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.Anyway, Hannah’s class e-mails the third-graders and sends them little presents, and they also hold a yearly book and computer drive for them.”“That’s great,” I said.“Yeah,” Tess said.“Those New Orleans kids have gone through so much.It’s been a real eye-opener for my spoiled daughter and her classmates.”“I bet,” Rosie said.“Anyway,” Tess said.“I’ve e-mailed the New Orleans teacher a few times, you know, since we both teach third grade, and sent her some extra things.I was thinking we could visit the school, bring some journals for next year’s students.Nice journals, maybe even diaries with locks, and maybe some glitter pens.The kids love those.I hear lots of those schools still have no supplies.Not that teachers up here don’t spend way too much of their own money, but still, it’s got to be really tough in New Orleans.”“Didn’t we have this conversation yesterday?” Rosie said.“No,” Tess said.“That was a completely different conversation.”“I give to everybody else all day long,” Rosie said.“If I’m going to take a trip, I want it to be one hundred percent selfish.Besides, I think Noreen has her heart set on going somewhere with lavender.New Orleans doesn’t really have the right climate.Too humid.”“Hey, don’t throw me under the bus,” I said.“I’m open.”“I’m not sure I can go anywhere anyway,” Rosie said as she stepped up beside me.I dropped back next to Tess.It took us just a few paces to synchronize our steps again.“It’s just…,” Rosie finally said.“I’m lucky I can find the time to get out and walk every day.It’s such a busy season for me.I could do a day trip maybe, but that’s about it.Cape Cod Lavender Farm is great, and it’s right in Harwich.They’ve developed a new variety of lavender I’ve been dying to see.It’s a Hidcote called Harwich Blue, very dark, and it should be in bloom now.I’d like to buy plants to use in some installations anyway.”Tess looked over at me and rolled her eyes.“Are you kidding?” she said.“You want to squander our hard-earned miles on a trip to Cape Cod? I mean, we could probably walk there for real in a day or two.And I’m not supposed to be a do-gooder, but it’s okay for you to drag us along on a work-related lavender-buying trip?”We turned onto our side street shortcut, and Tess and I stepped up on either side of Rosie.“Geez,” Rosie said.“Tell me what you really mean, Tess.”Tess put her arm around Rosie.“Sorry,” she said.“It just doesn’t sound like enough of a trip to me, that’s all.”I don’t know exactly how it happened, but I opened my mouth and somehow I started channeling my Fresh Horizons certified small-group career coach, Brock.I turned to Tess first.“You might consider thinking it through again,” I said, “and taking some time to consider how that choice reflects who you want Tess to be as you move forward into the next chapter of your life.It’s important to give to others, but you also have to learn to nurture yourself.”Then I turned to Rosie.“And if anybody needs a vacation, you do.So, take it.The work will still be there when you get back.” I shook my head.“Boyohboy, when I think back on all the fun I missed out on because of work.”Rosie and Tess were both staring at me.“Whoa,” Tess said.“When did you get to be so smart?”I WAS STANDING in my kitchen, drinking a big glass of water and wondering if it was too early to go to bed, when my phone rang.I jumped.Water dribbled down my chin and onto my T-shirt.I wiped my mouth with my T-shirt, since it was wet anyway, and checked out my stomach as I walked over to my phone.I’d been doing crunches every morning when I woke up and again after dinner.It might have been my imagination, but I thought my abs were possibly looking a little bit tighter already.I was also using Tess’s weights to do one set of eight to twelve repetitions for each of my major muscle groups every other day, plus daily stretches on one of Rosie’s mats every day after we finished walking.Some days Tess and Rosie joined me, and some days they didn’t.The buddy system was nice, but I was fine either way.My mother’s number stared out from my caller ID.“Hi, Mom,” I said.“Happy Sunday.”“I don’t know what’s so happy about it,” my mother said.“Just wait, every day’s the same once you retire.”“How’s the weather down there, Mom?” I asked.“Who knows with all this air-conditioning,” my mother said.“Your sister and her family rented a house on Nantucket for the whole month of July.That doesn’t come cheap.”“That’s great,” I said.“Little Jimmy’s kids haven’t missed a day of work yet.They get themselves up and make breakfast on their own, too.”“That’s great, Mom.”“Kevin’s wife had her first checkup.No sign of twins yet, but she passed everything else with flying colors.”“Great.” I gritted my teeth and got ready for my turn.“So,” my mother said.“Any wedding bells yet?”“Not yet.”“Well, your sister’s flying me up for a visit tomorrow.I don’t know why I can’t go when they’re at their regular house.At least I know my way around the guest room.You could come visit them on Nantucket, too, while I’m there.And bring that boyfriend of yours.At least I’d finally get to meet him.”“Sure, Mom,” I said.“As long as I can get the time off work.We’ve been crazy busy lately.”After I hung up with my mother, I made a mug of tea and sat down at my computer.I Googled lavender.Even ruling out Provence and anywhere else we needed a passport to get to, I found a bunch of great possibilities for our trip.I read article after article, making a list as I went and rating each choice on a scale of one to five.I traded my empty tea mug for a bottle of water.A couple hours later, I looked down at my list.Only one was rated five.I took some notes, saved a Web site to my favorites, and prepared my pitch for Tess and Rosie [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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.Anyway, Hannah’s class e-mails the third-graders and sends them little presents, and they also hold a yearly book and computer drive for them.”“That’s great,” I said.“Yeah,” Tess said.“Those New Orleans kids have gone through so much.It’s been a real eye-opener for my spoiled daughter and her classmates.”“I bet,” Rosie said.“Anyway,” Tess said.“I’ve e-mailed the New Orleans teacher a few times, you know, since we both teach third grade, and sent her some extra things.I was thinking we could visit the school, bring some journals for next year’s students.Nice journals, maybe even diaries with locks, and maybe some glitter pens.The kids love those.I hear lots of those schools still have no supplies.Not that teachers up here don’t spend way too much of their own money, but still, it’s got to be really tough in New Orleans.”“Didn’t we have this conversation yesterday?” Rosie said.“No,” Tess said.“That was a completely different conversation.”“I give to everybody else all day long,” Rosie said.“If I’m going to take a trip, I want it to be one hundred percent selfish.Besides, I think Noreen has her heart set on going somewhere with lavender.New Orleans doesn’t really have the right climate.Too humid.”“Hey, don’t throw me under the bus,” I said.“I’m open.”“I’m not sure I can go anywhere anyway,” Rosie said as she stepped up beside me.I dropped back next to Tess.It took us just a few paces to synchronize our steps again.“It’s just…,” Rosie finally said.“I’m lucky I can find the time to get out and walk every day.It’s such a busy season for me.I could do a day trip maybe, but that’s about it.Cape Cod Lavender Farm is great, and it’s right in Harwich.They’ve developed a new variety of lavender I’ve been dying to see.It’s a Hidcote called Harwich Blue, very dark, and it should be in bloom now.I’d like to buy plants to use in some installations anyway.”Tess looked over at me and rolled her eyes.“Are you kidding?” she said.“You want to squander our hard-earned miles on a trip to Cape Cod? I mean, we could probably walk there for real in a day or two.And I’m not supposed to be a do-gooder, but it’s okay for you to drag us along on a work-related lavender-buying trip?”We turned onto our side street shortcut, and Tess and I stepped up on either side of Rosie.“Geez,” Rosie said.“Tell me what you really mean, Tess.”Tess put her arm around Rosie.“Sorry,” she said.“It just doesn’t sound like enough of a trip to me, that’s all.”I don’t know exactly how it happened, but I opened my mouth and somehow I started channeling my Fresh Horizons certified small-group career coach, Brock.I turned to Tess first.“You might consider thinking it through again,” I said, “and taking some time to consider how that choice reflects who you want Tess to be as you move forward into the next chapter of your life.It’s important to give to others, but you also have to learn to nurture yourself.”Then I turned to Rosie.“And if anybody needs a vacation, you do.So, take it.The work will still be there when you get back.” I shook my head.“Boyohboy, when I think back on all the fun I missed out on because of work.”Rosie and Tess were both staring at me.“Whoa,” Tess said.“When did you get to be so smart?”I WAS STANDING in my kitchen, drinking a big glass of water and wondering if it was too early to go to bed, when my phone rang.I jumped.Water dribbled down my chin and onto my T-shirt.I wiped my mouth with my T-shirt, since it was wet anyway, and checked out my stomach as I walked over to my phone.I’d been doing crunches every morning when I woke up and again after dinner.It might have been my imagination, but I thought my abs were possibly looking a little bit tighter already.I was also using Tess’s weights to do one set of eight to twelve repetitions for each of my major muscle groups every other day, plus daily stretches on one of Rosie’s mats every day after we finished walking.Some days Tess and Rosie joined me, and some days they didn’t.The buddy system was nice, but I was fine either way.My mother’s number stared out from my caller ID.“Hi, Mom,” I said.“Happy Sunday.”“I don’t know what’s so happy about it,” my mother said.“Just wait, every day’s the same once you retire.”“How’s the weather down there, Mom?” I asked.“Who knows with all this air-conditioning,” my mother said.“Your sister and her family rented a house on Nantucket for the whole month of July.That doesn’t come cheap.”“That’s great,” I said.“Little Jimmy’s kids haven’t missed a day of work yet.They get themselves up and make breakfast on their own, too.”“That’s great, Mom.”“Kevin’s wife had her first checkup.No sign of twins yet, but she passed everything else with flying colors.”“Great.” I gritted my teeth and got ready for my turn.“So,” my mother said.“Any wedding bells yet?”“Not yet.”“Well, your sister’s flying me up for a visit tomorrow.I don’t know why I can’t go when they’re at their regular house.At least I know my way around the guest room.You could come visit them on Nantucket, too, while I’m there.And bring that boyfriend of yours.At least I’d finally get to meet him.”“Sure, Mom,” I said.“As long as I can get the time off work.We’ve been crazy busy lately.”After I hung up with my mother, I made a mug of tea and sat down at my computer.I Googled lavender.Even ruling out Provence and anywhere else we needed a passport to get to, I found a bunch of great possibilities for our trip.I read article after article, making a list as I went and rating each choice on a scale of one to five.I traded my empty tea mug for a bottle of water.A couple hours later, I looked down at my list.Only one was rated five.I took some notes, saved a Web site to my favorites, and prepared my pitch for Tess and Rosie [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]