Stud Muffin (Donner Bakery #2) - Jiffy Kate Page 0,37
as she waits for everyone to find a seat.
Once everyone is seated, she starts. “Something we haven’t done in a while is speaking individually about why we’re all here. A few of you spoke about isolated incidents last week, but this week, I’d like us to all share… at least a brief synopsis of what brought you here.” Pausing, she smiles and lets her eyes travel around the circle. “I know this might be hard for some of you, but the thing we need to realize the most is that we’re not alone. Everyone here is dealing with something.”
A guy to my left holds a hand up, getting her attention and she nods at him. “Go ahead, Steve.”
“My wife and I were having issues at home,” he starts. “She’s…” he stops, “I’m not very good at keeping my cool. When we argue, things get heated.”
At his confession, my heart beats a little faster.
“I’ve never hit her,” he clarifies, clearing his throat. “But I have broken things at our house… tables, lamps, doors. And I know it’s wrong. Our marriage counselor suggested these sessions and they’ve really helped.”
When he’s finished, I notice that he wipes his palms down the legs of his jeans. And I realize my palms are sweaty too.
“I’m here because a judge sentenced me to anger management sessions instead of jail time,” a guy across the room says, and I look up at him. He seems like an average guy—probably in his early thirties, dress shirt and slacks. “I was in a bar one night and a guy made a pass at my girlfriend. I let it go the first time, but when she told me he followed her to the bathroom,” he pauses, running a hand through this hair and letting out a deep breath. “Well, I lost it… body shakes, blood boiling… you name it, I felt it. One minute I was standing toe-to-toe with the guy and the next minute I was in handcuffs in the back of a cop car.”
The personal stories continue and with each one, I start to feel less and less alone. Sure, I’m flying solo these days, but something about hearing other people—normal, everyday people—who’ve been through similar things, dealt with similar things, makes me feel… less crazy, more normal.
“I’m Tempest,” I say, when I’m the last one left who hasn’t talked. “Like you,” I say, pointing across the circle to the guy in the dress shirt, “I was sentenced to anger management after my fourth… episode, as my mama likes to call them.” I smile, shaking my head. “I walked in on my husband and his… well, wife, now… he just recently married his mistress.” A few people shift in their seat and I glance up to see their disapproval, making me feel like they’re on my side, and it makes all of this easier. “About four months ago, I walked in on them together in bed. My first time in jail was for disturbing the peace. I stood outside his new house and yelled… everything… I can’t even remember. I’d been drinking that night and then I had a bad dream, and I figured if I couldn’t sleep, he shouldn’t either. Then, I burned all of his stuff he left at our house. Apparently, it’s against the law to start a bonfire in your driveway.”
The guy beside me laughs a little, but it’s not at me, it’s different—it’s understanding, solidarity.
“I also broke into his new house and stole a football… and hocked it to pay for some fines. Then I put his truck in a pond. So, after I had a few strikes against me, the judge decided this would be a good place for me, and—” I pause, looking around the room. “I think he was right.”
Everyone nods in agreement and Lana gives me an encouraging smile.
The weight from the day is lifted off my shoulders. Just like when I shared some of this with Cage. It’s like I’m not carrying the full load of the burden any more.
“For the next thirty minutes,” she says, looking down at her watch, “I’d like us to talk about other ways we can release stress.”
The talk ranges from yoga to meditation to journaling to physical activity.
Listening to them talk about how karate or swimming or running have helped makes me think that Cage’s offer to teach me kickboxing might not be too far off from what I need.
When I leave the anger management session, I stop by for a coffee