After the truth of Naomi’s parentage was divulged, Ruth was fearful of Sarah stepping up and taking on the role of Naomi’s mother. Sarah privately yearned for a maternal relationship with her sister/daughter, and was relieved just to be a part of Naomi’s life, even if their relationship had to be one of siblings. Since Sarah’s secret was exposed, the family wasn’t sure how to deal with Naomi. So they kept her at arm’s length, like she did with most of them.
“So, do you still plan on coming home this weekend?” Sarah asked Naomi, holding her breath, then exhaling loudly. “I know that Daddy would be thrilled to see you, and Queen also, not to mention Momma.”
“I am coming home, but I’ll be there next weekend instead of this one,” Naomi murmured. “That’s the reason I called you. I wanted to know what you’d think about me bringing a friend home with me. I wanted your opinion before I talk to Momma.”
“Is it a male friend?” Sarah asked nosily.
“Uh, y-yes,” Naomi stuttered.
“That’s great,” Sarah said, her voice overflowed with enthusiasm. “I don’t think you’ve ever brought anyone home with you in all the years you’ve been away. You must admit, Nay, you’ve been away from Chicago a long time.”
“That’s true. I like the warmer weather and small-town feel of Edwardsville, so it has become home. I have to admit, I would like to see Queen. Momma hasn’t said so, but I get the feeling her health is deteriorating.”
“It is. Speaking of health issues, did Momma tell you about Aunt Alice?”
“No.” Naomi felt her stomach drop to her feet. “What about Aunt Alice? Is something wrong with her?”
“She found a lump in her breast a few weeks ago and had a mammogram done. The radiologist saw something he didn’t like on the film, so Aunt Alice had another mammogram with the same results. She went back to the hospital today, her doctor ordered a biopsy. The lab analyzed the tissue sample while she was at the hospital. Momma went with her, and the doctor confirmed she does indeed have breast cancer.” Sarah felt miserable; Alice was like a second mother to her and her siblings.
“Oh, my God,” Naomi moaned as her body sank against the back of the chair she was sitting in. If she had been standing, her legs would have given out. “Momma told me she was going to the doctor with Aunt Alice, but she never said there was anything seriously wrong with Aunt Alice.”
“In Momma’s defense, she probably didn’t want to worry anyone until she knew something definite. And knowing Aunt Alice, she probably didn’t give Momma any details until the last minute.”
“You’re probably right. So it’s more imperative than ever that I come home as soon as possible. Why is there always so much drama in our lives? Lenora has left Daddy, Queen is drifting heavily into senility, and now Aunt Alice has cancer. This is too much,” Naomi lamented.
“Well, I’m glad you’re coming home soon. I can’t wait to see you. I love you, Nay,” Sarah said caringly.
“I love you too. Sarah, I’ll call Momma tonight and tell her I’m bringing a guest home. Tell Daddy I said hello, and I’ll see you next weekend,” Naomi said.
The two women hung up the phone and Sarah returned to the living room. She was shocked to see that her father had moved from his permanent residential chair. He was now sitting on the couch, talking to the boys, who were huddled on both sides of him.
Sarah smiled with satisfaction and tiptoed back into the kitchen. She sat at the kitchen table and bowed her head in silent prayer. Gracious Father, thank you for helping Daddy to see the light. Continue to give him strength and guidance. In Jesus’ name, I pray.
After praying, she was so overjoyed, she had an overwhelming urge to talk to her children, to see how they had been faring without her presence for the past few days. She picked up her cell phone and called home. Brian informed her that he was holding down the fort, and he advised her to relax.
She could hardly wait to talk to Ruth and tell her of the initial changes at Daniel’s house, and how she hoped her father was coming out of his funk.
Tears sprang to Sarah’s eyes as she thought about how God was good, and how He supplied her every need.
Later after everyone retired to bed, Sarah’s thoughts wandered to Naomi, her oldest child whom she didn’t claim publicly. How she wished that she could. She had to keep her emotions in check, especially when she was around her other children. Every year, the deception became harder for Sarah to perpetrate.
A part of Sarah wanted to reach out and try to establish a mother-daughter relationship with Naomi. But she couldn’t, because there was one person stopping her—her own mother, Ruth. She knew Ruth had invested too much love, energy, and time to relinquish the maternal bond with Naomi willingly. Still, those facts didn’t stop Sarah from wishing the true nature of Naomi’s parentage could be revealed. Sarah sighed. She picked up her cell phone from the nightstand and called Brian again. She had an urge to hear his voice, tell him that she loved him, and say good night. After her conversation with her husband had ended, Sarah settled into the bed. Her thoughts shifted to her children. She wondered how Maggie and Josh would react to learning Naomi was their sister.
Chapter Eleven
When Ruth arrived home late Wednesday evening, worry lines navigated a path across her forehead as she turned off the engine of her car. She walked hurriedly toward the apartment building as rain sprinkled the air. She noted Fred’s car parked down the street. Ruth’s day hadn’t improved as it progressed; instead, it had become more grueling. June had left work early for an appointment, and the telephone had rung nonstop. June had warned Ruth to set the telephone system to voice mail, but Ruth hadn’t heeded her advice.
She had received many calls from parishioners, worried about the state of the church’s finances and their solutions. An elderly member had passed, and Ruth consoled the family and promised to visit them later that evening. Tonight there was a prayer meeting at the church, and Ruth had breathed a sigh of relief when Reverend Bowden suggested he preside over the service in her place. She had made a mental note to delegate that task to him until the church budget was passed. Ruth needed to dedicate as much time as possible to work on the finances.
Much to Ruth’s dismay, she hadn’t been able to make as much headway working on the church budget as she would have liked. When she had finally put down her pencil, she felt disheartened. It seemed no matter how many times she added or subtracted the numbers, they still came back with the same disheartening results. The church faced a massive shortfall in offerings due to the dismal economy. She was also dismayed to learn that many of the utility bills for the church had not been paid. The church’s emergency fund was nearly depleted after Ruth paid those tardy bills. She would need a miracle to pay the utilities for the upcoming month.
After removing the mail from her mailbox, Ruth walked up a few stairs to her apartment. Usually when Ruth arrived home, Alice’s door was open, and pleasing aromas would be wafting through the stairwell. Ruth would stop at Alice’s apartment so they could discuss the ups and downs of the day. But that evening, Alice’s door was closed. Ruth felt sad, and tears gathered in her eyes as she fumbled to unlock her door.
The tenants who occupied the apartments on the second and third floors didn’t usually arrive home until late in the evening. One of the tenants who lived on the third floor planned to move by the end of the following month, so Ruth planned to ask for Sarah’s help in finding a new tenant to rent the apartment.
Ruth put her umbrella in the oak rack near the matching coatrack. Then she placed her tote bag on the floor, and her alligator purse atop the cherrywood console table in the foyer. After she removed her jacket and hung it in the closet, she took the mail and set it next to her on the navy-blue-and-white striped sofa. She kicked off her shoes. Her head lolled along the back of the sofa, and she closed her eyes.
Heavenly Father, thank you for delivering me home safely one more day. Tomorrow is never promised, so I give thanks to you for allowing me to see another
day to give you the praises and glory, she prayed silently.
Lord, I ask that you look favorably upon the members of The Temple. Keep them safe and sound as they make their way home from work. Lord, please take care of my family; keep them in your watchful eye. Lord, please heal Alice. She has a tough road ahead, and nothing but your grace and mercy can help her. Lord, thank you for sending Aron to The Temple today to help out. Thank you for putting a desire to fill the maintenance position in Aron’s heart. He was a blessing for me and for the church today. Thank you, Father.
Ruth thought about Alice, and she brushed a tear away from her cheek. “Let it go,” she reprimanded herself aloud and stretched her arms upright. “Turn it over to the Master,” she told herself.
She opened her eyes and rose from the sofa. She then walked into the kitchen and put on a kettle to brew some tea. Her stomach growled, hungry from the salad she’d had for lunch many hours ago. After she turned the flame to low under the kettle, Ruth went back to the living room. She sat on the sofa and sorted the mail. The doorbell sounded, and she nearly leaped from the sofa to the door. Her legs screamed to slow down. She opened the door to find Alice standing on the other side; there was a Mona Lisa smile upon her face.
“Well, come on in,” Ruth said, pulling her friend’s arm and leading her inside the apartment. “Is Fred still at your house? I saw his car when I came in,” she whispered, as though Fred could hear through the walls.
“No,” Alice replied, “he left thirty minutes ago. I tried to wait for you to come home, but I dozed off. If you haven’t started dinner, I thought we’d send out for Chinese. What do you think about that, sister-girl?”
“I think that’s a good idea. My stomach is yelling at me to feed it.” Ruth laughed. “Hold that thought, I’ll be right back. I need to turn off the teakettle.”
“Good,” Alice said, walking into the living room. “I already placed the order and the deliveryman should be here”—she paused and looked at her watch—“in half an hour.” She sat down on a wingback chair, and Ruth made her way to the sofa. “So how was your day?”
“Not too bad. A pipe burst in the church and water spilled into the children’s church. Luckily, I was able to get in touch with Aron Reynolds. He came to the church and replaced a washer in one of the pipes and cleaned up the mess.”
“Ouch, that had to be ugly,” Alice replied. She tugged on one of the twists in her hair. Her natural reddish hair was now completely gray, but the color was complementary to her face. A few more wrinkles had taken permanent occupancy on her still-plump face.
The women talked about the biopsy procedure until their meal was delivered. Ruth took the bags to the kitchen, while Alice paid the deliveryman.
When Alice walked into the kitchen, Ruth had set the table. Alice removed glasses from the cabinet. Finally the women sat down, and they bowed their heads and closed their eyes.
“Gracious Father, thank you for the food that has been prepared for the nourishment of our bodies. Through Christ, we pray. Amen,” Alice recited.
The delectable aromas of garlic chicken for Ruth, and orange chicken for Alice, along with noodles, fried rice, and egg rolls, drifted through the air.
“Um, that smells good,” Ruth observed as she ladled a generous portion of rice on her plate. The women dug into the food with gusto.
Several minutes later, they had finished eating and returned to the living room and sat on the sofa to converse.
Alice crossed her feet at the ankle and cleared her throat. “Ruth, I want to apologize for not telling you sooner about Fred. When we began having coffee together, I never imagined we would start dating and develop a relationship. I just couldn’t find the words to tell you that I was dating your former brother-in-law.” Alice looked down, clearly abashed. Then she looked back up at Ruth.
Ruth couldn’t help but notice the glow in her friend’s eyes. “I accept your apology. I just can’t believe you two are in a relationship and didn’t say a word about it to me, your best sister/friend in the world. Girl, we like this.” She pointed her fingers at Alice’s eyes, then at her own. Alice burst out laughing.
“I hear you,” Alice chortled. “Fred told me over and over again that I should tell you. How could I tell you that I was beginning to have feelings for the man we had labeled ‘the biggest womanizer in Chicago’?”
“I think we called him ‘the biggest dog in the Midwest,’” Ruth quipped drily. “I can see why you would be hesitant. I guess you just didn’t want to hear my mouth.”
“That too. Truthfully, I wanted to give it time to see what would happen, and I didn’t want to hear you say that you told me so, if things didn’t work out between us,” Alice declared.
“I can understand that,” Ruth said. “Does he make you happy?” She searched Alice’s face carefully, although she knew the answer; it was written all over her friend’s face.
“Ruth, he makes me so very happy. Sometimes I can’t believe it. Fred said seeing Daniel lying in the hospital after his heart attack was a wake-up call for him. He knew it was time to change his ways; and from what I can tell, he has.”
“You know Queen and your mother used to tell us how a leopard never changes his spots, and you know how strongly we believed them.”
Alice nodded, and a faraway look gleamed in her eyes. “They sure did, but what they failed to mention was that people can change if they truly want. It’s because they really want to make a change in their lives for the better, and they find the strength to do just that.”
“Let’s hope that Fred’s womanizing wasn’t an addiction then,” Ruth remarked. “We wouldn’t want him to backslide.” She leaned back on the couch and folded her arms across her chest.
“I don’t think that he will. I can sense his sincerity when he talks about how he turned his life around. You know what he feels really bad about? It is how Daniel’s life turned out. He knows that he played a big part in Daniel’s behavior toward women.”
“I know that’s right.” Ruth bobbed her head up and down. “All I used to hear from Daniel back in the day is what Fred said. Like Fred was the be-all and end-all expert in life.”
“A lot of it was just a younger brother who hero-worshipped his older brother,” Alice observed, nodding her head.
“That’s true. And, girl, if he makes you happy, then who am I to interfere? I just hope your relationship with Fred won’t come between our relationship.” Ruth looked down at her lap, clearly troubled.
Alice reached over and grabbed Ruth’s pinkie finger with her own. “Remember we made pinkie promises when we were little girls?” she asked. Ruth nodded. Alice continued to speak. “How nothing—especially a man—will ever come between the friendship, sisterhood, and love we share.”
The women entwined their fingers together and pulled; then they hugged each other.
“It seems like you’ve been keeping more than your relationship with Fred away from me,” Ruth stated firmly. “How could you not tell me about your illness earlier?”
“I wanted to talk to you so many times. But if I had to verbalize what I was going through, then I couldn’t stay in denial. Denial was a good place to be, because I didn’t have to deal with reality, illnesses, heartache, or pain.”
“But, Allie, I could have helped you cope with what you were going through,” Ruth objected. “That’s what friends, especially best friends, are for. We help and encourage each other through the bumps and bruises of life.”
“You are so right.” Alice nodded. “I goofed.” Her head dropped with shame.
“I’ll let you slide this time,” Ruth said. “But from here on out, I expect to be a part of your life, and be there for you through the good times and bad.”
“You will.” Alice held up her hand like she was a Girl Scout. “So how do you really feel about the possibility of Daniel becoming a free man?” Alice probed gently.
“I don’t know what to think.” Ruth looked away. She was never a good liar.
�
��This is your BFF you’re talking to. I know you still have feelings for Daniel; so therefore, you must have had some reaction to the news. What are you thinking? You can tell me.”
Ruth inhaled and then exhaled slowly. “You’re right, you do know me. A part of me has never stopped loving Daniel, and I do believe wedding vows are forever or until a spouse passes. So the news excites me in a way. But on the other hand, I’m ashamed that I still have feelings for a man who couldn’t be faithful to me.”
“I understand what you mean, and I would never judge you. If it’s meant to be, God will bring the two of you back together. So tell me about Aron Reynolds. I couldn’t help but notice how your eyes lit up like candles when you spoke of him.”
“I believe Mr. Reynolds was flirting with me. I mean, I know he was. He asked me out on a date,” Ruth replied modestly, lowering her eyes.
“Get out of here.” Alice’s eyebrows rose. “What did you say?”
“I told him that I’d have lunch with him on Friday,” Ruth announced.
“Wow. Good for you. It’s about time someone got you out of that shell you’ve inhabited since your divorce.” Alice’s toothy grin beamed her approval.
“Are you forgetting that I’m the minister of a church, and that Aron Reynolds served a lengthy sentence in prison for murder?” Ruth shot back. Aron was convicted of felony first degree murder. He couldn’t afford a criminal attorney and was at the mercy of a public defender. His case was complicated by his history of burglaries.
“And?” Alice lobbed back a challenge with her eyes.
“What do you mean by ‘and’?” Ruth looked at Alice like she was talking to a child. “I’m a minister, and my members expect me to carry myself with a sense of decorum. I’m the head of the flock. I don’t think the church board would approve of me dating a murderer. They might even try to vote me out of the church, or something.”
“Well, bravo.” Alice clapped her hands together. “Have you been practicing the speech you’re going to present to Aron Reynolds when you tell him that you can’t see him anymore? Just like you did with the other men you’ve dated, who just didn’t measure up to Daniel.”
Letting Misery Go Page 11