Tony moved around the large room. He ran into Pastor Dan and his wife, Sharon. “Have either of you seen Renata? My family wants to greet her, and we cannot locate her.”
Dan and Sharon looked at each other. “Neither of us has seen her since the closing song. We were with her for prayer this morning before the service. That’s the last time we spoke with her.”
“How was she?”
“She’s tired. She’s working at the restaurant, right?” Dan asked.
Tony nodded. “She’s been a huge blessing to the family and does excellent work.”
“Well, I wish you luck in finding her. Merry Christmas!” Dan and Sharon went around greeting other people.
Tony walked down behind the stage into the practice rooms, meeting rooms, and returned to his family, his search unsuccessful. “I’m sorry, Dad. I’ve looked everywhere, and no one has seen her since the last song.”
“Well, not much we can do about it. Why don’t we head over to the house for Christmas?” Tony walked his mom and dad out to their car and went back to help his siblings round up their kids. He felt like a cowboy, trying to get them all together. He was only lacking a lasso.
* * *
Renata pulled into her parking spot at the back of the lot. If she didn’t get to bed soon, she was going to drop from exhaustion. She misjudged the distance from her truck to the ground and, as a result, her foot slid on the black ice. She fell hard, landing on her elbow. She lay there in the snow, wincing in pain and in the absurdity of her lying alone in the snow on Christmas Day.
She managed to get to her feet and pick up her purse and keys. Melting snow seeped into the open spots in her coat and chilled her. She made her way across the slippery lot to the outside doors of her building. Using the key, she gained entrance and made her way to her apartment. She entered and peeled off her coat and boots. Her elbow hurt like the dickens. She could bend it, though. She figured she had banged her funny bone. Nothing funny about it. She changed out of her Sunday clothes, put on her favorite sweats, and collapsed into bed.
Two hours later, Renata awoke and knew something was very wrong with her elbow. Her arm wouldn’t unbend. It throbbed with pain. Now what? She could feel bruises all along her left side, and her head ached. Dragging herself up out of bed, she made her way to her boots and coat. She struggled to get the boots on and finally gave up and dragged out her older pair, not stylish, but she was able to slip her feet in. She wasn’t even going to bother getting her arm in her sleeve. She left her apartment with the lights burning on the artificial Christmas tree. Merry Christmas, Renata.
At the emergency room in Menomonee Falls, the doctor was not sure whether the bone was broken or not, as the X-rays were not clear. Treatment was the same, either way. A sling to keep the arm still. The doctor gave Renata pain medication and instructions to try daily to stretch the arm straight. Renata drove home through the snow and the darkening sky. Homes were lit up with Christmas lights of all colors. Icicle lights highlighted roofs. She fought sadness. She was alone. Stephanie was in Chicago until Tuesday. Still, this was better than her previous Christmases, and she was determined not to feel sorry for herself.
At home, Renata took some of the pain medication and somehow managed to get the laundry out to the hallway where the machines were. Might as well do something productive. While the wash cycle ran, she returned to the apartment and snuggled into her favorite chair to gaze at the tree. She had the radio on, and Christmas music played.
In spite of her pain, she treasured the wonder of Christmas. A small child born into a harsh world. He had suffered unthinkable things too. Even his friends had turned on Him. Renata found comfort in that.
He, too, knew what it was like to be alone and suffering. He, who was God Himself, had felt lonely and had wanted to avoid pain. She was heartened by the fact the God of the Universe loved His Creation, including herself, to the degree He would endure the sin of this world and death on a cross. He was the light of the world. Her world. She was grateful that, in spite of all she had endured, she had not walked through the past few years alone. He had been there, through His Word and in His Spirit, to lead, guide and comfort.
She may not have had a family to celebrate with in traditional terms, but she had worshipped this morning with her church family, and that had been sweet. Now she had a rare moment to simply be with Him, the lover of her soul. Better than any human man, in His ability to love and cherish her. She hugged that truth to herself and smiled. She’d be fine.
She completed the laundry but her folding was sloppy. Renata had taken home some leftover food from De Lucas’ the previous night and enjoyed it for her dinner. It was time for another pill, so she took one and went to bed early.
She never heard her phone when it beeped to indicate a text message.
* * *
Tony enjoyed the Christmas holiday with his family, but wondered where Renata was. He had wanted to invite her over and had texted her to at least join them for dinner. There had been no response. She hadn’t gone to her parents’, had she? He hoped not. The thought of her being in that house with those people angered him. He tried to shake it off, as he had nieces and nephews eager for him to play with their new toys. He set himself to the task of entertaining them, all the while missing a certain petite woman with sparkling blue eyes.
* * *
Friday was busy at the bank. Renata barely had a moment to think for herself. Pain was a constant enemy. Her elbow was the worst of it, although her left hip and knee showed bruises and her head pounded. She managed to make it through the day. Midway through the afternoon, she called Gianna, who was overseeing the scheduling at De Luca’s.
“Merry Christmas, Gianna. Did you have a good day?”
“Yes, Merry Christmas to you too, Renata. We missed getting to talk to you after service yesterday. The entire family had hoped you would have joined us.”
“That was sweet of you. I cannot talk long. It’s crazy here at the bank. I wanted to call to let you know I’m not going to be able to come tonight, but I will make up the work tomorrow when I’m done here.”
“Why? Are you all right?”
“I slipped on some ice and my elbow is bruised. I need to rest tonight. Can you make sure Tony runs the reports after all the waitresses are done? If I have those, I can settle it all tomorrow.”
“I’ll let him know. Are you sure you are well?”
“I’ll be fine, Gianna.”
“If you say so.” Renata could hear the doubt in her voice.
“Thanks, Gianna. Bye.”
“Bye, Ren.”
Renata came home after work, managed to eat something, and took her pain medication, which she had avoided during the day because she was afraid it would make her too loopy to drive. She collapsed into bed and slept through until morning.
* * *
Tony watched Alexandr walk into the kitchen. The place was hopping.
“Hey, Alex. Why are you here? Is it Dad?”
“Dad’s fine. I came with a message since you were too busy to answer your phone.”
Tony continued working to fill orders. “I’m listening.”
“Gianna got a call from Renata this afternoon to say she can’t make it in tonight, and asked if you could run the reports for her and leave them on the desk to look at tomorrow.”
Tony paused in his actions and glanced up at his brother.
“Is she all right?”
“All Gianna could get out of her is she had a fall on the ice and was tired and sore.”
Tony frowned. Someone needed to look out for the girl. He wanted that someone to be him.
“She’s a big girl, Tony. If she says she’ll be in tomorrow, she will. She also had said the bank was busy today, so she obviously was not hurt seriously if she was working.”
“You’re right. I’ll run the reports. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Do you need a hand in here? I can stay for a while. I can still run circles around you in this ki
tchen.”
“You are more than welcome to stay and try.” Tony grinned at his brother as he reached for an apron and tossed it in Alex’s face.
* * *
Saturday dawned with the sunshine lighting up the snow as if filled with diamond crystals. Renata failed to appreciate it. Ice. Ice was not something she was fond of. Having to scrape her truck off with one arm had not been enjoyable.
She arrived at De Luca’s at one without stopping at home to change. She found the drive exhausting. She couldn’t put her hair up because her elbow wouldn’t bend enough. She couldn’t even manage to get her earrings on. Her hair hung down around her shoulders, covering her naked ears, and the bruise had developed an ugly color from her forehead down the side of her face. At least she didn’t have a black eye. She grimaced at the thought of how that would have looked. Been there. Done that. Not a look she wanted to revisit.
She slid into the office after snagging Tanisha to see about getting soup and bread sent in for her. She closed the door and set to work. She enjoyed the food and made sure to give Tanisha a tip for her extra effort on such a busy weekend. Renata worked through the afternoon and even had payroll ready for Tony to take to his father to sign. By seven o’clock, she had all her reports done and a weekly summery for Alberto. She was able to do most of the computer work one-handed. She wrote him a brief note, wishing him a speedy recovery.
Renata slipped out of the restaurant without ever seeing Tony. She knew he would be concerned, and she didn’t want to face him in her sling and her bruises. Tomorrow, however, there would probably be no escaping a confrontation.
Renata took her pain medication again that evening, although she hoped that by Monday she would not need it anymore. Long hours at work amplified all her aches and pains. She figured she would need to see her chiropractor as early in the week as possible. Being a holiday week, she wondered if he would even be in. It would make things worse for her back if she had to wait another week to see him. No need to be anxious about it now. It was out of her control.
* * *
Tony was disappointed when he walked into the office later in the evening to find it empty. The computer was off and only an envelope sat in the middle of the desk with his father’s name inscribed in Renata’s script. Tomorrow was Sunday. She would not escape seeing him. He knew they were a long way from where he had hoped they would be, and he kicked himself for how his pride and anger had alienated her.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Sunday morning came, and Renata sat in her usual spot at church. She wore her blue sweater, which was close to the color of her sling, making it less noticeable. Her hair was still down and intentionally pushed in front of her shoulders to hide the bruise on her forehead. Gabby had arrived first with Paul and greeted her warmly. She exclaimed about Renata’s sling. Other people around also inquired until the lights went down and the service started. Tony slipped into the row five minutes later and glanced at Renata. He furrowed his brow and narrowed his eyes. He turned away and focused on the worship service.
* * *
Simply bruised from a fall? What kind of lie was that? Her arm was in a sling! Anger welled up inside because she hadn’t thought to contact him. Anger replaced hurt.
Tony and Renata did not exchange words, even during the offering. A special drama that took place kept their interest focused.
After the service, Tony preceded Renata out of the row and stayed close to her side as they maneuvered through the crowd of people. Renata had gained more friends in the past few months and many stopped and greeted her. She had to explain her sling repeatedly. She never said when or where she fell. She smiled and received their gentle side-hugs and holiday wishes.
It wasn’t until Tony was able to see Renata in the brighter lights of the atrium that her bruises were evident. For a moment, there was only the two of them near the windows where the bright sunlight streamed in. He gently pushed back the hair from the side of her face.
“When did this happen and where?”
“Thursday morning after church. I misjudged the distance from my truck to the pavement, and with all the sheer ice under the powdery snow…well, I went down. My dress boots were not made for ice, it appears.” Renata smiled, making light of the incident.
“This happened Christmas morning?”
Renata nodded and brought her right arm up to move the hair back to the front of her shoulder, once again covering most of the bruise.
“Did you go to the Emergency Room?”
“A few hours later I did, when I realized my injuries were a lot worse than I had thought.”
“Who took you? I thought Stephanie was out of town.”
“She is. I drove myself.”
Tony looked at her, speechless. He shook his head. “You could have called me.”
“I would not have disturbed your Christmas for the world, Tony. You work hard, and you have a wonderful family. I couldn’t take you away from it.”
“I would have come in a heartbeat. My family and I searched all over church for you after morning service. We had wanted you to come and join us for the day. I even texted you, but got no response.”
“I’m sorry about the texts, Tony. I was exhausted. I was not good company for anyone, even before I fell.”
“So you choose to spend Christmas alone?”
“I was with my church family in the morning for a wonderful celebration. I got a nap. I spent time with a few nurses, a doctor, and an X-ray technician. Also, my laundry got done. It was a busy day.” Renata smiled up at him. “Tony. It was my choice how I spent the day. While I didn’t choose to spend it in pain, it was, overall, a peaceful, sweet day for me. Jesus met me there, and my fellowship with my Savior was sweet. It was an unexpected blessing.”
He ground his teeth. He wanted to argue with her, but Gabby and Paul had found them, as well as Dan and Sharon, all asking about her arm. She gave them the same abbreviated version she had given everyone else.
“What she isn’t saying is she fell on Christmas day and took herself to the doctor.” Tony couldn’t keep silent any longer.
“Renata, you were alone for Christmas? You would have been welcome to join us,” exclaimed Sharon.
“I have been working hard and was exhausted, as I tried to explain to Tony.” She gave him a brief glare. “Other than my fall on the ice, it was a good day for me to step back from the busyness of life and be alone with God. Kind of like my own little retreat from the world. Aided, of course, by narcotics.”
Everyone laughed except Tony, who folded his arms and scowled. How dare she joke about this?
Dan spoke up. “You know, Renata, maybe you had the better Christmas. Without hustle and bustle and with a focus on our Savior. I’m sorry you fell and were alone through the pain, but you leaned into God for your comfort instead of man. Always a good choice, I think. However, having said that, you are a part of a family here at Orchard Hill. Remember you don’t have to go through challenges alone. Any one of us would have been happy to help you.”
“I know that, Dan. Thank you. I made a choice, and I’m fine. I had a special time with God I would have otherwise missed. I will treasure my memory of this Christmas.”
“Why don’t you come join us for lunch at our house today, Renata, and let us spoil you?” Sharon extended the invitation.
“Ren, you are more than welcome to join us for the Packer game,” Tony pleaded.
Renata smiled. “I’m not in need of rescue but, Sharon, I will take you up on your offer. I will enjoy getting to know you and Dan better.”
Tony glanced at Gabby, who shrugged. He shook his head at Renata with eyes he was certain communicated his displeasure.
Tony went home and watched the Packer game alone. Alexandr had called him, concerned when he didn’t show up in Germantown to be with the family. Tony only grunted to his brother.
“Leave me alone.”
“What has you grumpy? Oh, wait, let me guess. Renata. What now?”
“Sh
e went to lunch with Pastor Dan and Sharon.”
“What, they didn’t invite you, too?”
“Maybe they would have, except I tendered a competing invitation. She took the first one offered.”
“Sounds fair.”
Tony growled. “Leave me to watch the game.”
“Fine, bro. Enjoy your sulking.”
* * *
Renata felt bad that Tony was upset. She liked his family, but she wasn’t ready to let Tony that close again. Plus, almost everything she had been doing involved Tony somehow, and she needed time with others. The worship team had provided new friends. She also had Mary Beth, but she was more of a mentor than a friend. Mary Beth listened, counseled, and prayed with her, but Renata didn’t know Mary Beth at all, except she had been gracious and loving to her.
She had stopped home to change and drop off her Bible and headed to Menomonee Falls, where Pastor Dan and his wife lived.
“Renata, you are just in time. The dinner is ready to come out of the oven.”
“How did you do that? You couldn’t have been home for long.”
“I prepare it ahead of time, come home, and pop it in the oven. Most of the stuff in the casserole is cooked already. It’s more to warm it up.”
“Well, it smells delicious.”
Dan had come to help relieve her of her coat, and she removed her wet boots and put on her canvas shoes.
Multi-colored lights decorated their small home, brightening both the inside and the outside of the home. Renata could tell the tree was real because pine scented the air.
This is how a home should feel.
Lunch was simple but delicious. The dining area was part of the kitchen, and the Packer game had started and played in the background.
“You’re not a diehard Packer fan, Dan?”
“I like the game, but people are more important. I can get the score later, and the latter part of the game is where it gets fun, anyway. If you don’t mind, I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”
“I don’t mind. You both have helped provide a safe place for me to connect with other young people in the church and even with the worship team. I appreciate getting to know you both better, too.”
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