Christmas was only a week away and Claire still had not decided where she would be going this year. For the past two years, Claire had made it a point to go to a country where they did not celebrate Christmas in any shape or form. On the 25th of December, she wanted the world to be as silent and ordinary as it was on any other day. She wanted to go somewhere where there were no celebrations, no exchange of gifts, no family dinners to attend, no merry singing, no broken promises, no forlorn hearts waiting for their beloved to return. She heaved a big sigh shaking her head furiously. Don’t go there Claire not today, not now she thought. ‘Focus’ she reminded herself as she glanced at the list of suitable locations opened on the computer screen in front of her. Afghanistan, Algeria, Bhutan, North Korea, Libya, Mauritania, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
This was the list on Google for places that did not celebrate Christmas. However, she could always pick a country where Christianity wasn’t the major religion and hide away in some unseen corner of it. That somewhat widened the options for her. Last year she had gone to Saudi Arabia, and the year before that she had visited India thinking that between the Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs there wouldn’t be much space left for a Christian holiday. But she was greatly disappointed. Not only did India celebrate Christmas with much pomp and vigor but there were so many of their own festivities that Claire had felt sick and decided to return early.
Come on Claire just pick a place it’s only for a day or two. She chided herself. Claire knew that if she didn’t pick something soon she would end up staying here; in New York City and that was the last place she wanted to be when her mother would begin with her incessant calls forcing Claire to come home for Christmas. Claire had to be far far away from home so her mother would know that she couldn’t possibly make it even if she wanted to. Claire knew that her mother was just worried about her and she wanted Claire to heal from the wounds of her past. But Claire was not ready. New Jersey had been a place of great pain for her all her life and Eric was just a small part of it. No Claire had to get away. Had to be away from the place that had always been her home and yet still never been one. She had spent her whole life being tossed around from one corner of the place to another. Granted that New York wasn’t that far off but at least it wasn’t New Jersey.
Out of the corner of her eye, Claire saw Heather coming over in her direction. She quickly closed the web page she had been looking at and returned to the one on the newest findings of King Tut’s tomb. Maybe she’ll go to Egypt she thought. Claire worked as a writer for a magazine that dealt mostly with subjects of the art, architecture, and practices of ancient civilizations. Claire had been working on an article analyzing the new archaeological discoveries of King Tut’s tomb and comparing them with what they found a hundred years ago. The work was really interesting but recently Claire had felt completely disenchanted with it. The reason for her frustration was that she would much rather be making said art than writing about it from a corner of an unnaturally bright-lit office.
Heather’s vibrant silk dresses and exotic perfumes were hard to ignore. Claire could see her talking to Miranda a couple of tables over. Even at such a distance Claire felt almost strangled by the strong fruity smell of Heather’s perfume. Claire strongly believed it was part of what made her such an imposing person. Without the silks and the colors and scents, Heather might appear to be just an ordinary woman like Claire. Today she wore a gorgeous silver dress and despite her internal criticism Claire greatly admired the way Heather dressed and looked. Claire herself was always to be found in the most drabbest of clothes although her dresses often had interesting shapes and patterns the colors were mostly muted. She wanted to remain as far away from the spotlight as possible. That is the reason why she was still working as a writer and Heather had been promoted to senior editor. The job had been offered to Claire last year but she decided not to take it. She did not see any point in climbing higher in a profession where she had no interest in spending many more of her years. Advancing up the career ladder meant that she would be stuck even deeper than she already was.
‘”Claire, are you almost done with the Tut report?” “Michael wants it by 4 and I still have to give it a look before I send it over you know” Heather was always like this. Demeaning her work like she didn’t already know that there would be no errors or faults with Claire’s report. Claire knew it was because she was a bit jealous of Claire’s writing abilities. After all, words just came naturally to Claire. Just like Claire was envious of Heather’s ability to dress powerfully. But beneath all the pretenses of envy and hatred, the two women respected each other and their crafts. When Claire moved to New York 5 years ago, it was Heather, a complete stranger she met at the coffee shop, who helped her get a job and find a place to live. But over the years the two women had drifted apart. Claire had been unable to keep up with the social engagements Heather frequently invited her to and Heather took Claire’s refusal to engage in social gatherings rather personally. Ironically, even then those 5 years ago Claire had been drawn to Heather by her appearance. She looked so magnificently misplaced in that small but charming cafe.
“I will send it over to you in twenty minutes” Claire smiled weakly. Lately, she had felt drained of energy. Although initially she had been hopeful, even optimistic of her move to New York recently she had felt like things wouldn’t have been much different even if she had stayed in her small hometown of Westfield. She would still be working a job she did not much appreciate or enjoy. She would still have no friends. She would still be single and living alone – although with rather frequent visits from her parents. But she had to move for the same reason that she had to leave the country for Christmas. Bloody Erik!.