Clumpies Ice Cream Co.
Thursday, December 23, 2004
It was Peter’s birthday that morning of a flaming sunrise. The snow had not come. And Collette was heartily prepared for the day to end. But there was something to be said for enjoying things as they came and she would try her best.
She had been walking around the afternoon before, eavesdropping on Mom’s phone conversation as she sat in Joe’s room. Collette stood outside, looking over Joe’s door. What a great dude. He and Carrie-Bri had begun decorating their doors around four years before, and that year Joe had filled one side with many rows of red and white bumper stickers saying, “GAMBLING STEALS A CHILD’S CHRISTMAS”. Then there was an old-fashioned “Clumpies Ice Cream Co.” sign, from when he and Rose had driven down to Chattanooga on the youth mission trip that summer. And there was a South Korean flag sticker as well, though what significance it had, she was unsure. She had given him a panel of her flag stickers when he had asked for the year before.
Soon Mom came out and shared any news she might have picked up before setting out the shepherd’s pie on the table. Collette did not eat any, however, for they were soon off to Old St. Charles, and then there was macaroni and cheese with buttermilk biscuits. Her root beer float would wait till the following year.
For Collette’s birthday, Diana presented her with an antiqued globe from World Market – just the perfect touch for the apartment. And later, as they waited in the cold van while Carrie-Bri tried to jump Grandma’s car, Diana leaned her head on Collette’s shoulder.
“Collette, what am I going to do without you? I’m going to miss you too much,” And she started laughing, “I don’t want to go to Wheaton. Noooo.” She wailed, laughingly.
“Oh, no,” Collette and Eve laughed with her.
“You’ve got to go after all this,” Collette insisted.
“Yes,” Eve agreed, “you’ve gone through too much to not go now. You’ve got to stay at least a week.”
She agreed in the end, naturally, but she realized that she would actually be leaving everyone behind this time. That was the way it happened in life. Everyone began to move in their own directions, one by one.