I leaned forward to listen to him as he continued.
“Gary and Thomas saw your VietnamEazy travel food segment and they really liked it!” he said.
“Oh?” was all I could come up with. I was still wary.
Suddenly Thomas leapt up from the sofa and rushed past me to lean part of his bottom on Gnarles’ glass desk and face me. He smiled, lifted off his sunglasses to reveal beautiful blue eyes, and made his pitch.
“How would you like to host your own cooking and travel show?” he asked me.
I think I stopped breathing for a moment. I looked at him and back at Gnarles and back at him.
“Yes! We can see it!” he said. “You’ll travel everywhere, seeking out extraordinary dishes and putting a twist on each one to make it easy for anyone to make. You can have spices and condiments sold everywhere all over across America with the label ‘VietnamEazy’ or whatever name we want!”
I was stunned and speechless.
Gnarles finally spoke up in his raspy voice.
“What do you say?” he asked me.
The room went silent. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. I needed a moment to take it all in. My husband usually helped me make these decisions. He was the calm voice I trusted. Today, I had to accept or deny this opportunity all on my own. Then I remembered my own advice to anyone who was out interviewing for a job: “Do what you need to get the job offer, then decide later if you want it or not.”
“Yes! Of course!” I cried out.
Then I bounced out of my chair to shake Gnarles’ hands.
“Thank you for changing my fate!”
He looked up at me from across his clear glass desk and spoke a truth I have always known.
“No, Kieu,” he said. “You changed your fate.”
His words were the sounds of a Buddhist singing bowl that started in my heart and resonated through my fingertips.
About the Author
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