granddaughter, filling herself with a sense of relief and peace she hadn’t known in a long time.
“MOM, I GOT INTO NYU and Brandeis University.”
“Oh, that’s so exciting. I remember getting into school. What are you going to study?” asked Alice.
“Theater.”
“That’s wonderful. I used to go to Harvard. I loved it there. What school did you say you’re going to?”
“I don’t know yet. I got into NYU and Brandeis.”
“Which one do you want to go to?”
“I’m not sure. I talked to Dad, and he really wants me to go to NYU.”
“Do you want to go to NYU?”
“I don’t know. It has the better reputation, but I like Brandeis better for me. I’d be near Anna and Charlie and the babies, and Tom, and you and Dad, if you stay.”
“If I stay where?” asked Alice.
“Here, in Cambridge.”
“Where else would I be?”
“New York.”
“I’m not going to be in New York.”
They sat next to each other on a couch folding baby clothes, separating the pinks from the blues. The television flashed images at them without the volume.
“It’s just, if I accept at Brandeis, and you and Dad move to New York, then I’ll feel like I’m in the wrong place, like I made the wrong decision.”
Alice stopped folding and looked at the woman. She was young, skinny, pretty. She was also tired and conflicted.
“How old are you?” asked Alice.
“Twenty-four.”
“Twenty-four. I loved being twenty-four. You have your whole life in front of you. Anything’s possible. Are you married?”
The pretty, conflicted woman stopped folding and faced Alice squarely. She locked in on Alice’s eyes. The pretty, conflicted woman had searching, honest, peanut butter brown eyes.
“No, I’m not married.”
“Kids?”
“No.”
“Then, you should do exactly what you want.”
“But what if Dad decides to take the job in New York?”
“You can’t make this kind of decision based on what other people might or might not do. This is your decision, your education. You’re a grown woman, you don’t have to do what your father wants. Make it based on what’s right for your life.”
“Okay, I will. Thank you.”
The pretty woman with the lovely peanut butter eyes let out an amused laugh and a sigh and resumed folding.
“We’ve come a long way, Mom.”
Alice didn’t understand what she meant. “You know,” she said, “you remind me of my students. I used to be a student adviser. I was pretty good at it.”
“Yes, you were. You still are.”
“What’s the name of the school you want to go to?”
“Brandeis.”
“Where’s that?”
“In Waltham, only a few minutes from here.”
“And what are you going to study?”
“Acting.”
“That’s wonderful. Will you act in plays?”
“I will.”
“Shakespeare?”
“Yes.”
“I love Shakespeare, especially the tragedies.”
“Me, too.”
The pretty woman moved over and hugged Alice. She smelled fresh and clean, like soap. Her hug penetrated Alice much like her peanut butter eyes had. Alice felt happy and close to her.
“Mom, please don’t move to New York.”
“New York? Don’t be silly. I live here. Why would I move to New York?”
“I DON’T KNOW HOW YOU do this,” said the actress. “I was up with her most of the night, and I feel delirious. I made her scrambled eggs, toast, and tea at three a.m.”
“I was up then. If we could get you to lactate, then you could help me feed one of these guys,” said the mother of the babies.
The mother was sitting on the couch next to the actress, breast-feeding the baby in blue. Alice held the baby in pink. John walked in, showered and dressed, holding a coffee mug in one hand and a newspaper in the other. The women were wearing pajamas.
“Lyd, thanks for getting up last night. I really needed the sleep,” said John.
“Dad, how on earth do you think you can go to New York and do this without our help?” asked the mother.
“I’m going to hire a home health aide. I’m looking to find someone starting now actually.”
“I don’t want strangers taking care of her. They’re not going to hug her and love her like we do,” said the actress.
“And a stranger isn’t going to know her history and memories like we do. We can sometimes fill in her holes and read her body language, and that’s because we know her,” said the mother.
“I’m not saying that we won’t still take care of her, I’m just being realistic and practical. We don’t have to shoulder this entirely ourselves. You’ll be going back to work in a couple of months and coming home every night to two babies you haven’t seen all day.
“And you’re starting school. You keep talking about how intense