Are You Ready? by Amanda Hearty

sea and nature, yet near all the best schools and the city for working. Sarah looked back fondly on her childhood, and could only wish her future children would grow up in as loving and happy a family as she had. Her mum was a ‘stay-at-home artist’, as she always joked, and their house was full of paintings and sketches, and it was this that had inspired Sarah to be an artist herself. And even though she now worked more at selling art than painting it, she still had the passion for it, and her mum still encouraged her to draw as much as she could.
    Her parents used to bring them all down to Greystones for a day at the beach. Her mother would bring her paints, and while Sarah’s dad played with the children in the water she would sit on the beach looking so creative and exciting, as she drew and painted.
    As they walked along the beach now, Sarah could see in her mum’s eyes that she, too, was thinking back to those happy days.
    â€˜You miss Dad, don’t you, Mum?’
    â€˜Of course I do, Sarah, but I’m lucky I’ve years of wonderful memories to relive over and over in my mind. I just wish you would find your soulmate soon, too, to create your own memories and dreams with.’
    Sarah nodded, and for once knew her mum didn’t mean to nag her about being single, but simply wanted the best for her. As they walked along the beach and talked about Sarah’s date with Ross, hermum’s dinner with Mr Macken, and Mel’s last few weeks of pregnancy Sarah realized that sometimes the best days were the days you just relaxed, slowed down, and listened to the water, the memories and your mum.

22
    Today was Molly’s thirtieth birthday. She could not believe she had reached the big 3-0! Where had time gone? It only seemed like yesterday herself and Sarah were sixteen and having to get fake IDs to get into the local rugby club discos on a Friday night.
    When she looked back now on all the years she had spent studying business and numbers she felt it was such a waste; it annoyed her that she hadn’t started working as a cook earlier. But then, as her mum said, everything happened for a reason, and if she hadn’t studied business first, she would never have met Luke, so fate had worked out. She had put up with boring balance sheets in order to meet the man of her dreams. It was worth it, she laughed, as Luke walked into their bedroom with a cake and candles alight, singing ‘Happy Birthday’ while trying to take a photo of her at the same time.
    * * *
    Luke got her a beautiful Dior watch and a Fendi handbag. So much money, she thought, and they were impractical for any average day for her – she could never wear them to work, as they would end up covered in batter and flour! She did appreciate the expensive treats though, and was glad they were not more cookbooks; she had received a lot of those recently!
    Herself and Luke spent the day in Howth, walking, chatting and just being happy. He was in great form, and even though he had wanted to go away for the weekend to celebrate, Molly was happiest at home and with her family and friends. Like anyone else, she loved nights out, but her heart was with being close to people, making them happy, making them smile, and making them full! She loved nothing better than a night in making dinner for her friends; it gave her the greatest satisfaction. And though she would happily have made dinner at home for her whole family tonight, Luke had put his foot down, and instead they were all going to Peploes on St Stephen’s Green for dinner, and then to meet some friends for drinks after.
    As they walked the pier in Howth, and Luke chatted about possible summer holidays, Molly watched the fishermen come back to port with their day’s fishing, and thought of all the great fish dishes she could make with just a few simple ingredients. God, she laughed to herself, when she had worked in a bank she never thought about funds and