“Give me your apron, Dearie, and I’ll show you up.” Katherine looked at Miss Harriet’s warm and genuine smile and felt—just for a moment—that everything was going to be all right.
* * * *
Once settled in for the night, Katherine lay down, wide-eyed and not a bit sleepy, though physically and emotionally exhausted.
Just yesterday, she had walked across a platform in front of a crowd of people to receive her diploma. That was supposed to have been her new beginning, the start of a new life, a happily ever after. But when the ceremony ended, her parents drove her to their house, and all the old feelings of hurt and emptiness filled her afresh.
All the way there, she had stared out the window, knowing there was only one place she wanted to go: home. So that night, she bought a plane ticket and gathered a few things from the boxes in her parents’ garage before throwing a few extra pillows on the old sofa. Curling up in a blanket, she had tossed and turned until daylight.
It wasn’t as if she and her parents had fought. Everything had been fine on the surface, as it always seemed to be. They just never could manage to get any deeper than that superficial “fine”-ness anymore, and Katherine felt uneasy and out of place in their home.
As she packed her luggage into the taxi early that morning, she had felt convinced that leaving was the only option. Her parents waved at her from the porch as she left, smiling and calling out their goodbyes as if she were off to a grand adventure. She secretly wondered if they were actually just glad to be rid of her.
Finally aboard her plane, Katherine watched the miles melt away beneath her. Her heart beat faster as the plane banked and turned, preparing to land. Soon she would be there. Soon she would be home.
When the plane landed, Katherine hurriedly collected her one suitcase and caught a bus to Harborhaven. The thrill of expectation gripped her as she began to see familiar landmarks race past the windows: she was almost home!
Katherine closed her eyes, reliving the bus trip. She knew she had been running. She meant to run: away from her parents, away from the reminder of that catastrophic last Christmas together and the misery that followed, away from the rift which had formed that moment when everything changed, away from their new life—the life she didn’t belong in anymore—and toward the one place she’d been dreaming of returning to ever since.
Katherine shifted her head on the pillow. All she had wanted was to be home; home in Harborhaven. Now, here she was, in that very place, and what did she have to show for it? No job, nowhere to live, no one to care what happened to her. It was bad enough to have a rift between her and her parents, but now it seemed there was a rift between her and the whole world.
Sitting up in bed, Katherine cradled her head in her hands. She had to figure out what to do. Trying to slow her thoughts down, she forced herself to focus on the problem at hand. She couldn’t go back to her parents—there was really no place for her there if she did go, unless she wanted to live out of a suitcase and sleep on the couch.
She wanted to stay in Harborhaven. Her heart had been whispering inside her all day, pleading to stay, but what could she do? Her brand-new history degree was of little enough use in a large city; but in a small harbor town where the historical society manned its offices and museum with volunteers, she couldn’t possibly hope for a paid position. She could try for a waitressing job somewhere, but the ice cream shop had been her best chance for that.
Miss Harriet had been kind, and Katherine would have asked her for a job, but it seemed obvious that Miss Harriet was perfectly capable of running the shop by herself. Katherine suspected her day’s work had only been the result of the soft-hearted woman’s compassion. No, the only option she could see was to move on.
Perhaps she could find a job in the next town up the coast. Then she could at least come to Harborhaven on her days off. In spite of all the disappointments she had experienced that day, she still felt a tie to the old town. She felt that she could make a life here, a new life in this place that held so many dear memories of the old one. She would have to move on, but she hoped it would not be too far.
* * * *
The next day, Katherine went down to the tea shop as soon as she heard Miss Harriet arrive, meaning to thank her for her kindness and then be on her way, wherever that might be.
Miss Harriet came out of the kitchen with a cheery “Good morning! Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, thank you.”
“That’s good! I want to talk to you about something, and it’s always better to chat when one is well rested.”
She motioned for Katherine to sit at one of the tables, then took a seat across from her. Katherine rubbed her hands together nervously under the table, not sure what to expect.
“Now, Katherine, I’ve been thinking. It was so nice to have your help yesterday, I’d like to hire you on.” Katherine’s eyes grew wide as the older lady continued. “If you are willing, I can offer you three days a week with good pay, opening to closing, with the flat upstairs thrown in, if you’d like. I only ask that you agree to stay at least one month. What do you think?”
Katherine stared, speechless. This would meet her needs exactly, and she certainly had enjoyed her work the day before. Having waitressed her way through college, she knew exactly what she was taking on—and a place to stay thrown in! It all seemed too good, too easy to be true.
“Yes… Yes, I would like that very much!” she finally managed to say, almost giddy with relief.
Miss Harriet smiled a satisfied smile and said, “Good! Now, let’s get you some breakfast before you begin work. I’ve just pulled some scones out of the oven. Will that do?”
Katherine nodded, speechless, and still struggling to believe it was possible that she had really been offered a job in Harborhaven. Despite this seeming miracle of provision, she still couldn’t quite surrender to the hopeful thought that began to tug at her heart: that this just might be the beginning of the new life for which she had longed.
2 Miss Harriet’s
The more time Katherine spent around Miss Harriet’s shop, the more she enjoyed it. The place was like a microcosm of the town, which Katherine found fascinating. She marveled at how, even though many of the people she had known in her childhood had been replaced by strangers over the years, the town as a whole still seemed just the same as when she left. She observed the shop’s customers with interest, wondering if certain types of people were drawn to Harborhaven, or if the town itself changed them. She never could decide.
Miss Harriet’s way of making everyone feel special and important had a profound effect on Katherine. She watched the older woman eagerly, trying to catch the trick of it, but never could quite succeed. As she served her customers, Miss Harriet seemed always to know just what to say or do to put a smile on the face of each one.
Katherine knew good customer service when she saw it, but this was something more. Watching Miss Harriet talk to her customers was like watching tightly-closed buds unfurl their petals. The customers seemed to become better versions of themselves after talking to her. It all seemed so effortless—except when Katherine tried it. Still, she kept watching and learning, hoping someday to live up to the gracious woman’s example.
Soon the month ended, and Katherine hardly noticed its passing, for she had become fully absorbed in her work. She liked the bustle of always having something to do, and on her days off, she would often volunteer to help Miss Harriet set the tables and get the shop ready for the day. Then she would go to the library and check out books, and, coming home with a small stack, would take them up to the little “dreary” apartment, which Katherine did not think dreary at all. Miss Harriet had fixed it up quite nicely, intending to live there herself; but it did not have enough windows to suit her.
“Lamplight just isn’t the same,” she had explained.
The apartment had one large window, which overlooked the street, and another window in the bedroom: a small, round window which looked out towards the cliffs behind downtown Harborhaven. In the street-view window, Miss Harriet had put in a deep window seat, filled with cushions.
A basket full of soft, warm blankets stood nearby, and Katherine felt as if the cozy little nook had been made just for her. She would curl up with her library books and a plate of fresh-baked scones carried up from the kitchen. Once cozily settled in, she would sit and read for hours.
She had always been a bookworm, but now she clung to reading more than ever, as a welcome distraction from the turmoil within her heart. Returning to Harborhaven had not erased the pain. She still ached over the past, still longed for relief. She tried to hide it, but was sure Miss Harriet knew somehow that there was something hidden behind her new employee’s almost-convincing smiles.
