BH

Burning Hearts: Five

Five 

Sapphire

Buzz

Buzz

Buzz


My phone rang as Raie, Libby and I sat on the sidewalk waiting for my Mother. I quickly fumbled in my bag before the rings ended and picked it up. It was Tash. She was at the Tennis Club sign-up (the rest of us hated the sport, being as lazy as we were).

"Hello?" I asked, puzzled as to why Tash was calling me when she was supposed to be signing-up.

"It's Tash"

"I know, but what I don't know is why you are calling me."

"I don't want to sign up but the teacher won't let me leave."

"Why don't you want to sign-up? You love playing tennis more than anything. Why in the world would you not want to play it?"

"All the other girls are amazing! I will never get in the team against them. There's not even any point in trying, I'll just embarrass myself."

"Whatever, it's you're problem." I said and was about to hang-up on her when Raie grabbed the phone out of my hand. She had been listening in on my conversation and was not going to let Tash be- yet again- let down by me.

“Give it a go!” Raie said in her encouraging voice she always used on me when I was nervous before a performance.

I couldn't make out what Tash was saying but few minutes later Raie gave me back the phone and smiled.

“She’s trying out,” she said, shooting me a smug smile.

“Whatever. Not all of us are the perfect big sisters."

She laughed at that then we called out to Libby, who was talking to a boy in her grade a few meters away, to tell her Susan had arrived.

When we got in the car, as expected, we were bombarded with questions.

“How was your day? What’s the school like? Do you like your teachers? Did anything interesting happen? Have you joined any clubs?” My mother asked us over enthusiastically.

After thinking about it, unlike me, Raie answered, “It was good. My teachers are alright, nothing happened really,” –she left out the little lunch event, giving me a look- “I joined photography club which is really fun.” She finished with a small smile.

Libby just nodded and said her day was good too and I gave my usual answer, “Nothing much happened,” and left it at that.

The drive home was quiet- we all had lots on our minds, but as we drove into the garage my Mother turned around.

“Girls, I need you to help with the Christmas cards.” She said and we all groaned, even Raie. 

My Mother was a very Christmassy person. She sent cards to everyone she knew, even if she hadn’t seen them in twenty years, and every year since I was seven or eight, she had employed us to help, paying in cookies and sour worms. We usually began two or three months before Christmas, because it took so long, and she liked to send them a month before. Every card was written with the same message, other than to close friends, and we had to write it.

Dear……

Hoping all is well with you. Merry Christmas! We hope to catch up with you in the New Year!

Lots of love,

The Davie's

We never did catch up with any of them, since they all lived in either Ireland, where my Father was from, or South Africa, where my Mother was born.