the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes

the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes - Chapter 1

Mary stared at the piece of cake on the decorative plate. The virgin white icing held little hint of the mile marker that had been scrolled across the surface of the portion consumed by family and friends. Its absence hadn't erased it from Mary's mind. If anything, it reminded her of the huge chunk of time carved out of her life. She had lived half a century, making her an older woman than she had been last week. The consumption of this last piece from the celebration cake would commit her to this age, condemn her to old age in the eyes of the incredibly young. There was no way to hold on to youth; celebrities had proven it time again when they exposed themselves to the outside world without make-up and un-photoshopped.

The ache for the past swelled in her chest. It was not that she wanted to be eighteen again; she wanted only to have a little more substance in her life. A little more laughter, a little more variety...a little more gentle contact with the man she loved. Was that too much to ask for?

She released a sigh. It was the way life went, she was told by others. Her friend, Louise, had put it bluntly: Don't expect anything more than what you have. A woman's role is to grow old beside her man.

Still, Mary wondered, couldn't there be something more? Thinking of nothing changing filled her with dread. She pulled a container from the cupboard, slid the final piece of cake into it and snapped on the lid. Gripping it tightly, she descended the stairs to the basement. She opened the freezer and scanned the inside. It was half-filled with frozen foods, mostly from the freezer section of the supermarket. She pushed several things aside, digging a hole in the centre, and placed the sacred piece of cake into its depths. She filled in the black hole with frozen peas, corn and a large chicken.

Closing the freezer lid brought relief, and a spring in her step carried her to the top of the stairs. She pranced around the house, opening windows to allow the sunshine and fresh spring air to cleanse the old home. Soon the sweet smell of outdoors filled her senses.

An hour later, the laundry on the line and the dishes cleaned, she heard a knock on the door.

"Louise, great to see you," she said, her voice higher than usual. Her long-time friend stood on the stoop, silently staring at her. "It's a beautiful day for a walk. Let me get my sweater."

"I didn't come for a walk." Louise followed Mary inside and closed the door behind her.

"But we should go just the same."

"What about our tea?"

"Let's walk to the café on Jasper Street. It's not far. We'll have our tea there."

"Buy our tea?" Louise frowned. "That's not what we do."

"But let's today." Mary buttoned her sweater and slipped on her shoes. "It will be fun. An adventure."

"There's nothing adventurous about buying tea."

"Sure there is." With a smile stretching her cheeks, she looked up from tying her shoes. When she saw the frown dig deeper into Louise's face, she wondered if she was asking too much. Perhaps Louise hadn't brought money. "I'll buy."

"I'm not charity."

"I didn't say you were."

"If I knew you were going to suggest some cockamamie idea like this, I'd have stayed home and enjoyed my tea."

"But tea together at a café sounds...sociable."

"I don't want to be sociable with a crowd of strangers or drink tea from a paper cup." She shivered, and her dark blonde hair, cut in the same short fashion for more than two decades, shook. "You never know what they put in it. And the cleanliness." She groaned. "The horror stories about cafés. And really, to pay for something you can make at home is foolish." She tsked. "What's got into you?"