“And waste perfectly good jam time?”
I could almost hear him saying it.
The thought made me smile.
Then it made the kitchen feel quiet again.
Too quiet.
Since Frank died,S, silence had become the loudest thing in my house.
I tried filling it with little routines.
Gardening.
Baking.
Church on Sundays.
Phone calls with old friends.
But there were mornings when I could go hours without hearing another human voice.
That afternoon, I was imagining Lily and Noah eating the strawberry jam when my phone rang.
My daughter-in-law’s name appeared on the screen.
Melissa.
I wiped my hands and answered.
“Hello?”
“Margaret, thank goodness.”
Her voice sounded rushed.
“Melissa? Is something wrong?”
“No, not exactly. Jason has to travel for work next week, and I honestly don’t know how I’m going to manage everything alone.”
I straightened.
My son traveled occasionally for work, but Melissa rarely called me directly unless it involved the children.
Then she said the words that reached straight into the loneliest part of me.
“The kids keep asking about you.”
I smiled instantly.
“They do?”
“All the time.”
My heart lifted.
“Lily asked yesterday when Grandma was coming back. Noah keeps talking about your pancakes.”
I laughed.
“That boy would remember food.”
Melissa laughed too.
Then said:
“Why don’t you come stay with us while Jason is away?”
I hesitated.
“For the whole week?”
“Please.”
Her voice softened.
“It would mean so much to Lily and Noah.”
That was all she needed to say.
“I’d love to.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
“Oh, Margaret, thank you. You have no idea how much this helps.”
At the time, I thought she meant emotionally.
I would later learn exactly what she meant.
“I’ve made jam,” I told her. “I’ll bring some.”
“They’ll love that.”
“And I picked up a little something for each of them.”
“Perfect.”
Then her tone changed slightly.
Brighter.
Almost relieved.
“So it’s settled. You’ll come.”
“Yes.”
“Great. See you tomorrow.”
The line went dead.
I stood there with the phone still against my ear.
There had been something strange in the way she said it.
Not warm.
