I underlined your twice.
I stood there staring at the board.
Part of me wondered whether I had gone too far.
Maybe I should erase it.
Go upstairs.
Pretend nothing happened.
Then I heard slippers behind me.
Mom was standing in the doorway.
Pink fuzzy robe.
Gray hair sticking up.
Reading glasses perched on her head.
“What are you doing? It’s five in the morning.”
“Fixing something.”
She walked over.
Pulled down her glasses.
Read the board.
Her expression changed before she reached the second line.
“No.”
“Mom—”
“No. Take that down.”
“It’s your house.”
“They’re guests.”
“They’ve been guests almost every weekend for two months.”
She lowered her voice.
“You cannot give invited guests chores. That’s not how you treat people.”
I looked at her.
“Is telling the woman who owns the house where she can put her own flowers how you treat a host?”
Her mouth tightened.
“She didn’t mean anything.”
“You moved all six flower boxes behind the trash cans.”
“It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Then put them back.”
Mom went quiet.
She looked through the kitchen window toward the deck.
The flowers were still hidden beside the grill.
I knew that expression.
She wasn’t thinking about the flowers.
She was calculating discomfort.
What would Susan think?
Would Susan complain?
Would Daniel be upset?
Would my marriage become awkward?
Would everyone think Mom had caused trouble over flowers?
She had spent her whole life doing that math.
“I’m not letting you start a fight with your mother-in-law because of me.”
“I’m not starting anything.”
I looked at her.
“I’m ending something.”
She reached toward the eraser.
I picked up the entire board.
“One day, Mom. Please. Just try one day where everyone takes care of themselves and you don’t take care of anyone.”
“But I like taking care of people.”
“I know.”
I softened my voice.
“But liking to care for people is different from being treated like everyone’s maid.”
The second I said maid, her face changed.
I knew I had hurt her.
I opened my mouth to apologize.
Then footsteps sounded upstairs.
Someone was awake.
Mom stared at the board.
