I am writing only briefly, to give you the news of an event that has been anticipated for some time, but was not terribly exciting in its execution. This afternoon, Pamela received a call from her stepfather.
As momentous as that may sound, as much as the sight of his name on her phone gave Pamela a turmoil of emotions, the conversation was actually quite banal. William said to Pamela that it had been a long time since they spoke, that he had missed her, and she followed his lead, leaving the unresolved issues between them untouched. They exchanged light news, talking about her job and his, the activity of her brothers, the weather and the news of current events unrelated to either of them. The recent holiday, to which Pamela had not been invited, was not mentioned; nor was her mother.
Throughout the whole conversation, which was full of awkward pauses, Pamela wanted to press her stepfather on whether he had gotten her reply message, or even to mention the message at all. Listening at her shoulder, I encouraged her not to. To me the connection between them seemed fragile as a thread, and I worried that too much weight on the thread would cause it to break. Better to take some time, strengthen the peace between them, before bringing that weight back into play.
I am encouraged, however, by the way the conversation ended. After yet another slightly-too-long silence, William said into the phone, “I miss you, Pam.”
Her eyes stung with tears. “I miss you too, Daddy. I have to go, but—talk soon?”
His voice was warm. “Yes, I’d like that. I’ll call again in a few days.”
They hung up without saying anything else, but the thin, tenuous connection remains. I hope to build upon it in weeks to come.