The Boy Who Made Flowers Sing

44 | Farewell

Elena visited Jennette in her office the day before she was leaving to teach abroad. She hadn't seen the lady in a while and couldn't wait to tell her that she graduated. She saw Jennette's door was slightly ajar and Elena knocked on it before entering. The therapist was amid dusting the vase that sat on top of her desk and turned around with a beaming face when she saw Elena. Her eyes squinted on  happiness and the usual, black glasses that sat on on the bridge of her nose highlighted her dark, kind eyes.

"Elena!" Jennette exclaimed, opening the door fully.

"It's so good to see you, Jennette!" Elena exclaimed.

"Likewise!" The confident Asian lady continued to smile at her. "Come on in!"

They sat across from each other how they used to sit during every session. Elena reached into her bag and unrolled her university certificate.

Jennette's eyes widened in happiness. "You graduated?"

Elena vigorously nodded.

"I'm so proud of you!" Jennette said, looking at Elena with immense joy. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Elena smiled from the bottom of her heart. "I wouldn't have been able to do it without you."

Jennette smiled in appreciation as Elena handed her a thank you card and a bouquet of flowers.

"This was unnecessary!" Jennette exclaimed, smiling at her.

"It's the least I can do," Elena said, truly meaning it.

Jennette beamed. "I know I'm breaking protocol here, but since you're not my patient anymore, I will say that you are like my daughter. I truly mean it. I've seen you transform into this inspirational, capable woman."

Elena smiled in appreciation.

"I'm leaving for my first trip to teach abroad," Elena told her.

Jennette looked into her bold, hazel eyes and looked sad for the first time. "Look at you. You don't need me anymore, Elena."

Elena smiled. "But, I'll always come back to see you. You're like my family."

"You're always welcome here."

Elena looked at the vase that had always sat in the corner of Dr. Jennette's table. The gold streaks going through it made it look like it was part of royalty.

"I've always thought that vase was beautiful," Elena exclaimed, looking at it.

Jennette looked back at it.

"This vase reminds of you," She said. "My grandfather was a ceramist and when one of his vases broke or shattered, he would smile at me. And I would always ask why he's so happy it broke. He had usually taken weeks to perfect some of his work. He would smile again and say he would use kintsukuroi which means "to repair with gold." He would take the pieces and put them back together by filling the cracks with a pure gold mixture. The vases would look mesmerizingly beautiful. Just like this one."

"When you said to me that you imagined yourself as a vase, constantly shattering over and over, you came together by kintsukuroi. Elena, all your emotional scars are a beautiful gold that illuminate who you are. Don't you ever be ashamed of those cracks. And no matter how many times you shatter, that broken experience adds to your story of resilience and perseverance. Don't you ever forget that."

She looked at Jennette's office table and stared at the vase. She had always seen it but never thought much of it. Now, it made sense why Jennette would always be dusting the vase and treating it with special care. It not only represented her grandfather but a guiding light for her patients.

"I won't," Elena said, getting emotional all over again.

Jennette also had a hard time holding in her emotions; Elena had always been special to her.

"Goodbye, Elena," She stood up, giving her a warm hug. "I wish you the best in all your endeavors. And I hope you find what you're looking for."

Elena nodded and hugged her back, her eyes welling up with tears of gratitude. "Goodbye, Jennette. Thank you. Thank you for everything."

She walked out of Jennette's office for what seemed like the last time. She looked at Jennette, taking in her kind dark eyes and a mental picture of the office. She looked at the placard on the door and remembered the first day she walked in here. Elena had always stumbled into here, sometimes sweating from a panic attack, sometimes feeling so low that she didn't know what to do. Jennette was always her solace and her office was always a safe haven. Jennette knew her thoughts, her personality, and her traumatic experiences. She had helped Elena cope with her father's passing, Melissa's terrible death, her trauma, and Kennedy's turbulent friendship.

Leaving Jennette made Elena feel like she was missing a huge part of her life. But, she needed to finally let go. Just like she had let go of all the other people in her life.

It would be strange not getting into the car with her mom as they rode towards Jennette's office for her appointments. Elena would always wait at the foot of the stairs for her mom to pick her up as she stared out the barred window and read the psychological statistics that hung on the lime green walls. She would hate it when her time was up with Jennette. She felt like she had so much to say but Jennette would remind her she'd be coming back soon. But one appointment to another was like waiting for a whole year to pass.

Elena made her way down the office stairs.

She took one last look at the smiling Buddha statue at the entrance and the tan bricks that surrounded the main door.

Kintsukuroi, Elena thought and smiled to herself as she opened the door to her car and slipped inside, driving away into the carefree summer night.