people watch
âI see stage plays
âI notice changes in buildings and landscapes
There is a list of activities organized into categories: Nature (appreciative), e.g., yard work, organized wilderness trips, county, state, and federal parks; or, Nature (sportsman), e.g., fishing (lake, stream), ice fishing, bow hunting, hunting, chartering a fishing boat, or taxidermy (youâll never know until you try it!); dating is under the Social Activities category, as is: Going to a coffee shop, waffle lunch, or having an at-home spa day. Louise has already thought about dating. She is trying to figure out who would want her now.
â¢
A therapist at the rehab center tells Louise to look in the mirror every morning and smile ten times. Your brain and body need to learn to communicate with each other again, he says. He tells her to take a third quiz. The quiz is called: âDo These Prevent You from Enjoying Life?â
âOften I donât feel like doing anything
âWork is the main priority
âI donât think leisure is important
âThere wonât be enough money for me to do what I want
âI wonât have the physical skills
âI wonât have enough free time
âI donât know what is going on or what is available
âThere is no one to do things with
âFollowing through on my intentions is difficult
âSocial situations are awkward for me
âI never feel well enough
All right all right! Louise thinks. Enough!
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
L ouise announces to Tom that sheâs going back to school in the spring. Sheâs going to take writing classes, and apply for a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing, and probably volunteer somewhere, or maybe get a part-time job. But spring semester doesnât start for months, and as far as Tom can tell, she hasnât applied anywhere, or ever left the house. She spends all her time watching the students walk past and playing with her cat.
She is making a big pot of spaghetti with meat sauce. It is the first thing she has cooked in Kansas, as far as Tom knows, and heâs encouraged. âItâs Davyâs favorite,â she says, as she dumps a bottle of wine in the mix. She tells Tom that she and Davy hung out a few weeks ago, and she hasnât talked to him since. âI canât call again,â she says, smooshing the sauce with a wooden spoon. âIâve already called too many times.â Tom gets out two bowls and two glasses of grape juice. Louise raises a shaky hand to Davy and sloshes some on the rug.
Tom is worried. He doesnât like it when he comes over for dinner and can tell that she has been in there all day. He can smell the wasted life as soon as he walks in the door. He tells her that tomorrow he has five appointments and sixteen things to do. One of them is taking a friendâs baby to the park. Then he will wash the houseâs sheets. After that he will drive a van full of people to the roller rink. He asks if she wants to go with him.
âTo the roller rink?â she asks.
She says they should save some spaghetti for Davy.
â¢
Two tornadoes tear apart the town. It hails, and small balls of ice break windowpanes and dent cars. Tom drives to Louiseâs door after the first one. He isnât supposed to be outside, but he has this vision of Louise just sitting in front of the television with her cat. He finds her standing in front of the window in the main room, watching the weather. They run to his car. The sky is yellow-green, the street silent. Everything is still. Then the sirens sound.
The next day they drive past Davyâs house. The second story is just a shell, the rest already boarded up. They see the camper: itâs in the yard, under a fallen tree and hacked in half.
Tom asks if she wants to see if anyoneâs inside.
âKeep driving,â Louise says.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
J anet would like Louise to move back in with her for a
âI see stage plays
âI notice changes in buildings and landscapes
There is a list of activities organized into categories: Nature (appreciative), e.g., yard work, organized wilderness trips, county, state, and federal parks; or, Nature (sportsman), e.g., fishing (lake, stream), ice fishing, bow hunting, hunting, chartering a fishing boat, or taxidermy (youâll never know until you try it!); dating is under the Social Activities category, as is: Going to a coffee shop, waffle lunch, or having an at-home spa day. Louise has already thought about dating. She is trying to figure out who would want her now.
â¢
A therapist at the rehab center tells Louise to look in the mirror every morning and smile ten times. Your brain and body need to learn to communicate with each other again, he says. He tells her to take a third quiz. The quiz is called: âDo These Prevent You from Enjoying Life?â
âOften I donât feel like doing anything
âWork is the main priority
âI donât think leisure is important
âThere wonât be enough money for me to do what I want
âI wonât have the physical skills
âI wonât have enough free time
âI donât know what is going on or what is available
âThere is no one to do things with
âFollowing through on my intentions is difficult
âSocial situations are awkward for me
âI never feel well enough
All right all right! Louise thinks. Enough!
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
L ouise announces to Tom that sheâs going back to school in the spring. Sheâs going to take writing classes, and apply for a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing, and probably volunteer somewhere, or maybe get a part-time job. But spring semester doesnât start for months, and as far as Tom can tell, she hasnât applied anywhere, or ever left the house. She spends all her time watching the students walk past and playing with her cat.
She is making a big pot of spaghetti with meat sauce. It is the first thing she has cooked in Kansas, as far as Tom knows, and heâs encouraged. âItâs Davyâs favorite,â she says, as she dumps a bottle of wine in the mix. She tells Tom that she and Davy hung out a few weeks ago, and she hasnât talked to him since. âI canât call again,â she says, smooshing the sauce with a wooden spoon. âIâve already called too many times.â Tom gets out two bowls and two glasses of grape juice. Louise raises a shaky hand to Davy and sloshes some on the rug.
Tom is worried. He doesnât like it when he comes over for dinner and can tell that she has been in there all day. He can smell the wasted life as soon as he walks in the door. He tells her that tomorrow he has five appointments and sixteen things to do. One of them is taking a friendâs baby to the park. Then he will wash the houseâs sheets. After that he will drive a van full of people to the roller rink. He asks if she wants to go with him.
âTo the roller rink?â she asks.
She says they should save some spaghetti for Davy.
â¢
Two tornadoes tear apart the town. It hails, and small balls of ice break windowpanes and dent cars. Tom drives to Louiseâs door after the first one. He isnât supposed to be outside, but he has this vision of Louise just sitting in front of the television with her cat. He finds her standing in front of the window in the main room, watching the weather. They run to his car. The sky is yellow-green, the street silent. Everything is still. Then the sirens sound.
The next day they drive past Davyâs house. The second story is just a shell, the rest already boarded up. They see the camper: itâs in the yard, under a fallen tree and hacked in half.
Tom asks if she wants to see if anyoneâs inside.
âKeep driving,â Louise says.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
J anet would like Louise to move back in with her for a
Similar Books
