corrected. “They lost their fathers. And they didn’t technically lose them. They still exist. It’s just a different family configuration.”
“They’re too young to see that now,” Marnie said. “You can’t make them understand something they’re not equipped to understand. When they’re older, they’ll see this was the best decision for everyone because otherwise no one was going to be happy. There was too much fighting going on.”
“I’m not arguing the point with you,” I said. “I think they’re going to be better off in the long run. The problem you have is the immediate future. They only know Christmas one way, and that’s the way they want to celebrate this year.”
“We can’t fix that.”
“I didn’t say you could,” I said, tugging on my limited patience so I didn’t blow up at Marnie. I knew she hurt, too. “We can’t give them the Christmas they want, but we can give them the Christmas they deserve.”
“And what’s that going to include?” Marnie pressed. “They want a puppy. You’re adamant they can’t have a puppy. They want snow. We can’t make it snow. They want their fathers. We definitely can’t give them that.
“Now Santa Claus has gone missing,” she continued. “For them, it’s like the world is stacking brick walls up and they’re waiting for those walls to fall in on them. No matter how safe we try to make them feel, this is their new reality, and we can’t chase all of their demons away.
“They’re growing up,” Marnie said. “As much as I would like to wrap them in cotton to protect them from the world, we all know that isn’t possible.”
It was a nice speech. It made me want to smack her. “Who raised you to think like that?”
Marnie was taken aback. “How should I think?”
“We’re witches,” I reminded her. “We can make the impossible possible.”
“I don’t know what that means and I’m not sure I want to know what you’re up to,” Marnie said. “I know you want to give them a great Christmas. We all want that. We can’t give them everything they want, though. Sooner or later, they’ll have to get used to disappointment.”
Over my dead body. “That’s not going to happen this year,” I vowed. “This year they’re going to get the Christmas they deserve.”
“And how will that happen?” Marnie challenged. “Are you going to call to the four corners and make it snow? You’re powerful, but I don’t think you’re that powerful. Are you going to track down Bernard and make him appear as Santa? What if he’s dead? What if he doesn’t want to come back?
“I love you,” she continued. “You’ve been the best mother to us that we could ever hope for. You stepped in when we needed you and I will be forever thankful. Despite your … quirks … you’ve also been a wonderful grandmother to our girls. You’re the only grandmother they’ve ever known. You can’t do everything, though. We can only do the best that we can.”
“I guess you need a little lesson in magic, too,” I said, irritation bubbling up. “I can do whatever I want, and right now I want those girls to have a merry Christmas.”
“I hope you can do everything you want to do,” Marnie said. “You’ll understand if I temper my enthusiasm and the girls’ expectations, though. There’s nothing worse than expecting to get the moon but getting only a star.”
“We’ll just see about that,” I challenged.
DINNER was morose and the more Bay sank into her self-made depression, the more I wanted to smack her. Winnie, Marnie and Twila split dish duty after the meal, and the girls wandered back into the living room to watch television.
That’s when I made my move.
I gathered all the magical supplies I needed from my bedroom and made my way outside. I don’t care what anyone says, I am strong enough to control the weather. If this were a Batman movie, I’d be the best super villain ever – and just wait until you see my cape.
It
“They’re too young to see that now,” Marnie said. “You can’t make them understand something they’re not equipped to understand. When they’re older, they’ll see this was the best decision for everyone because otherwise no one was going to be happy. There was too much fighting going on.”
“I’m not arguing the point with you,” I said. “I think they’re going to be better off in the long run. The problem you have is the immediate future. They only know Christmas one way, and that’s the way they want to celebrate this year.”
“We can’t fix that.”
“I didn’t say you could,” I said, tugging on my limited patience so I didn’t blow up at Marnie. I knew she hurt, too. “We can’t give them the Christmas they want, but we can give them the Christmas they deserve.”
“And what’s that going to include?” Marnie pressed. “They want a puppy. You’re adamant they can’t have a puppy. They want snow. We can’t make it snow. They want their fathers. We definitely can’t give them that.
“Now Santa Claus has gone missing,” she continued. “For them, it’s like the world is stacking brick walls up and they’re waiting for those walls to fall in on them. No matter how safe we try to make them feel, this is their new reality, and we can’t chase all of their demons away.
“They’re growing up,” Marnie said. “As much as I would like to wrap them in cotton to protect them from the world, we all know that isn’t possible.”
It was a nice speech. It made me want to smack her. “Who raised you to think like that?”
Marnie was taken aback. “How should I think?”
“We’re witches,” I reminded her. “We can make the impossible possible.”
“I don’t know what that means and I’m not sure I want to know what you’re up to,” Marnie said. “I know you want to give them a great Christmas. We all want that. We can’t give them everything they want, though. Sooner or later, they’ll have to get used to disappointment.”
Over my dead body. “That’s not going to happen this year,” I vowed. “This year they’re going to get the Christmas they deserve.”
“And how will that happen?” Marnie challenged. “Are you going to call to the four corners and make it snow? You’re powerful, but I don’t think you’re that powerful. Are you going to track down Bernard and make him appear as Santa? What if he’s dead? What if he doesn’t want to come back?
“I love you,” she continued. “You’ve been the best mother to us that we could ever hope for. You stepped in when we needed you and I will be forever thankful. Despite your … quirks … you’ve also been a wonderful grandmother to our girls. You’re the only grandmother they’ve ever known. You can’t do everything, though. We can only do the best that we can.”
“I guess you need a little lesson in magic, too,” I said, irritation bubbling up. “I can do whatever I want, and right now I want those girls to have a merry Christmas.”
“I hope you can do everything you want to do,” Marnie said. “You’ll understand if I temper my enthusiasm and the girls’ expectations, though. There’s nothing worse than expecting to get the moon but getting only a star.”
“We’ll just see about that,” I challenged.
DINNER was morose and the more Bay sank into her self-made depression, the more I wanted to smack her. Winnie, Marnie and Twila split dish duty after the meal, and the girls wandered back into the living room to watch television.
That’s when I made my move.
I gathered all the magical supplies I needed from my bedroom and made my way outside. I don’t care what anyone says, I am strong enough to control the weather. If this were a Batman movie, I’d be the best super villain ever – and just wait until you see my cape.
It
Similar Books
