FISHER HOME
"Dinner!" Paula announces as she
sets the last platter of food on the table, but it is rather pointless.
The family has already descended on the dining room and begun to figure
out a seating arrangement.
She stands back and watches as Claire
gets Travis settled, and Matt and Sarah do the same with Victoria. She
notices Bill watching and they share a warm, grateful smile. The Sarah
they're seeing with Matt is such a departure the daughter they've seen
over the last months ... maybe things really are settling down.
Still, Sarah is careful to sit on
the end of the table, with Matt next to her and Jason beside him. Molly
is all the way across from Jason, placing herself and Sarah practically
as far apart as they can be.
Oh well, Paula thinks as she
assumes the seat beside the head of the table, at Bill's side. These
things take time.
"All right," Molly says once everyone
is seated comfortably. "I've got an announcement I'd like to make." She's
been having some doubts about making the announcement since Sarah showed
up, but there isn't any reason to hold back ... she hopes. A quick glance
over at Sarah reveals indifference. Perhaps it's calculated indifference,
but that is far better than outright venom.
Across the table from her, Jason
looks excited, as if he wants everyone to know that he was in on the fact
that something was up with Molly. She grins at his goofy enthusiasm.
"Actually," she says, "I have told
someone about this already -- no, not you, Jay."
He exaggerates his reaction, looking
as crushed and deflated as possible.
"I told Dad the day that it -- well,
the first part of it -- happened. But then I thought I'd wait until everyone
was together." She pauses, savoring the anticipation on everyone's faces.
"I've got a new job. I decided to try my hand at the fashion thing again,
and I'll be working at Charlene Powers again, starting in a couple of days."
"That's excellent, Molly!" Paula
says immediately. She has to glance over at Sarah, wondering if she is
overdoing the praise, but tries to dismiss the concern.
Congratulations pour down from the
rest of the table and Molly lets them subside before continuing. "There's
more. Mom and Dad, this might be music to your ears ... I'm moving into
my own apartment."
"You mean you don't want to live
with your parents forever?" Bill asks with mock horror.
"Me moving back in here was supposed
to be temporary anyway," she says. "It's time I got myself on the track
to where I really want to be." She has to cast another glance down the
table at Sarah, unable to keep Brent
out of her mind entirely. For a moment
she wonders how his Christmas in San Diego is going.
"That is good news, Molly. Congratulations,"
Bill says, raising his full wine glass in a toast. Everyone else follows.
"What a nice way to start off the
meal," Paula says. "But before we eat, I think a prayer is in order."
Everyone seems to agree.
"This was possibly the most difficult
year this family has ever had to endure," she says, bowing her head. "Not
having Tim
here for Christmas dinner ... it's hard for me to understand
how that can be. But I know he's watching over us, and that he's still
with us in some way. He always will be. We were blessed to have had him
for as long as we did, and we're blessed to have his memory now."
She takes a peek up at Claire, whose
folded hands are drawn up close to her mouth. Her eyes are brimming with
tears.
"But we're all here, together," Paula
continues. "Despite everything that has happened--" Unconsciously she slips
in a moment of silence, and is sure that it is weighing heavily upon Molly
and Sarah in particular. "--despite all of that, we were able to find our
way back to each other for Christmas. And having everyone here, seeing
that it's possible for the family to be together like this ... It gives
me faith that love and hope are with us always, and they are the greatest
gifts we have, the greatest gifts we share."
The table lapses into a moment of
silence, observed even by Travis and Victoria, as though even the youngsters
understand the significance of what has been said. And Paula is sure that
everyone else can feel the same hope, love, and peace in the air that she
can.
Christmas truly is here.
END OF EPISODE #239
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