Part 14 (1/2)
”Oh, come on,” said Samantha. ”You guys are so lame. Do something enjoyable”
”Okay, I'd take $2 million to throw away.”
”Javier?”
”Invest and give some to charity.”
”What would you do, Michael?”
”I'd give 10% to my church.” Samantha jabbed me in the shoulder. ”You didn't let me finish,” I said. ”I'd have some fun, too.”
On New Year's Eve, I went to Chris and Rebekah's for dinner. I came home early and, at midnight, prayed on my knees for an hour, as did Jessie. I regretted not kissing her when the hour struck, but if I wasn't going to be with her, I didn't lament being home for the night. There was something poetic about it, two hearts reaching out to G.o.d at the turn of the calendar year. New hope, a fresh start. ”Lord, give us hope,” I prayed. That weekend was a lot of praying. For her, her parents and their relations.h.i.+p. We talked for hours, every morning and every night.
Rankin gave a sermon once where he said he was getting a PhD in ”Morgen-ology” (his wife). Cheesy, perhaps. But a striking notion, to know someone on such a deep, intimate level. I told Jessie, ”If we're going to be together, you'll have to have to earn a degree in 'Michael-ology.'” It was a frightening thought. We, as humans, spend years harboring secrets-joys, some regrets, thoughts we hide from the ears of friends and eyes of the world. But we all want to connect on that level with someone who knows us better than anyone else, our secret fears, dreams and wishes. It takes revealing oneself, unveiling hidden layers of one's character. It's the only way to rise above the mora.s.s of broken relations.h.i.+ps around us. I don't know why the Christian divorce rate is higher than the culture's, but I won't settle for a relations.h.i.+p that mirrors the failures around me; and I know it begins by revealing the ugly truths of my life, as well as those areas in which I take pride. We grew closer than ever that weekend, though it was spent apart.
The next Tuesday, Walter asked about everyone's New Year's. ”What did you do? Did you stay in town? Did you go anywhere? Did you drink? If so, how much? And how did you get around? Some of you weren't here last week. We talked about New Year's resolutions. I asked if you had any and what they were. If you weren't here last week and want to fill time, you can tell us any resolutions you might have made.
”Benton, you can go first.”
”I went to a friend's. I got drunk.” There was a brief silence. ”Hey, I'm just being honest.”
”Why did you get drunk?”
”It's fun.”
”How did you get there?”
”A friend who wasn't drinking took me.”
”Okay, good. Did you wake up with a hangover?”
”No, not really.”
”Courtney, what about you?”
”I was in Virginia.”
”What did you do?”
”I was at my sister's with her kids. Didn't drink too much. We were playing Rock Band.”
”Rock band?”
”It's a video game with guitar, drums...”
”Never heard of it. Is it like Guitar Hero?”
We told him yes, just with the other instruments.
”How many drinks did you have?”
”I don't know. New Year's Eve, I went with a friend to a show his band was playing. He wasn't really drinking.”
”How many did you have?”
”Maybe six.”
”Did you have a hangover the next morning?”
”Yes.”
”Charles, how about you?”
”I don't think I got drunk. At least not a blackout. Maybe a brownout. I was with some of my friends.”
”What were you drinking?”
”Vodka.”
”Courtney, what about you? What were you drinking?”
”Wine.”
”Benton?”
”Beer.”
”See, guys. People have this a.s.sumption that the type of drink matters. It's not true. All alcohol affects you the same. Javier, what about you?”
”Some friends of mine got together. We took a cab to a party and then came back to my place.”
”Good. I'm glad to hear no one was driving. What were you drinking?”
”Champagne.”
”Look at this. You guys are across the board. Michael?”
Mine was low key, as said. However, Damon and I went for a run on New Year's Day and, after we finished, stopped by Angelica's restaurant to eat. Angelica gave me a big hug (She gave Damon a hug too, though she didn't know him) and asked about Walter and everyone else.
Walter was ecstatic when I told him. ”Please tell her h.e.l.lo if you see her again.” He continued. ”Samantha, how was your holiday?”
”On Christmas Eve, my boyfriend and I stayed home and cooked a standing pot roast.”
”Wow. At this time of year, it better have been good because that's about twelve, thirteen dollars a pound.”
”It was $65. What we did was take half and eat it the next day. We got so much meat out of it. I drank champagne. My boyfriend doesn't drink. He's epileptic.”