Theatrical Muse: Yours and Mine
Cheer Someone Up
At seven-thirty at night, Murphy’s phone range. She dropped what she was doing, reheating take-out could wait, and grabbed the kitchen phone.
“Hello?”
“Mom,” Anna’s voice came through loud and clear, but still her usual quiet, soft spoken tone. “Dad says he’s going to marry Lisa.”
“He did?” She pulled out one of the kitchen chairs and sat down, slightly nervous about this call. She thought Anna was past the stage where she wanted her parents to get back together, but this marriage thing could bring it all back. “What do you think, kid?”
Anna was quiet for a moment. “I don’t want Lisa to be my mom. You’re my mom.”
“Just because your dad marries Lisa doesn’t make her your mom.”
“She’ll have my last name and she’ll be dad’s wife and she’ll live with us and want me to call her mom. She always wants me to call her mom.”
Murphy’s heart twisted in her chest. Anna sounded so sad, so hurt and frustrated too. Lisa for months now had been trying to get Anna to call her mom, which Murphy should have seen as a sign of this whole engagement thing. She had been too pissed off at the woman to really think about what it might mean. At the time she had firmly told Lisa to stop but now she didn’t have a leg to stand on, even though she knew her daughter would never call Lisa “mom”.
“Well, kid, you know that Lisa’s not your mom and when she marries your dad, that’ll just make her your step-mom. You can call her that because it’ll be what she is,” she said, wondering to herself if it was even the right thing to say.
Her dad had never gotten remarried and her mom wasn’t around to get upset over. She could only imagine what Anna was feeling and what was the right thing to say to make it okay.
“I’m your mom. That’s what you keep telling me and you keep writing mom on all those pictures you give me, I’m pretty sure that means I’m your mom.”
“Mom…”
“See? That’s exactly what I’m talking about.”
She smiled and let out a silent sigh of relief when she heard Anna giggle on the other end of the phone. She wasn’t completely useless at this mom business, thank God.
“You’re not mad at dad, are you? For marrying Lisa?”
“No. Lisa makes your dad happy. That’s what matters.” And she didn’t really have a say in what he did with his life anymore. Her ex-husband was just that, her ex. He got to live his life however he wanted as long as he took care of Anna.
“Yeah, she does,” Anna reluctantly agreed. “We’re going to go meet her family in St. Louis this weekend. Dad says they’re nice.”
But her kid wasn’t good with strangers. Murphy could just imagine Lisa and her family trying to get Anna into the center of attention. Her kid would be miserable. Her heart twisted again. There was nothing she could do to protect her kid from this and the hard facts of life. Sometimes, she wondered if Anna was growing up too fast, like she had.
“I bet they are,” Murphy said, trying to encourage her. “And hey, I bet you can get them to get you a new snow globe while you’re there. You don’t have one from St. Louis, right?”
The phone call lasted until nine when Anna had to go to bed. Murphy heard her ex telling Anna to get ready and held the phone a little tighter, as if that would keep her kid on the line just a little longer.
“I love you, kiddo. Sleep well,” she said, smiling a little.
“Love you too, mom. Thanks.” Anna’s melancholy tone was gone now. She still spoke softly, but she sounded happy, she sounded like a ten year old kid again. Somehow, Murphy had managed to make it better instead of worse. Her ex was getting remarried but she still had the only good thing from her marriage, she had her daughter.
At seven-thirty at night, Murphy’s phone range. She dropped what she was doing, reheating take-out could wait, and grabbed the kitchen phone.
“Hello?”
“Mom,” Anna’s voice came through loud and clear, but still her usual quiet, soft spoken tone. “Dad says he’s going to marry Lisa.”
“He did?” She pulled out one of the kitchen chairs and sat down, slightly nervous about this call. She thought Anna was past the stage where she wanted her parents to get back together, but this marriage thing could bring it all back. “What do you think, kid?”
Anna was quiet for a moment. “I don’t want Lisa to be my mom. You’re my mom.”
“Just because your dad marries Lisa doesn’t make her your mom.”
“She’ll have my last name and she’ll be dad’s wife and she’ll live with us and want me to call her mom. She always wants me to call her mom.”
Murphy’s heart twisted in her chest. Anna sounded so sad, so hurt and frustrated too. Lisa for months now had been trying to get Anna to call her mom, which Murphy should have seen as a sign of this whole engagement thing. She had been too pissed off at the woman to really think about what it might mean. At the time she had firmly told Lisa to stop but now she didn’t have a leg to stand on, even though she knew her daughter would never call Lisa “mom”.
“Well, kid, you know that Lisa’s not your mom and when she marries your dad, that’ll just make her your step-mom. You can call her that because it’ll be what she is,” she said, wondering to herself if it was even the right thing to say.
Her dad had never gotten remarried and her mom wasn’t around to get upset over. She could only imagine what Anna was feeling and what was the right thing to say to make it okay.
“I’m your mom. That’s what you keep telling me and you keep writing mom on all those pictures you give me, I’m pretty sure that means I’m your mom.”
“Mom…”
“See? That’s exactly what I’m talking about.”
She smiled and let out a silent sigh of relief when she heard Anna giggle on the other end of the phone. She wasn’t completely useless at this mom business, thank God.
“You’re not mad at dad, are you? For marrying Lisa?”
“No. Lisa makes your dad happy. That’s what matters.” And she didn’t really have a say in what he did with his life anymore. Her ex-husband was just that, her ex. He got to live his life however he wanted as long as he took care of Anna.
“Yeah, she does,” Anna reluctantly agreed. “We’re going to go meet her family in St. Louis this weekend. Dad says they’re nice.”
But her kid wasn’t good with strangers. Murphy could just imagine Lisa and her family trying to get Anna into the center of attention. Her kid would be miserable. Her heart twisted again. There was nothing she could do to protect her kid from this and the hard facts of life. Sometimes, she wondered if Anna was growing up too fast, like she had.
“I bet they are,” Murphy said, trying to encourage her. “And hey, I bet you can get them to get you a new snow globe while you’re there. You don’t have one from St. Louis, right?”
The phone call lasted until nine when Anna had to go to bed. Murphy heard her ex telling Anna to get ready and held the phone a little tighter, as if that would keep her kid on the line just a little longer.
“I love you, kiddo. Sleep well,” she said, smiling a little.
“Love you too, mom. Thanks.” Anna’s melancholy tone was gone now. She still spoke softly, but she sounded happy, she sounded like a ten year old kid again. Somehow, Murphy had managed to make it better instead of worse. Her ex was getting remarried but she still had the only good thing from her marriage, she had her daughter.