from her ceramic cup she heard the distinctive sound of the forties-style doorbell. With the cup quickly returned to the saucer she headed out of the kitchen and down the main hall. The door swung open as the first of her children burst into their new home.
“Sarah.” Her face lit with a broad smile. She bent her knee to the hardwood floor as her youngest daughter crashed into her at a dead run.
“Momma, you’re hurting me,” she giggled as she squirmed in her mother’s arms.
Vicki was slow to release her child, the pangs of heartache giving way to sheer joy as she embraced her ‘baby’. She unwrapped Sarah and extended her arms toward her eldest. Her smile was returned with muted silence.
“Natalie, come give me a hug.” Vicki stayed where she was, still as a statue waiting for her daughter. “Come oooon.” Her smile was more than Natalie could refuse and a gentle smile lit her eyes. It was only moments later that she was enveloped in her mother’s embrace. “I love you so much,” she whispered. “I know it has been hard these last few months, but we’ll get by.”
Natalie pulled back and cradled her mother’s face in her hands. Her smile was tenuous; she didn’t believe it, and Vicki could see it in her eyes. They had struggled through some tough times and she knew there were more to come. The harder she tried to mask her fears the more her mother saw through her front. Vicki looked up as Patrick’s mother stepped through the door. She dropped her grandchildren’s bags and immediately looked around.
“Nice place you have here.” Holly’s voice was dripping with sarcasm.
“It’s clean, and it’s ours.” Vicki rose and walked toward her mother-in-law, who stood rigidly in the doorway. “Here, let me take those.” She reached down and took the two bags from the floor, turned and placed them against the wall supporting the staircase. At that instant the sun broke through the round window high on the staircase wall and flooded the entryway. It made Vicki smile.
“I suppose if you insist.” Holly smiled wide and broke her stoic look. Vicki stepped up quickly and wrapped her arms around her. She was the only mother she had left. “Now, where’s my room?”
*
The weather started downhill quickly as September faded and October took hold. The rains in the final weeks of the month continued into the first week of the next. Vicki opened the back door and looked out into the quagmire that had become her yard. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as her hand ran up the wood door fame. A splinter made her jerk her hand away suddenly. She eyed the slit in her finger and leaned her shoulder against the frame. Winter was coming on quickly.
She turned as the whistle from the teapot caught her ear. She casually walked to the stove, poured the steaming water into her cup and returned to the table. The smell of the green tea eased her nerves as she rested her head in her hands. The check from the government was late and the expense of moving had added unexpected bills which demanded to be paid. Another heavy sigh escaped her lips. She picked up the cup and lifted it, blowing softly across its surface as her eyes stared at the other end of the table. Holly stood across from her, a letter in hand.
“What’s that?”
“A letter.” Holly’s reply seemed vacant while her eyes scanned the page. She laid the envelope on the table as she lowered herself into the chair opposite her daughter-in-law. Finished, she dropped the paper on the wood, leaned back and took a deep breath.
“Well?”
Holly did not answer immediately and the short pause seemed interminable.
“Pat’s not coming home for Christmas.” The emptiness in her voice was unmistakable.
“What do you mean he’s not coming home?” Vicki’s eyes widened with her own shock. “He, he promised.”
“He has new orders.”
“I don’t give a damn about new orders.” Vicki’s voice nearly raised the roof. “He’s got a family, a wife and children.”
“And a mother....”
Vicki closed her eyes tight, fighting back a scream. The tea cup in her hands began to shake as her grip tightened about the porcelain. She set it quickly into the saucer and took a deep breath.
“And a mother, of course.”
“We’ll get by. I have my own income to help out with.”
“But Christmas is coming.” Vicki let her forehead fall into her hands, her elbows resting on the table. “I wanted a nice one this year for the girls. They’re getting so much older now.”