Ken Saik - Helping Hands

Copyright 2021 Ken Saik

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ISBN: 978-1-955403-12-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-955403-13-9 (e)

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Contents

A s they eat lunch, Jill asks about her childrens plans. She thinks they might go for a walk to the park like they used to do. After her lengthy hospital stay, she looks forward to spending some time with them.

Sarah surprises Jill by telling her that she has a part-time job at a convenience store. Only twenty minutes by bike, she says proudly. But Ill be home for supper.

Matt informs Jill of a fun soccer game that he and some neigh-borhood boys will be playing in the schoolyard. He adds that he bikes there with his friend, Bennett.

Its a way Ben exercises Buster, his German shepherd. Matt too promises to return before supper.

In too short a time, they finish lunch, give Jill a quick hug, and disappear into their own lives. Jill drops into her chair, haunted by the awareness that shes alone again, alone like she was in the hospi-tal. She toys with the possibilities of how she might once again be part of her childrens lives.

Focusing on the dirty lunch dishes on the counter, she gets up, grateful she has something to do. To hide her disappointment, she searches the cupboards and the fridge and writes out a grocery list. Then she realizes she has no car.

Ill have to wait until Friday evening. Amber will drive me.

Amber, her eldest daughter, works as a flag person to earn money to go to university.

Call a physiotherapist.

Jill takes out her purse and finds the list the doctor gave her. A shadow descends on her plans.

No car. How will I follow up on my exercise program?

Jill plops onto the kitchen chair again; her head sinks into propped-up hands. She delays choosing a therapist.

Maybe Julie will drive me.

Julie, her niece, wont be back from her holidays for at least another week. Thwarted, she goes down to the fitness center on the main floor of their condo. Stepping onto the treadmill, she sets a pace a third of what it used to be before her accident. As she walks, she laments.

So much has changed .

She misses planning events with her children the most. Jill wor-ries that she might not be able to reclaim her life from a couple of months ago.

Its like trying to catch a piece of paper grabbed by the wind. They all have different lives now, lives without me, like babies pushed out of a nest, flying everywhere, anytime. She brushes a tear away. But I didnt push them out.

The knowledge that she has missed a valuable part of her chil-drens lives clings to Jill like a cool, damp fog. She steps off the tread-mill to catch her breath. A shiver vibrates through her.

Its like Ive been robbed.

She returns to her apartment. To prevent slipping into the past, she plans supper. Assuming it will be at six oclock like it used to be, she opens the fridge door. Leftover fruit salad, meat loaf, and pota-toes tell her what the supper menu will be. Ingredients for a vegetable salad are absent. Half a homemade pizza is wrapped up on a dinner plate.

Josephs work. Probably Ambers supper tonight.

Healthy food choices were never a priority for her ex-husband.

The moment Joseph heard Jill would be coming home, he left.

Not a problem . Jill determines to reverse Josephs menu choices.

Amber arrives home from work after nine. Jills face glows in response to her daughters enthusiastic welcome. In preparation for her meal, Amber places the leftover pizza in the microwave.

No salad? asks Jill.

Dads shopping, says Amber, turning around. Dont worry. Its on my list. She nibbles on a freshly washed carrot. Holding it up, she says, Got these from Aunt Rebecca last week.

Thomas and Rebecca are more than Ambers familys farm friends. They are also her godparents.

When was that?

Friday. Im having supper there tomorrow too.

You are?

Yes. Can you believe shes waiting until seven? I cant get there any earlier.

She is?

Say! Wanna come? I can drive by and pick you up. Id just have to phone and tell her Ill be half an hour later.

I thought tomorrow night we might go grocery shopping together.

Just give me your list, and Saturday after work, Ill pick every-thing up. What about supper at Aunt Rebeccas?

Sarah, Matt, and I are looking forward to spending time together to catch up on things. Jill looks at Amber, hoping Amber might change her mind.

She has no idea that Amber is looking forward to hearing last-minute impressions about her father from Thomas. Amber hopes she might even find out where her father lives, at least in which city. Joseph spent last Friday night at Thomas and Rebeccas place.

Bill will be there, adds Amber, hoping it will sway her mother. Removing an elastic band from her long blond hair, she adjusts it so the ponytail sits higher up on her head.

Her hairs longer , observes Jill. I hadnt noticed it before.

No, thanks. Jill nods, disappointed.

Jills quick response leaves little doubt in Ambers mind that her mothers decision is final.

The next morning, Jill joins her children for breakfast. Conversation with Amber is short. In her old jeans, she rushes off to work. Sarah visits a little longer, but she too bikes off to work. Matt stays and talks about the friends he will see at the morning soccer practice. By nine thirty, Jill is home alone. Her feeling of being left out grounds her to the kitchen chair.

Her sadness is short-lived. Gloria Brewster, Sunday school superintendent, phones. She asks if Jill is ready for company. Jills affirmative answer is coupled with But I have nothing to serve.

No problem. Im bringing two banana loaves.

Two!

Yes. Im also picking up Ellen, Ada, and Ruth. We are looking forward to seeing you. Just put on the coffee.

The visit from the Sunday school teachers takes up the rest of the morning.

In the afternoon, Jill finds that her hopes are once again out of step. Thinking that she should return to work soon, Jill calls her boss, Mr. Tarsen. She works as a receptionist for an insurance broker.