Sea Glass Memories by Anne Marie Bennett

Author:Anne Marie Bennett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Anne Marie Bennett
Published: 2023-05-14T00:00:00+00:00

On the way home from the meeting, I stop by Kit’s cottage and find her sipping tea at her kitchen table. She doesn’t look much different from before the heart event …maybe a little thinner, a few pale smudges of dark under her eyes. The fresh smell of peppermint greets me as I take a seat across from her. I wonder if she chose peppermint today as a way to lift her spirits, because the aroma sure is lifting mine.

She smiles. “I’m happy to see you, Elena. Let me make you some tea.”

“Okay, thanks.” I slump back in the chair and watch as she rises, graceful as ever, to fill a yellow teakettle from the faucet.

“Tell me what’s happening in your world.” Kit sets the kettle on the stove and turns up the gas flame underneath it.

“I really just came to check on you. I was at the TNA meeting today and everyone was asking about you.”

She perches on the kitchen chair, keeping an eye on the kettle. “I was planning to go but it seemed like my get up and go …got up and left.” She chuckles, then folds her hands on the table. “I’m doing okay. Doctor Cavanagh says I can go back to work in a day or two.”

“And the cigarettes?” I ask tentatively as the teakettle begins a rumble toward a shrill whistle.

Quickly turning off the flame and removing the kettle from the burner, she replies, a bit sorrowfully. “Out the window.”

“Not literally?” I say with a teasing smile, hoping to elicit a laugh.

No laugh, but a definite smile. “Very funny.” She opens the narrow cupboard to the right of the stove, displaying several colorful boxes of tea. “Would you like peppermint also?”

I nod. “Most definitely.”

She carefully withdraws a tea bag, drops it into an orange mug and pours the steaming water over it. She sets the mug in front of me and we both breathe in the minty sweetness. “Ahhh …” She smiles again as she sits down. “Enjoy.” Waving her hand at me and my tea, she continues. “Of course, I couldn’t throw the cigarettes out the actual window, because they would still be out there, on the ground, and I could just go out and light one up.”

“I assume there are no more cigarettes in the general vicinity?”

“Correct.” Kit drinks her tea. “I never thought I could stop smoking cold turkey like this, but Dr. Cavanagh scared me. The whole heart event scared me.” Setting the empty mug on the table with an emphatic thud, she says, “I didn’t think I could, but I’m doing it. I’ve had a little chat with myself. Yes, that’s right. I’ve had a talk with the part of me who thinks she needs a cigarette, and I’ve made myself clear.” She points an elegant finger at me. “You should be glad, dear girl, that you never started.”

“Addiction is a difficult thing to get through. Maybe there’s a support group for that too?”

She considers me as I sip the tea, savoring the minty freshness on my lips.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.