She lowers her head, hands twisting around each other. “If I’m being honest, I was just going to copy Lanie’s.” She shakes her head. “Then I realized she chose love as one of hers, and I don’t want love. That’s not in the cards for me.”
I grab Nina’s hand, holding it on my lap.
“I’m not going to say that you’ll be ready for love this year. Not after everything you’ve been through, but don’t close yourself off, Nins. You deserve happiness. Whatever that looks like for you.” She offers a tight-lipped smile. “Don’t think about this so hard. Just listen to your gut. Whatever it tells you to do, just do it.” I’m regurgitating Lanie’s instructions, but it appears to work.
Nina swallows and nods her head before picking up her marker. I watch as she labels her own board. She writespersonal development,travel,spirituality, and then she glances over at me.
“Do you mind if I steal one of yours?”
I shake my head. “Go for it.”
She finishes her board with self-care.
I smile wide at my friend. “Those are great, Nina. Lanie is going to be so proud.”
She smirks. “I’m doing this for me.”
I lift my hand in the air as if I’m holding a cup. “Cheers, my friend.”
“I think we should go get the real thing. What about you?”
While I’m not a huge fan of gin, I think I’m going to appreciate it tonight.
“One hundred percent.”
We make our way to the kitchen to find that Lanie and Corinne are in there, grabbing themselves a snack and a drink.
“Looks like you guys had the same idea as us,” I say, motioning toward their glasses.
Lanie takes a bite of a carrot, but it doesn’t stop her from talking as she chews. Which is not unlike her at all.
“I find that having a drink while meditating works really well for me.”
“Last I checked, having a drink while doing anything works really well for you,” Corinne teases.
Lanie shrugs. “That too. I’m in my salty dog era.”
“Oh? What’s that?” Nina asks.
Lanie walks her through the gin-inspired drink, which admittedly sounds delicious.
“I brought all the garnishes.” She points toward the grapefruit juice and salt. “Use the dry gin,” she says, as if either of us knows the damn difference.
I bought a few variations, but I put no thought into why I chose the bottles I did.
Lanie ends up making Nina’s while I stick to what’s familiar. Tanqueray and tonic to start, and perhaps I’ll try the salty dog next. We head back toward the family room, all eager to get to work on our boards.
I have to admit, I’m more excited than I first thought I’d be. The whole idea was a perfect way to get our minds off all the negative and onto more hopeful things.
“Don’t get too comfortable in there. We have to break out again,” Lanie calls to my back.
When she comes into the room, she hands us each a small journal that she pulled from her oversize bag.
“The next step for you is to sit with these four pillars and journal what each means to you. If you chose career, what does that perfect career look like? Think about how you’ll feel when you have that career.”
I think about what she’s saying, envisioning a room set up with whiteboards filled with suspect profiles. Something akin to what I’ve seen on television. It fills me with excitement and an edge of danger. A different form of butterflies fills my stomach. A rush of adrenaline that makes me excited for the future.
“Write down what feeling is attached to each of the pillars.” Her hands rise and curl into balls as she gets into her role. “Really dive deep into why it’s important to you. Why will it bring you joy this year?”
