“You’ve got a lot on your plate, Dawn.”
“Yeah, what else is new? I’ve got Gran in the hospital, my mom in prison, Luca stuck at his home with a concussion, and I still need to find Mandy.” Dawn blew out a breath.
“Didn’t Minerva give you advice on destressing?”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t change anything.”
“Of course it changes everything.” Lynda shook her finger. “No matter what happens, you need to take care of you. Your center, your core is the light. Don’t let it go out. That’s why you need to meditate every day, morning and night. Have you been doing that?”
Dawn cringed. “Not really. At least not since Luca got hurt. I’ve been staying at the Fierros’ place all week.”
“You can still meditate. You can get up a few minutes early. Excuse yourself for a few minutes before you go to bed. You have to commit to it.”
“I am committed to it,” Dawn said indignantly. “I volunteer at the Youth Community Center, I am trying to help find Mandy, and I’m trying my best to be a good person.”
“You are a good person, Dawn,” Lynda said gently, patting her knee. “But it’s not just about doing good deeds. Lots of people do good deeds, and they lead miserable lives. You have to find a way to balance your deeds with who you are and how you feel. No matter what happens in your life, you need to know that inside, your soul will not change. You are constant.”
“Okay, I get it. Being centered and all that. The difference between intention and actually doing and being. That’s always been my mom’s problem.”
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”
Dawn glanced at Lynda. “My gran always says that. Do you believe in heaven and hell? Or good and evil?”
“You mean the big guy upstairs and the hottie in the basement?” Lynda grinned. “I can’t tell you about the afterlife. We’re all sworn to secrecy, but I can tell you the battle between good and evil isn’t like the ongoing battle between Coca-Cola and Pepsi.”
Dawn chuckled at that. Lynda’s humor was a welcome relief.
“By the way, you’re doing great at the community center. Tansy gave me a glowing report about you.”
“She did?”
“Yes, she did.”
“So why were you yelling at me about meditating a few minutes ago?”
“I don’t yell. I never yell. I just gently reminded you to stay on track.”
“Am I really making a difference?”
“You are. You can’t imagine the impact you’ve had on Rita.”
“I really like her. She’s a good kid.”
“More important, she’s going to pay it forward and be there for Joanie when Joanie needs a good friend.”
Dawn’s eyes widened. “You mean the tough girl with the tats and the skull earrings?”
Lynda nodded. “Yes. Joanie was the one who needed help. And your support of Rita gave her the confidence to reach out.”
“Well, I’ll be damned. I told her to be careful around Joanie.”
Lynda chuckled. “You also reassured her about her own strengths. Joanie confided in her about something very traumatic, and Rita spoke with Tansy. They’re getting Joanie the help she needs.”
“But that wasn’t my doing.” Dawn swallowed the lump in her throat. “I thought Joanie was bad news.”
“You set everything in motion. You were an agent of karmic change, and that is truly a feat. Sometimes you’ll never know what little things you did or said that made a difference.”
A tear streamed down Dawn’s cheek. “If I’m so psychically centered, how come I couldn’t see that about Joanie?”
