Banking on a Dream

Celia squealed and threw her arms around the neck of her fiance, Tom Delanoy.

“They’re going to give us that beautiful travel trailer to live in?” Her eyes glowed. “Those kids are so sweet.  Why just think; with us living in that trailer we’ll be able to save lots of money.”

Tom hugged Celia.  “I thought you’d like that, Sweetheart.”

“Like it?  I love it.  We’ll have our own little romantic getaway right here in the preserve.   Plus, we’ll be able to save so much money that me going to school will happen sooner than I ever imagined.”

“Keep picturing that degree and it’ll be yours in no time.” Tom kissed Celia firmly on the lips.

After giving his fiancee a lingering hug, Tom went back to the multi-bayed garage of the Wheeler Estate while Celia returned to the enormous kitchen.  Both were employed by Matthew Wheeler, Tom as a chauffeur and Celia as a maid. The two had a met in school, but were four years apart so they hadn’t seriously dated until after Celia had graduated.  Then, what had started out as a casual relationship slowly developed into something deep and lasting and now their wedding day was rapidly approaching.  Celia was excited at the way all the pieces were falling into place, including having the opportunity to make a home for herself and Tom in the snug little trailer, The Robin. Celia believed undeniably that their life was going to be perfect.

Humming as she got to work in the Wheeler kitchen, Celia gathered assorted vegetables from the industrial sized refrigerator, washed them, then spread them out on the large work island.

“With us not having to pay any rent, I’ll be able to save much faster for nursing school,” she thought as she rummaged through a drawer in search of a peeler.  Upon finding the kitchen tool, she vigorously attacked a pile of carrots leaving then clean and smooth. “Who would have ever imagined me, Celia Sinclair,  RN?”  

Celia, an only child, had lived her entire life in the quaint village of Sleepyside, completing her education within a few blocks of her own backyard.   Her childhood home was a small two-bedroom house with only a gravel space, set off by concrete blocks, for their one car. Her father worked at the local grocery store and her mother waited tables at Wimpy’s two days a week. Despite the two jobs, Celia’s parents struggled to stay afloat financially, a situation that made Celia’s dreams that much more challenging.

For as long as she could remember, Celia had wanted to be a nurse.  In fact, as a youngster she often dressed up as one for Halloween.  As soon as she was able, Celia got a job delivering the newspaper, pulling a loaded wagon behind her as she traipsed through her neighborhood in the darkness of the pre-morning dawn. Although the job wasn’t much, it gave her an opportunity to begin saving for her future education.

By the time she was in high school, Celia was delighted to discover that chemistry and other sciences came easily to her, a fact that affirmed her career choice.  During her sophomore year, she became a candy striper at the Sleepyside General Hospital where her sweet personality and genuine interest in nursing earned her the trust from the floor nurses.  Often times, they would explain patient care and procedures to Celia, who hung on every word they said.

When Celia was a senior, her mother came down with a respiratory condition that forced her to quit working.  Celia recognized that money,  always tight, would now be more so.  Since her parents couldn’t afford to send her to college, she researched her options and found a nursing program offered through a hospital in White Plains that was more sensibly priced. Prior to graduating from Sleepyside Junior/Senior High School,  Celia realized she didn’t have quite enough money to get through all four years of the training  and decided to defer her college long enough to earn what she would need.

Shortly after Celia made that decision,  Matthew Wheeler moved his family to town and sought to fill many positions at his luxurious estate.  Celia saw an ad in the local newspaper seeking to fill available posts and quickly applied for one.  The day she told her parents of her intended plan was a painful one.

 

“Mom! Mom! I got a new job,” yelled Celia as she rushed through the front door one afternoon.

“A new job?” Celia’s mother, who was resting on the worn sofa, sat up excitedly.  “What is it?”

“I signed on to be part of the house staff for Matthew Wheeler. You know, the millionaire who just bought an estate out on Glen Road. I’m going to be a maid.”

“Oh, Celia!”  Clutching her throat and paling considerably, Celia’s mother sat up.  “A maid?”

Celia sat down on the edge of the couch.  “Don’t be disappointed,” she said as she stroked her mother’s arm.  “I know it’s not what you want for me. But I swear, this is just a temporary job.  I need to earn enough money to get all the way through the nursing program.”

“But..a maid?”

Celia squirmed.  “I know it doesn’t sound like much but listen to me.  I can live on the premises and that way I’ll be able to save all my money for college.  I won’t even need to think about getting a car for a while.  And I promise, I’ll only work for Matthew Wheeler for a short time. As soon as I have enough money for tuition and books, I’ll quit.”

Celia’s mother lay back down.  “Are you sure this is only a temporary stop along the way?”

“Yes,” promised Celia.  “Nothing will keep me from getting my nursing degree.”

Celia’s mother sighed.  “All right.  But you’ll need to explain that to your father when he gets home.”

“I will.”  Celia gave her mother’s cheek a quick kiss.  “And you’ll see how well this all works out.”

 

Despite her parents’ displeasure, Celia moved into the third floor of the mansion and assumed the duties of a maid. Many days she found herself assisting Cook in the kitchen, a role that Celia thought had a bit more weight to. As Celia worked on the vegetables, a familiar voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Hi, Celia, do you know where Honey is?”  

“Hi, Trixie.” Celia smiled at the vivacious young blond who stood in the doorway.   “Honey’s upstairs in her room.  You’re free to go up.”

“Thanks.”  Trixie turned and bounded out of the kitchen.  Within a few seconds, Celia heard Trixie’s footsteps hurrying up the lushly carpeted stairs to Honey’s room.

Celia returned to her task of getting several different crudites prepared for lunch.  A few minutes later, she glanced out the large window over the sink and saw Honey and Trixie strolling down the expansive lawn toward the lake.  Stepping to the large window, she felt a twinge of envy as she watched the two girls.  “There are days when I wish I had their lives.  Imagine having the resources to do or be whatever you want without any worries.” Reminding herself of her steadily growing bank account caused a faint smile to twitch at the corners of Celia’s mouth and she returned to the island and began cutting the celery. As she worked, the small diamond on her left hand sparkled when it caught the rays from the bright noonday sun that bathed the kitchen.  Celia stopped her cutting and held her hand out to admire the treasured token Tom had presented to her several months earlier.

“Celia!”  Cook called out the maid’s name.  “Do you have those vegetables ready?”

“Just about.”  Celia dropped her hand and reached for the vegetable peeler so she could finish the carrots but couldn't find it.  Squatting, she looked around the floor and under the edge of the big island.  She the rummaged  around the top of the island, moving the carrots, the bag of celery and several brightly colored peppers.

“Now where did that thing go?” she muttered.

Celia retraced her steps but still couldn’t locate the peeler.

“Celia.  I'm ready for the vegetables,” called the Cook in a exasperated voice.

“I can’t find the vegetable peeler,” exclaimed Celia.  “And I just had it in my hands a few seconds ago.”

Cook hurried over to the young maid. Like Celia, she searched among the supplies on the work island then on the surrounding floor.  

“I swear, sometimes you remind me of Trixie and Honey; losing things or getting lost in a daydream instead of focusing on a task.”

Celia, her head cocked to one side, smiled.  “I consider that a compliment.  Honey and Trixie are two of the smartest, most caring girls I know.  I can only hope that I can bring those attributes to my nursing career.”

Cook huffed.  “Well, are you going to stand there with a goofy grin on your face or are you going to look for that peeler.  Honestly, I can’t wait until you’re married and things settle down around here.”

Celia again searched through the work island but still came up empty.  Finally, she grabbed a sharp knife and finished cleaning the carrots with that. She hurriedly cut up the rest of the celery and peppers then arranged them on a platter around a ramekin full of homemade dill dip.  After placing the vegetables with the rest of the lunch food,  Celia went through the swinging door into the dining room to make sure the table was properly set and ready.

A few minutes later, Celia heard Trixie and Honey come in the front door and stepped out into the hall to call to them.

“Lunch will be ready in a few minutes.”

“Thank you, Celia,” said Honey.  “Come on, Trixie, let’s get washed up.”  

Celia returned to the kitchen where she put the finishing touches on the platters of prepared food: a few sprigs of parsley here and there and a sprinkle of fresh dill on the top of the dip. After carrying the platter into the large, formal dining room,  Cook brought in the remainder of the meal and the two arranged it.  With that task complete, they returned to the kitchen.

“Did you find that peeler yet?” asked Cook.

Celia shook her head, causing a few dark strands from her chignon to tumble loose. “I can’t imagine what happened to it.”

“Let’s retrace your steps,” suggested Cook.

“Okay, I was peeling the carrots when Trixie came in and asked for Honey. I remember I pointed toward the staircase with the peeler then got back to work. I know I was using the peeler then.”  Celia paused as she tried to visualize her next move.

“Then what?” demanded Cook, sighing loudly.

Celia shrugged.  “I kept working.  I remember thinking about the fresh carrots and how shiny they were as I peeled them and that reminded me of water.  Then I looked up and saw Honey and Trixie…” Celia gasped and ran across the room to the large window.  “That’s right. I watched them go down toward the lake from this window.”  Celia looked at the large window ledge that held several pots of fresh herbs.  “And here it is!” Triumphantly, Celia held up the peeler with one curling strip of carrot peel still clinging to its blade.  

Shaking her head, Cook took the peeler and added it to the dishwasher.  Celia returned to the island where she made her own lunch, using what was left from the earlier preparations. She pulled up a stool and, before sitting down,  grabbed a notebook from the nearby counter.  Opening it, she reviewed the list she had made for her upcoming wedding, happy to see the number of tasks that she had completed.  She then turned to the back of her notebook where she had stashed several articles regarding nursing trends in the medical field. As she ate her lunch, Celia read the articles, committing to memory the facts they contained then closed her notebook and put it back on the counter.  After grabbing a brownie from the pan on the stove, Celia returned to her stool and indulged herself with her favorite daydream.

“Mrs. Tom Delanoy!  Ooh, I can’t wait until I’m his wife.  And eventually we’ll have our own little cottage and maybe a dog or cat.  In the evenings, we’ll curl up next to each other on the couch in front of a cozy, romantic fire.  Tom will be flipping through his car magazines while I’m studying.   I can’t wait. Who would have ever thought that little, poor Celia would end up with such a good life?   In a few years, I’ll be a nurse at Sleepyside General Hospital and Tom and I will  be getting ready to start our own family.  It will be so perfect.” 

Hugging herself, Celia ate the gooey brownie full of pecans and chocolate chips. Her mind jumped ahead a few years to another scene she loved to daydream about,  a scene that consisted of a couple toddlers with dark, shiny hair romping with Tom in the front yard of their house and her proudly wearing official nursing scrubs and a name tag that said “Celia Delanoy, R.N.  She couldn’t help but sigh dreamily as she finished the decadent dessert.

“And when you’re done daydreaming, you can clear the table and dry the serving platters,” interrupted Cook.

“Okay,” answered Celia, certain that no grumpy cook or mundane tasks could ever taint the perfect future she envisioned for herself and her husband.

When Celia retired to her room on the third floor of the Wheeler mansion later that day, she pulled her recent bank statement from her dresser drawer and studied it.  She saw the accumulating deposits with few withdrawals. Pleased with her financial progress, she slid the statement  back under her socks, then picked up a novel she had recently gotten from the library.  A glance at the title made her giggle.  “Anatomy of a Murder. That sounds like a medical book to me.”  

Hoping to read a few chapters before Tom was ready to take her to dinner, Celia sprawled out on her bed, her dream of being an registeerd nurse never far from her mind.

Word count - 2385

Author's notes: A special thank you to my daughter, Katia, who played editor for me.  Also, thank you to Vivian for setting up the background. Image courtesy of Pixabay.

Anatomy of a Murder - novel written by former Marquette County prosecutor, Robert Traver, and was later turned into a movie.

background tiles from