My Kind of Christmas

have been leaving nonperishables here and at the church for weeks already. Preacher and Jack like to get those food boxes out before Christmas—there are needy people here and there.”
    “You didn’t come up here to relax, I guess,” Donna said.
    “I get plenty of rest, so don’t—”
    “That wasn’t a criticism, Ange. Far from it. I couldn’t be more proud of you.”
    Angie sat back in her chair as if surprised. “Thanks.”
    “Even though I protested, your uncle Jack and aunt Brie were right—we needed a little distance, some perspective. Plus, you look wonderful. Healthy and strong and effervescent. I suspect a certain young man might be responsible for the effervescence.”
    “Well, that may have stalled just temporarily—Patrick’s mother surprised him with a visit last evening. She and her partner, George, have an RV and they travel around, visiting and vacationing. They’re retired.”
    “Please don’t tell your father! He has aspirations toward an RV and I can’t even think of actually living in a cramped space like that.”
    “But you love traveling with Dad!”
    “I do, but I’m not one for roughing it.”
    “You should meet Maureen. You have things in common. She’s here because she was worried about Patrick. Couple of nosy, in-your-business mothers.”
    Donna frowned. “Worried?”
    Angie explained about Paddy’s best friend’s death, which precipitated this leave from the Navy. “It took its toll, but he’s going to be all right. We have a lot in common that way.”
    It was not lost on Donna that Angie’s eyes took on a proud shine when she talked about him. No argument from Donna—this was the young man who helped a stranger in a parking lot. “Fate is wonderful sometimes,” she said. “When you decided to come up here, I thought you might be bored.”
    Angie shook her head. “Of course, his leave will be up soon.”
    “Then you should enjoy the time you have,” Donna said.
    “Mom, have you been hypnotized? ”
    “Why do you say that?”
    “You haven’t been yourself. You’re different.”
    How to phrase it? Donna asked herself. “You’re the guinea pig, Ange—getting me in shape for your younger sisters. It’s time for you and I to meet on a new playing field and no one prepared me for this. While you’re growing up, you need someone to raise you, to keep you from falling off the cliff now and then, to herd you, help you make good choices. And now? Now it’s time for you to see me in a different way. I want to be entitled to an opinion now and then without offending you. I want to be there for you when you need me but you don’t have to answer to me. I want to be in your path but not in your way. You’re officially on your own. So how do we do that?”
    “Feels like you’re doing it....”
    “But there’s a fine line. Let’s try looking at it in a role reversal—when you think I’m slipping or sick or hurt and can’t take proper care of myself, will you step in? Will you have a board meeting with your sisters and say, ‘Mom is short of breath and sometimes confused and in denial and Dad is useless with health issues—we have to stage a takeover and do something or we might lose her.’ Will you, Ange? Because I used to talk to my friends about child-raising issues and now we’re talking about looking out for our elderly parents. Things change and yet stay the same. I want to be there for you when you need me, but I also want to be able to rely on you because there’s no question I’m going to need you. We have to make the transition somehow. We have to do it as friends. We have to rebuild our trust.”
    “Mom…”
    “I know—I’m bossy. It’s been pointed out to me for over fifty years now. It wasn’t easy to be the oldest of five kids or be a working mother with three little girls. I might’ve taken on a few controlling issues. But Jenna and Beth will graduate from college before very long and I desperately want this monkey off my back. I want to learn how to be a good partner to my adult daughters.”
    Donna watched Angie as tears came to her eyes.
    “Please don’t cry, Ange. I’ll be banished if you cry.”
    “Oh, Mom, that’s just so sweet! You’re not exactly known for being sweet....”
    Donna rolled her eyes. It was going to be decades before she grew out of that reputation. “Who held you while you cried when that asshole stood you up on prom night? Who fired MCAT questions at you to help you get ready for the test?