Water Signs: A Story of Love and Renewal

* * *

"Well?"Maddy asked hopefully.

"Quentin says he'll cover for me!" Ken beamed. "He could use the

extra hours after the Christmas Holiday." With that, he picked her up off

the ground, spinning her around in jubilation.

"Ken! This means you can watch the playoff game with us!" Her

enthusiasm was running over at the thought of all them cheering on the

Eagles against the New Orleans Saints. Since they were playing away,

Mom had invited some relatives and friends to catch the action at their

house.

In the company of Madeline's warm, wonderful family the two of

them watched their favorite football team advance to the divisional

playoff game against their arch rival Dallas Cowboys, by defeating the

Saints 36-20 in the Louisiana Superdome. For Maddy, the euphoria of that

moment was only superceded by the indescribable joy of being reconciled

with Ken, and looking ahead to a bright and beautiful future.

* * *

Throughout the month of January, Ken and Madeline spent as much

time as possible together, weather permitting. And though Old Man

Winter hadn't been feeling particularly generous, constantly slamming the

area with brutal snows, bitter winds and sub-zero temperatures, they

managed to see quite a bit of each other on the weekends. Ken had even

made another trip to Pennsylvania to take Maddy to a dinner dance with

her parents, along with Aunt Maria and Uncle Earl. And though they'd

had a fabulous time, she started to notice something troubling in his

demeanor-a more pronounced restlessness, and a palpable sense of

frustration.

From a professional standpoint, she could certainly relate; after all, in

spite of having an understanding boss, Maddy had long since tired of

outside sales. It was especially grueling in inclement weather such as they

were experiencing now. From deep within, she knew that God's purpose

for her life went much deeper than cold-calling for new accounts and

obtaining coveted employment contracts.

And though there was a certain amount of satisfaction in connecting

the right employer with the right job seeker, it was no longer enough to

placate her. Then there was the added matter of a small profit-margin,

which definitively limited her earning potential. But worst of all, in a

family of professionals, Maddy felt completely inferior and inadequate;

even her handicapped brother had far exceeded the direst expectations.

What was so wrong with her that she couldn't even fulfill her own potential?

And though raised in a loving, supportive home, for as long as she

could remember, she'd been plagued by a haunting feeling of not being

good enough, of always coming up short of the mark, no matter how hard

she tried. As a Catholic school girl, she'd studied hard and earned

excellent grades; yet at the end of every school year, the teachers

invariably awarded the coveted "plaque" to her academic rival, Megan

Kelly. It didn't matter if the two had identical grade-point averages-

somehow the nuns consistently favored Megan over Madeline.

Combined with her perennial struggle with just enough extra

poundage to be the butt of cruel jokes and the perception some

classmates had of her being a "spoiled rich girl," it had amounted to a

sometimes lonely, hurtful and frustrating childhood and adolescence. And

while Maddy did have her fair share of friends, none of them had merited

the status of inclusion in the "in" crowd that hung out after elementary

school on the "hill" near the convent or-in later years, drove around to

the local malls and other "cool" hangouts.

Through it all, her family had been a source of comfort and

unconditional love. So while her educational years had been tumultuous,

the drama had been balanced by strong family ties, supported by fun

vacations at the Shore and Pocono Mountains, thrilling hours spent at the

Phillies and Eagles games, and endless, joyful celebrations of milestones

including Holy Communions, graduations and other assorted, uplifting

events.

Whenever her academic experience got too heavy, Maddy simply

reminded herself of the blissful haven awaiting her at home. Once there

she'd either bury her nose in a book, dance with Louis to the latest hits or

play football with Greg and Damian.

The last activity had led to her first "sports injury" at age seven, when

Greg accidentally landed on her arm after both of them had fallen to the

ground in an attempt to catch Damian's pass. Initially, they'd both

laughed at loud in the crisp, fall air-that is, until young Maddy heard a

distinctive "crack," followed by a searing, shooting pain.

It felt like her arm was on fire as a spooked Greg scooped her up in

his arms and carried her to the front landing. As she wailed

uncontrollably, "My arm! My arm!" a panicked Greg kissed her forehead

and comforted her, while the other kids ran into the house to get the

adults. And while the pain had been formidable, Maddy's hysterics

resulted equally from the gruesome sight of her mangled arm protruding

from her sweater sleeve. As a little girl, she thought for sure the doctors

would have to amputate it.

And at the same time, she sympathized with Greg, who as the oldest

sibling was sure to take heat from Mom and Dad for failing to "know

better." After all, moments before the accident, Mom had come outside

to admonish them to stop running around in the dark and get inside,

"before someone got hurt." As Maddy recalled, her frantic mother had

not been pleased by this outcome, prompting the child to refrain from

crying as she snuggled up in the back of the car with Aunt Maria on the

way to the hospital. While Dr. Rose drove, Monica continuously looked

back at her "baby" with a look of utter anguish from the front passenger

seat.

Fortunately, age had been on Maddy's side and her arm healed

beautifully. But that evening when she returned home, she made a point

of going into Greg's room to tell him it was an accident and that she

didn't blame him for anything, no matter what Mom and Dad might

think. He'd been sitting at the end of the bed with his head hanging in

shame, until he saw his little sister's smiling face.

"Don't worry, Greg," she'd told him. "All I have to do is wear this

cast for six weeks and then my arm will be all better."

And though relieved, he still presented her with the ultimate token of

regret, at least for 1974-Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album.

Even at that immature age, Maddy had been profoundly touched by the

gesture.