Page 4 of The Christmas Ring
“I know the right things to say.” Sadie paused. “There are no guarantees when your dad’s in the army... and he’s not the first medic to get killed helping someone. God was with him. We’ll see him again.” The hint of a smile lifted Sadie’s cheeks. “I actually believe all that.”
“We’re taught to look backward.” Vanessa kept her tone soft, thoughtful. “To be thankful for the time wedidhave him... and not angry about the time wewon’t.” Vanessa sighed. “It’s hard for me, too, honey. It’ll always be hard.”
Sadie picked up her fork and moved it around her eggs again. “I know he’s with Jesus. And we’ll all be together again someday.”
“We will.” Vanessa waited until she could feel Sadie’s mood lift a bit. “I keep thinking... if Daddy has a window up in heaven, I sure hope he missed my fall the other day.”
A ripple of laughter seemed to catch Sadie off guard. She took a bite of eggs and pointed her fork at Vanessa. “Mom, it was so funny! Your skis shot straight up in the air.”
And like so often on this journey of grief, the two of them were okay again. Laughing and recalling Vanessa’s spill in detail.
“Listen, Sadie girl.” Vanessa finished her plate and cleared it to the kitchen. She was still laughing. “Don’t think I’m taking the big sledding hill today. Not happening.”
“Oh, come on! You can do it!” Sadie brought her plate to the kitchen, too. “At least one time!”
The laughter remained as they left The Village and headed out. Carter Park was known for its many sledding runs and free stash of sleds at the base of the hill. Breckenridge was a family-friendly town, and by the time Vanessa and Sadie parked and reached the bottom, the place was crowded.
“Let’s go, Mom.” Sadie grabbed a sled for two people and led the way to the tallest hill. “I’ll help you.”
Vanessa had no doubt she could make the climb. She ran two miles a day and followed the same morning workout she and Alan had done together since they got married. “The question isn’t whether I can getupthe hill.” Vanessa trudged behind her daughter. “But whether I can get down.”
“Without flipping, you mean.” Sadie laughed again. She picked up her pace.
Vanessa kept up. “If I do flip, please don’t ever make me sled down this mountain again.”
The two of them arrived at the top, and Sadie turned to her. “Mom.” The wind was harder at the crest. “You’re my best friend. I want you to know that.”
For the rest of her life Vanessa knew she would remember this moment, out of breath standing by Sadie about to slide down the longest hill at Carter Park in Breckenridge. Her daughter’s sweet fourteen-year-old smile and the gift of her words just now.
“You’re my best friend, too, Sadie girl.” Vanessa gave Sadie a side hug and felt the cold brush against her hands and arms. Only then did she realize she’d forgotten her gloves in the car. “No!” She held up her hands. “I’m going to freeze.”
This only made Sadie laugh harder. ““Mom. It’s Colorado. How could you forget your gloves?” She couldn’t stop laughing. “You’re the funniest person I know.”
“That’s my goal.” Vanessa shook her head. “What am I going to do with myself?”
“Just hold on to me. My jacket will keep your hands warm.”
So that’s what they did. Vanessa sat in the back with Sadie in front of her. The drop looked far too steep, so Vanessa closed her eyes and hung on to Sadie. Her daughter was right. Sadie’s jacket kept Vanessa’s fingers as warm as if she’d had her gloves.
The ride to the bottom of the long hill seemed to take forever. Vanessa screamed the whole way down, and Sadie giggled. That’s when it happened.
They were almost to the bottom of the hill when out of nowhere a little boy ran right in front of them.
“Stop!” Vanessa screamed, but there was nothing they could do. They had to hit the child or ditch the sled.
“Roll!” Sadie threw herself sideways and Vanessa did the same thing. They fell off the sled face-down in the snow and flipped another five times before stopping. From the corner of Vanessa’s vision, she saw the little boy run off, unaware.
Vanessa looked at Sadie, her face inch-thick in snow, hair matted with ice. “Where’s your hat?”
Sadie felt for it and again she started laughing. “Mom... you look like an actual snowman.”
Together they scrambled for Sadie’s hat and slid on their backsides the rest of the way down. At the base of the hill, they were laughing so hard they could barely make it off the course. When Vanessa had cleared the snow from her eyes and nose and had caught her breath, she bent over her knees. “That might be the most fun I’ve had at Carter Park.”
Which was why they went back to the car for Vanessa’s gloves and then did the sledding run again and again and a fourth time before stopping for lunch. Over burgers and fries Vanessa listened as Sadie shared drama from her freshman class. “The seniors are so mean. They think they rule the school.”
Vanessa raised her brow. “Well...”
“Okay, true.” Sadie grinned. “But still...”
