"Grandma, I'm home"
"Sarah? I'm in the kitchen dear."
The smell of meat cooking filled the house. Sarah's grandmother was a fantastic cook, and she used her retirement as an excuse to improve her craft even further.
"Grandma, what's for dinner?" Sarah asked, plopping down at the kitchen counter, tossing her backpack on an adjacent stool.
"I'm making stew. Just a little bit of pot roast and some vegetables. Nothing fancy."
Sarah inhaled deeply. Under the smell of meat she could find many other tempting scents. Her grandmother must have used a dozen different spices in her "not fancy" stew.
Seeing her blissful face, Sarah's grandmother smiled and said, "I see you approve. And how was school today?"
"School was fine." Really seeing Karen had been the highlight. Otherwise she had been forced, as always, to sit through classes she only half understood, and put up with the pranks and name calling of people she couldn't stand. But that was normal.
"Fine? Just fine?"
"It was school. Boring and long as usual."
"Well, I always liked school when I was your age. Back then it was a great privilege for girls to go to school at all."
"I don't feel very privileged." Sarah pouted.
Her grandmother sighed. "I do wish you would find something to interest you Sarah. I hate to see you so aimless. You don't have that much longer before you will have to deal with the real world."
"Like mom deals with the real world?" Sarah retorted defensively.
"Now, there is no reason to bring your mother into this. She's going through a hard time now, and you know that. After your father divorced her-"
"Five years ago." Sarah interrupted.
"Five years ago yes. But these things take time to heal."
Her grandmother always defended her mother, and it drove Sarah crazy. Here they were, about to sit down to dinner, and where was her mother? Probably off getting drunk with some guy she barely knew. Apparently that was her way of "healing".
Suddenly, warm arms enveloped her. She let her head fall until it rested on the soft fuzzy warmth of her grandmother's sweater. For a moment they said nothing.
"Sarah? I'm in the kitchen dear."
The smell of meat cooking filled the house. Sarah's grandmother was a fantastic cook, and she used her retirement as an excuse to improve her craft even further.
"Grandma, what's for dinner?" Sarah asked, plopping down at the kitchen counter, tossing her backpack on an adjacent stool.
"I'm making stew. Just a little bit of pot roast and some vegetables. Nothing fancy."
Sarah inhaled deeply. Under the smell of meat she could find many other tempting scents. Her grandmother must have used a dozen different spices in her "not fancy" stew.
Seeing her blissful face, Sarah's grandmother smiled and said, "I see you approve. And how was school today?"
"School was fine." Really seeing Karen had been the highlight. Otherwise she had been forced, as always, to sit through classes she only half understood, and put up with the pranks and name calling of people she couldn't stand. But that was normal.
"Fine? Just fine?"
"It was school. Boring and long as usual."
"Well, I always liked school when I was your age. Back then it was a great privilege for girls to go to school at all."
"I don't feel very privileged." Sarah pouted.
Her grandmother sighed. "I do wish you would find something to interest you Sarah. I hate to see you so aimless. You don't have that much longer before you will have to deal with the real world."
"Like mom deals with the real world?" Sarah retorted defensively.
"Now, there is no reason to bring your mother into this. She's going through a hard time now, and you know that. After your father divorced her-"
"Five years ago." Sarah interrupted.
"Five years ago yes. But these things take time to heal."
Her grandmother always defended her mother, and it drove Sarah crazy. Here they were, about to sit down to dinner, and where was her mother? Probably off getting drunk with some guy she barely knew. Apparently that was her way of "healing".
Suddenly, warm arms enveloped her. She let her head fall until it rested on the soft fuzzy warmth of her grandmother's sweater. For a moment they said nothing.
