Coming Home
She stared impatiently at the clock. It was only 9:47 a.m. She had only been there for 18 hours and she already wanted to leave.
Shell was back in Kansas again. It was as horrible as she had remembered. The weather was cold, the ocean was miles away and to top it off, she had to spend the next three days with her family.
It was Thanksgiving day and her mother had insisted that she come "home" to see everyone. But this wasn't home anymore. Home was Urvine, California and she liked it that way. No one knew what she was doing with her life, mainly because she didn't want anyone to know. She could call every now and then, tell everyone things were great, and they wouldn't know any different.
But now she was face to face with all of them. She would have to plaster on a fake smile and play the loving daughter-sister-cousin-niece-granddaughter role until she could shut herself in her room at night and finally be herself.
At 11 o'clock, the door flew open and in walked her younger sister, Meg. She was obviously the favorite of the who. She had stuck around after high school and went to the local college. She would graduate in a year with a mass media degree and, unlike Shell, she made frequent trips to visit both her parents and her grandparents.
She had been a big trouble-maker back in high school; back when Shell was the favorite one. But now Meg had turned her life around and it seemed as though the two had swap places. Meg was now the fun, bubbly, energetic daughter-sister-cousin-niece-granddaughter that everyone loved. Her plastered-on smile wasn't fake, and it drove Shell crazy.
Finally around 12:30 p.m. the rest of the family started showing up. They were in an unfamiliar place this year. Shell and Meg's parents had moved to Wichita and this was the first time they had all been down to see the place.
It was a beautiful home; four bedrooms, two fireplaces and a new pool table. All signs of a big promotion and new opportunities in a new town. But to Shell it was just a bigger Topeka. It would never compare to California and her new life she had started for herself. It's true, she was broke and struggling to pay the rent every month, but damnit she was doing it on her own and she would never ask for anyone's help.
Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, as always. Afterwards the men headed downstairs for some football and belly-rubbing while the women stayed upstairs with their cups of coffee. Shell answered the typical questions about where she was at now and what she had been up to for the last year. She felt as though she was being interviewed for a documentary on VH1.
Finally around four the family started packing up the kids to head back to Topeka. Shell had survived. As miserable as it was, she made it through. Now she just had to make it through the next two days and she would be on a plane back home. Her real home, that is. Then she would have a whole year to herself before having to deal with them all again.
Shell was back in Kansas again. It was as horrible as she had remembered. The weather was cold, the ocean was miles away and to top it off, she had to spend the next three days with her family.
It was Thanksgiving day and her mother had insisted that she come "home" to see everyone. But this wasn't home anymore. Home was Urvine, California and she liked it that way. No one knew what she was doing with her life, mainly because she didn't want anyone to know. She could call every now and then, tell everyone things were great, and they wouldn't know any different.
But now she was face to face with all of them. She would have to plaster on a fake smile and play the loving daughter-sister-cousin-niece-granddaughter role until she could shut herself in her room at night and finally be herself.
At 11 o'clock, the door flew open and in walked her younger sister, Meg. She was obviously the favorite of the who. She had stuck around after high school and went to the local college. She would graduate in a year with a mass media degree and, unlike Shell, she made frequent trips to visit both her parents and her grandparents.
She had been a big trouble-maker back in high school; back when Shell was the favorite one. But now Meg had turned her life around and it seemed as though the two had swap places. Meg was now the fun, bubbly, energetic daughter-sister-cousin-niece-granddaughter that everyone loved. Her plastered-on smile wasn't fake, and it drove Shell crazy.
Finally around 12:30 p.m. the rest of the family started showing up. They were in an unfamiliar place this year. Shell and Meg's parents had moved to Wichita and this was the first time they had all been down to see the place.
It was a beautiful home; four bedrooms, two fireplaces and a new pool table. All signs of a big promotion and new opportunities in a new town. But to Shell it was just a bigger Topeka. It would never compare to California and her new life she had started for herself. It's true, she was broke and struggling to pay the rent every month, but damnit she was doing it on her own and she would never ask for anyone's help.
Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, as always. Afterwards the men headed downstairs for some football and belly-rubbing while the women stayed upstairs with their cups of coffee. Shell answered the typical questions about where she was at now and what she had been up to for the last year. She felt as though she was being interviewed for a documentary on VH1.
Finally around four the family started packing up the kids to head back to Topeka. Shell had survived. As miserable as it was, she made it through. Now she just had to make it through the next two days and she would be on a plane back home. Her real home, that is. Then she would have a whole year to herself before having to deal with them all again.
posted by valerieh @ 12:41 PM
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