The Pursuit of Happiness

I was awoken by sun’s brightness. Trying to squeeze my eyes shut all the while helplessly reaching out for the missing blanket only to realize that I didn’t have one – I slept on a bare mattress. An annoyed moan escaped past my lips and with great reluctance I opened my eyes. My vision blurred for a while, but I knew that I couldn’t go back to sleep, there was just too much to do.

I was a heavy sleeper, but my mind was already working in a whirlwind – there was too much to do and I wanted to do it all as fast as I could. There was no blanket, no pillow and therefore no comfort, so nothing was pulling me back into oblivion – it was time to face the day. I lifted myself up on my elbows and took in the surroundings. Everything was just the same as I left it yesterday; even the lamps were still on. In the morning light my bedroom looked somewhat older than it seemed before – the light that shone through window illuminated everything in its way – wooden floor looked worn out and the color on the walls looked too dull for my taste. I could also see the small clouds of dust flying all around the room and that was when I made another mental note – I had to get a vacuum cleaner.

I got up from the bed and decided to make myself presentable. My muscles screamed for some sort of release and I knew a perfect solution – a hot lavender bath. I smiled in delight remembering the size of my bathtub and skipped into my soon-to-be walk-in closet, rummaging through stacks upon stacks of unpacked boxes, trying to find something to wear. In the end I ended up with a comfortable pair of peachy underwear, gray knitted jumper and light-wash skinny jeans with a pair of clean socks on top. I also managed to find a clean towel.

After an hour of soaking in hot water, I finally felt content both mentally and physically. The yellow cup in my hands steamed with peppermint tea as I tried to decide where do I start first – I could visit some of the consignment stores I saw on my way yesterday and I could also explore some parts of the town seeing that I was now a part of it. I also wanted to start my gardening project as soon as possible – the summer was fast approaching and I wanted to have a beautiful blooming garden by the beginning of season.

The doorbell rang throughout the house and I went to open the door revealing a smiling face on my porch.

“Good morning dear,” Ruby greeted cheerfully. “These are for you – just a little something I made,” she happily handed me the plate full of what I assumed was chocolate cupcakes. “My Shannon loves them very dearly, he can never get enough of them while he’s home!”

I took the plate looking at the cupcakes, astonished by the kindness of this woman once again. Ruby’s genuine smile stirred emotions within me that I thought had gone a long time ago. Still looking at the plate and overwhelmed with long forgotten feelings I mumbled my gratitude almost inaudible.

“Oh, you are most certainly welcome my dear,” she stroked my upper arm with affection. “It was my pleasure and I thought that since you came here only yesterday you wouldn’t have anything proper to eat, so here I am doing my neighbour’s duty,” Ruby laughed and I let the sound of her laughs wash over me.

I looked up at the elder woman in front of me as if seeing her for the first time. Her bright blue eyes shone even brighter today and I felt myself becoming mesmerized by them even more. I could not look away nor could I turn my back to her intentions – something inside of me wouldn’t let me shut her out. Unconsciously, Ruby broke some of the walls I have built with her honesty and genuine intentions.

“I don’t even know what to say,” I said looking at her shyly at which she just chuckled. “Oh, but these are just cupcakes, dear,” and I laughed out, something I haven’t done in a long time – a genuine, bubbly laugh.

After our laughing died down, we entered the house deciding to eat some of the brown goodies and have a peppermint tea – it was Ruby’s favorite, just like mine. We talked about everything and nothing getting caught up in each other, feeling as if we had all the time in the world. She was such a wise woman and so full of life that I felt almost envious. She said that she was grateful for the life she led – she had a loving, independent woman for a daughter and two grandsons living their dreams to the fullest. Her family was happy and it all brought her so much joy. She also repeatedly mentioned that her last wish was to see at least one great-grandchild come into this world, but the idea was doubtful – both of her grandsons were just too blinded by the beauty of life to settle down even now when they were in their forties. But we didn’t talk much about our families; I was more of a listener than talker. Ruby sensed my discomfort and she somehow understood that it was a painful topic for me. I silently thanked her, because I wasn’t ready to open up about something so significant just yet. After all I met her only yesterday.

When Ruby left my house a few hours later, with a pang in my heart I realized that she was slowly becoming someone I could hold very dear to me and, sadly, there was nothing that I could do about it.

* * *

“There!” I exclaimed, adjusting the last flower bed. The front of my porch was now surrounded by white tulips. I stood up admiring my whole afternoon’s work, happy with the outcome of it – the flowers stood out perfectly hugging the front of the house in such a loving way. The view was lovely and it gave a sense of love and welcome, a feeling of something a person could call a real home.

“Looks lovely,” a voice said behind me. I turned around and was met by a girl. “My name is Martha, Martha White.” She extended her small arm towards me which I took after taking off my gardening glows. “Helena Mori,” I smiled at her.

She was probably in her early twenties although it was hard to say due to her appearance. She was beauty, there was no doubt, but her charms were dulled by the lack of care. Her dark, almost black hair was collected in a messy bun on top of her head and her clothes were a bit too big and too baggy for her small frame. She was also a bit overweighed and her posture was a bit sloppy.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I saw the lights in the windows yesterday night, but thought it was too late for a welcome so I decided that now was a good time,” she said looking at her feet uncomfortably.

“I came yesterday in the afternoon,” I smiled at her. She looked at me for a split second and then averted her gaze quickly. “Oh, that is nice. So, where are you from if you don’t mind me asking? No offense, but you have a weird accent so I doubt that you’re from states,” Martha said tugging at her sleeves.

“Northern Europe,” I said, feeling dread washing over me – I hoped that she would not ask any more question about it. As soon as the words left my mouth, Martha’s eyes shot up “Really? I always wanted to go but something always came up, so I had to postpone the whole trip,” she exclaimed excitedly.

After chatting with my new acquaintance, I decided to invite her over for a dinner later on seeing as I had visited town earlier and stuffed my refrigerator with groceries. If I was going to stay here permanently, then I needed to be a good neighbour and maybe, even though the thought scared me, even open up a bit. A little bit won’t hurt me, right?

Though Martha was a shy person, she was also easily excitable. It just proved that each person had his own approach that needs to be discovered. Within first minutes, I learned that it took patience and time for her to come around. Martha was a social being, there was no doubt about that, it was just that sometimes she was left feeling uncomfortable with something she herself said or did.

After saying our goodbyes and taking a quick shower, I had a phone call from Constance. She said that Ruby wrote down the number I gave her earlier in the morning and posted it on the refrigerator with a title ‘lovely neighbour Helena’. She also told her daughter about our little tea-talk in the morning which Constance was very happy to hear about. She mentioned that her mother has grown fond of me and considered me to be her new-found friend.

Aside from Ruby, we also talked a bit about the day. I mentioned about my trip to the town and afternoon gardening activities at which Constance complimented my work. I mentioned about my idea to decorate the backyard next and Constance volunteered to help me with the task – she had a passion for gardening. We talked a bit more, mostly about me getting to know the neighborhood and the meeting with Martha, and how she was coming over for a dinner. Just before hanging up Constance said that it would make her and Ruby happy if I could come over for the dinner in the weekend at which I said that it would be my pleasure.

The evening was fast approaching and I decided to get the dinner ready. I didn’t know what Martha’s eating habits were but I decided to take a chance and make a lasanya – it was a simple recipe that almost everyone loved, and it was something I made the best. Martha seemed like a person who needed a friend and I was willing to take a shot, although I was not willing to give it all, not just yet and maybe not ever. Hopefully.