Chapter 10 - A Full Table and a New Beginning
Two years to the day after the disaster at the Denver steakhouse, I hosted a dinner party at our newly purchased home—a bright, spacious house with a big backyard, a flourishing garden, and a massive oak dining table in the kitchen.
There was no private room with crystal glasses or white linen.
Instead, our table was covered in a cheerful yellow tablecloth, piled high with roasted chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, fresh asparagus, and a giant homemade chocolate cake baked by Emma and Sophie.
My best friend Sarah and her husband joined us, along with two neighbors who had become like family during our hardest years.
Emma, now twelve, sat near the head of the table, animatedly telling a story about her school science fair project. Sophie, ten, wore a sparkly silver crown she had made herself—not for a grandfather who didn't appreciate it, but just because she felt like royalty.
And Noah, now seven, reached across the table for a second helping of chicken without a single trace of hesitation or fear.
Nobody told him to wait. Nobody told him he was a freeloader. Nobody relegated him to a folding table by the coat rack.
I sat at the center of the room, looking around at the bright, laughing faces surrounding our full, vibrant table.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw an unknown local number. I ignored it, slipping the phone back into my pocket without a second thought.
Whatever ghosts remained from my past stayed locked firmly outside.
I raised my glass of sparkling cider.
"To new beginnings," I said, catching Emma's eye across the table. "And to never, ever waiting for anyone else to give you a seat at the table."
"To new beginnings!" the kids shouted back, clinking their glasses together.
May you like
The room erupted into laughter, bright and loud and completely free. I took a sip of my drink, looking out the back window as the sun dipped below the Rocky Mountains, painting the sky in brilliant shades of gold and amber.
We had made it. Every single one of us.
