A Snapshot of Hope

  A SNAPSHOT OF HOPE

  NELIANNE GENNER

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Epilogue

  Review Request

  About the Author

  Copyright

  To our beloved Roxy. You will forever be in our hearts.

  CHAPTER ONE

  As I walked slowly through the tunnel of bright, blinking lights in the village, an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia swept over me. I gazed out over a sea of illumination and lost myself in the memories of Christmas past.

  “Sophia, should we find a spot for you to take your pictures?” Long, curly, red hair obstructed my view.

  “Yes, please!”

  “When we’re finished, you can go back to your happy place,” she said in a sarcastic undertone.

  “You know me too well, Rae.”

  Raelyn Taylor was like a second sister to me. Our mutual friend, Kendal, had introduced us roughly six years ago, and we were immediately attached at the hip. We lived in the same small town of Buckingham, Pennsylvania, with our similar interests soaring beyond your typical taste in books, music, and films; the two of us were deeply connected. We were as close as any two women could be, and we supported each other in all aspects of life. I even got along well with her family, which is why I was not the least bit surprised when she asked me to be the maid of honor in her wedding last summer.

  I will never forget standing under the archway at the lake on that warm, sunny day taking in the smells of lavender and fresh cut grass. Thankfully, my long blonde hair had been braided into a loose side bun, and my royal blue dress with one side strap stopped three inches above my knee. I remember admiring how angelic she looked in her long, strapless, ivory wedding dress and short floral veil. As the ceremony concluded, the sun made its descent behind the water, and the sky shifted to swirls of purple, orange, and pink. It was a beauty that could never be captured fully by any camera or matched by any other season. Summer was hands down the only time of year I enjoyed more than Christmas.

  “Raelyn, let’s park ourselves by the white gazebo while we wait for Kendal and her cousin to get here. We can see most of the village from there, and I should be able to get some decent shots for the website.” The couple was running fashionably late, as was pretty usual for these types of events. We had to be blending in by the pond in less than ten minutes for the main event.

  “I just got the text from Kendal. They are pulling into the parking lot right now and told us to be ready.” I could hear Raelyn’s voice buzzing behind me. I tended to get deep in the zone with my work, and Christmas lights in the village were always spectacular to photograph.

  “Sophia, did you hear me? We have to head over to the pond in a minute.”

  “Yup, got it!” Her instruction snapped me back to the present, and I slung my camera bag over my shoulder, adjusting the strap around my heavy coat.

  We arrived at the pond and stood in place only thirty seconds before Kendal and her cousin, John, and his girlfriend, Kate, approached. Trying to hide in plain sight is a lot trickier than it sounds, but we did our best to stay hidden and look inconspicuous. My camera was ready, and I was overcome with joy.

  My heart swelled, and I couldn’t help but exclaim aloud, “This is so romantic!”

  Immediately, Rae slapped a hand over my mouth. “Shhhh!” she hissed and then repositioned her iPhone in their direction to snap some pictures of her own.

  John and Kate stood in front of the pond under the tall lamp post with a backdrop of holiday radiance and clear dark skies filled with hundreds of twinkling stars.

  He knelt to the ground on one knee and held out a tiny black velvet box. Opening it slowly, he looked up at Kate, who was smiling down at him with tears in her eyes.

  “I love you so much. I have since the first time I heard you laugh. I loved you even more after the first time I saw you cry. I want to continue to bring you laughter and continue to wipe your tears for the rest of our lives. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”

  “Yes!” she yelled. “Yes!” Kate pulled John up from the ground. She gently grabbed his face with both hands and gave him a long passionate kiss that outwardly exuded the intense love between them.

  It was the very first time I had ever witnessed a marriage proposal, and I captured it all on film. I truly love my job.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Weeks of counting down had ended. My older brother, Oliver, who just one month prior turned thirty-three, was finally here. Every time he came, I latched myself onto him as soon as he arrived and did not detach until he left again. It had been so difficult only seeing him in person twice a year for the past five years. Each year became a bit easier, but it still hadn’t felt the same without him around all of the time.

  My parents had five children, and Oliver was the oldest. He was three years older than Elijah, my other older brother. Two years later came Paityn, who’s three years older than me. Ashton was the baby.

  I was the only blonde in a family of brunettes, and Paityn was a clone of Mom, with brown eyes and brown hair, standing five feet tall and had a medium build. All of the boys had brown hair and blue eyes like Dad, and the four of them shared similar heights between five feet, eight inches and five feet, ten inches. My brothers got their athletic figures from my dad, but they were all involved in some sport or another over the years as well. I was lucky enough to reach an average height for a woman, five feet, five inches, and I was fairly slim, which always made me feel like I could eat as many carbs as I wanted. I’m sure it won’t be that way forever though.

  Oliver and I had gotten pretty close over the years. In middle school, he used to drive me to my soccer games and dance practices when my parents weren’t available. When I reached the tenth grade, we started going to the gym together on occasion to do cardio or lift weights. We also used to go to the movies once a month and then spend the rest of the night quoting the flick and talking about which actors we liked best. Years later, we would go out to hear bands play. I would invite my girlfriends, and he’d invite all of his guy friends. We were all one big happy family.

  One day, Oliver received a call about a nursing supervisor position at a well-known hospital in San Diego, California. He completed a phone interview, and then flew out to meet with a panel of board members and other supervisors at the hospital. He was offered the job the next day and promptly accepted. All of his hard work at his previous hospital in the nursing department had paid off, and he embraced the opportunity for a change. The reality had to be faced that Oliver was moving to the other side of the country.

  We all vowed to go out and visit him in San Diego as soon as possible. A year after he moved to California, I booked a flight and set up an itinerary with
Oliver for the week. We traveled all over the west coast, from Coronado Beach to Venice Beach. We saw the Hollywood sign and shopped on Rodeo Drive, and we even went to Disneyland in Anaheim. He told me all about his new position and about the team of people he worked with. He showed me his office and introduced me to some of his coworkers, who shared stories of their times together with him. Oliver seemed happy, really happy, and that made me happy. All of his dreams had come true, and the only thing missing in his life was someone to share it with.

  Oliver was selective, and he always had been. He had certain qualities he looked for in women and rarely made exceptions. He also had a type he dated regarding physical features, favoring only women who were short with dark hair. The person Oliver would spend the rest of his life with had to be easy going. He needed them to have a sense of humor and share a lot of the same interests as him. Oliver had one girlfriend in high school, that he dated from the beginning of his junior year until right after graduation. The relationship ultimately ended because she was moving far away for college, and neither of them wanted to try the long distance thing. Since then, he dated several other women, but the relationships never lasted for one reason or another. Things never worked out, or maybe they did if you look at it in a “everything happens for a reason” kind of way. I believe things happened the way they were supposed to, and I had a good feeling that he was going to find his person in California.

  This was Oliver’s fifth year coming home for the holidays. The James’ family time was too good to resist, and we would never let him anyway. We argued over who would pick him up from the airport and see him first. We would all go, but there would be no room in the car for luggage. Oliver always came home two days before Christmas and left two days after we celebrated the new year. I think some people would be overwhelmed with the schedule our family keeps at the holidays, but we enjoyed it; it was our tradition.

  We hosted the Feast of the Seven Fishes at our house on Christmas Eve, which came from our mom’s Italian heritage, and together attended mass at midnight. On Christmas Day, we gathered around the dining room table for breakfast before we exchanged gifts. We even wrapped presents for Harley, our yellow Labrador retriever. She turned eight this past year, and she had been opening presents since the first Christmas we had her as a puppy. She used to steal wrapped presents from under the tree that did not belong to her and rip into them with her teeth and claws until she would reveal the gift. Once she realized it wasn’t edible, she would leave it and find something else to entertain her. It was only natural that we started wrapping a few for her each year to open, and she learned not to take anything we didn’t give to her. Harley was intelligent, loving, and sweet; she was such a special dog.

  Christmas dinner was celebrated with our grandparents on Daniel’s very Irish side. Dad hated it when I called him Daniel, almost as much as Mom hated it when I referred to her as Isabel. I did it sometimes just to get a reaction. After dinner, we ate way too much dessert and played a variety of games. The day after Christmas, we headed over to my aunt’s house for her annual holiday party. Isabel’s sister invited nearly thirty people over for what felt like a giant cousin reunion. I wouldn’t trade those three days of family fun for anything in the world.

  This year, Dad went to the airport to pick up Oliver by himself. My brother, not usually one to overpack, asked us to send only one person because he’d brought extra luggage. I felt my blood pressure rising as my dad left to pick him up; I could not wait for them to return!

  When Dad came home from the airport with Oliver, they did have some extra luggage - enough, it seemed, for two people.

  “Hi! Why are you two carrying so many bags? Overdo it with your Christmas shopping this year?” I wanted to hug him, but his hands were completely full.

  “Hey, Soph! It’s so great to see you. Where are Mom and Ashton? I have a surprise.” Oliver placed the bags down by the stairs and I followed him, intrigued by the idea of a surprise.

  “Mom is grocery shopping, and Ashton is still at work. They should both be home soon. Tell me! What is the surprise?”

  “Chloe, it’s okay to come in now,” Oliver yelled out to someone in the driveway with a light in his eyes I had not seen in a very long time. He had a friend with him from California. Not just a friend, a girlfriend. It was his girlfriend.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Ashton was our younger brother. He was seventeen years old and a senior in high school. He worked part-time at the nearby coffee shop, but it had recently felt like he was never home. Mom thought he might be getting into trouble with a new crowd. Dad thought he might have a girlfriend and did not want to tell us. I thought he seemed slightly depressed. When the holidays were over, I planned on digging a bit more to gain some clarity on the situation.

  Once Mom and Ashton were home, everyone sat around the kitchen table trying to catch up. We wanted to get to know Chloe, but we did not want to interrogate her. I had a hundred questions I wanted to ask. I decided to start with inquiring about how they met and how long they had been dating. It turned out they met back in the summer in Downtown San Diego at a concert and had their first date the following week. Chloe was nice, and she was really funny, and she had a quick wit that matched Oliver’s perfectly. She was a mixture of Chinese and Japanese, had long brown hair and brown eyes, and was a tad shorter than him. Chloe worked as an early childhood school teacher out in San Diego, and she was close with her family as well. I liked her, and through conversation and observation of body language, I could see Oliver did too. He liked her a lot.

  “Ashton, how is school going? Have you heard back from any colleges?” Oliver made an attempt to divert the attention.

  “School is fine. Grades are average, maybe a little above. I have heard back from one college.” Ashton replied to Oliver vaguely.

  “Whoa, there, buddy! Don’t share too much with us.” We missed Oliver’s satire around here.

  “I don’t know. I just want to graduate and be done with that place. I feel like I have been living in this bubble for years, where everyone knows everything about everyone. Nothing can ever stay private, and people are always passing judgment. I can’t wait to go away.”

  It just hit me at this moment that Ashton was leaving. He should’ve been the last to go, but I had been too attached to the house and my family to move out. I even commuted to college because I couldn’t bear the separation. My anxieties about living alone also prohibited me from getting my own place. I was going to be living all alone with Isabel and Dan, and Harley too of course.

  “What college did you get into, Ash?” Oliver pushed for more information.

  “An acceptance letter came in the mail last week for Belmont University in Tennessee. It’s my first choice and far enough away from here. I’m committing after the holidays.”

  I searched Mom and Dad’s faces for reactions. They already knew.

  “Ashton, I don’t think I realized you were going so far away. Are you sure you are ready for that?” I wondered if he really had thought this through.

  “Soph, I have been ready. Riley is going too, so I will already know at least one person there.”

  Riley was Ashton’s new friend from school. We had still yet to meet her, but he seemed to be her biggest fan. I suppose it helped knowing that he would have a friend moving to another state with him, and it was another place I would get to visit on occasion. I could check up on my little brother and add to my landscape photography portfolio while I was there. Every cloud had a silver lining.

  Mom cleared the table and brought out the mouth-watering, irresistible chocolate lava cake dessert. Why does she always do this to me? Damn that woman and her phenomenal cooking!

  Now that we had grilled Oliver and Ashton over dinner, I feared my turn was coming next.

  “Dad, what time is everyone getting here tomorrow?” I tried to deflect.

  “Well, Paityn and Bradley are planning on getting here around four o’clock with Liam, and Elijah will be arriving wit
h Bethany right before our signature cocktail hour.”

  I loved when all of us were together. Our family was large, and it had become so spread out over the years. Paityn, who was the middle child, had married Bradley four years ago and moved to Atlanta, Georgia a few months later. Right after their first wedding anniversary, Liam was born. He was about to turn three years old, and he was the most adorable toddler I had ever seen. I know, I was just a little biased with him being my nephew, but he really was super cute. His eyes were bright blue, and his hair was mostly brown with some natural blonde highlights. Paityn combed his hair back so that it had a slick but spiky look, and she and Brad always dressed him in button down shirts and jeans. The kid would definitely be a heartbreaker when he gets older. Hopefully, by then, Liam would be more into socializing. He was very quiet and shy, and he did not seem to like it when anyone entered his personal space. Paityn was certain that he would grow out of it once he started going to daycare.

  Elijah was the second oldest, born three years after Oliver. He dated Bethany for five years before getting engaged, and they were married six months after the proposal. It was a small wedding in the park, just a few miles from their home in Pipersville, a couple of years back. They tried for a while to have a baby, and when Bethany finally did get pregnant, she had a miscarriage, which led to many months of grief. Elijah shared with me at Thanksgiving that their biggest fear is having history repeat itself. The only advice I had to offer at the time was to remain positive and to trust the timing of his life.