Crossing the Threshold

Today was Elizabeth’s birthday; she was turning thirty-nine. That morning, she gave herself a glance in the mirror. Not too bad. Not great either. She was five feet six and had shoulder-length light-brown hair, hazel eyes, long legs, and the one thing she had always been grateful for: her youthful-looking skin. Not a wrinkle was to be found. Her mother had taught her long ago to take care of her skin. “You’ll be carrying that face around everywhere you go,” her mother had always stressed. Finishing the last of her makeup, she checked the clock again and realized she’d be late for her birthday massage. She grabbed her purse and headed out the door. Amanda, her massage therapist, had moved again—this time to Half Moon Bay—to join a new business. Even though this was twenty minutes farther away, Amanda was good at what she did, so Elizabeth followed. The shop was called Blessings. It was a holistic healing center—a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house that had been converted to a business, complete with two massage therapists, one chiropractor, one marriage counselor, and a medium. There were home items for purchase as well—statues, altar cloths, incense, essential oils, dream catchers, crystals, and books and prints of all the favorite shamans, gurus, and saints. The place had a veritable plethora of healing, as any well-stocked holistic center should. Plus it was located in the main part of town, so it was easy to get to and was right near the beach. Always up for a new experience, Elizabeth drove the extra twenty minutes. She located Blessings and parked in the back, just in case someone should recognize her car. She was going there to see Amanda for a massage, not for all that other weird stuff. I am a Catholic after all, she thought. When she opened the door to the shop, Elizabeth immediately felt at home. It felt peaceful here. That was a nice surprise. She had been expecting maybe a sense of uneasy weirdness with all the witchy paraphernalia. Amanda came to greet her right by the front desk. “Hey, Elizabeth, you made it! It’s good to see you. Hope the traffic wasn’t too bad. It can get tricky around here.” Amanda gave Elizabeth a hug, patting her on the back. “Wow, Amanda, this is crazy! I’ve never been to a holistic place before. Look at all this stuff! Do you have books for casting spells? I’d like to get rid of that crazy redhead neighbor across the street.” Amanda laughed. She had heard about “the Red Cow” and the woman’s obsession of watching Elizabeth and her family. It was creepy. “Well, I can introduce you to the owner, Carla. She knows her stock pretty well.” Amanda turned to the woman sitting behind the front desk. “Carla, I’d like to introduce Elizabeth. She’s one of my oldest and favorite clients. Elizabeth, this is Carla.” Carla and Elizabeth said hi in unison. Carla then extended her hand across the front desk and said, “Welcome. It’s nice to meet you. If there’s anything I can help you with, just let me know. We actually do carry a couple of books on spells. We only support the white craft, though, for healing and such. Nothing for the dark. Not ever.” Elizabeth replied, “Oh, I was teasing. I just came for a massage.” Carla gave her a once-over and then just smiled. After Elizabeth settled in, she and Amanda caught up on the latest gossip about the people at the spa where Amanda used to work. They talked about Elizabeth’s family, her husband and her kids. The conversation came full circle to Blessings. “So what’s it like working here?” Elizabeth asked. “Is it a huge difference from the spa?” “Yeah, I guess so,” Amanda replied. “The clients are a little more laidback. It’s a beach town, so the atmosphere is sort of like Santa Cruz. I really like the people here, especially the medium, Emily. Elizabeth, she’s amazing! You have to meet her. I think she’s here today.” “Well, I don’t know. Maybe.” After the massage, Elizabeth went to check out some of the books on display and maybe find something to ward off creepy, nosy neighbors. Carla was still behind the desk, looking over the latest Psychology Today issue, when Elizabeth entered the front room. She smiled and went back to reading. Ah, she must be the marriage counselor, Elizabeth thought. Hmmm. She meandered through books on saints and gurus and then moved on to the essential oils and various sprays for protection, chakra clearing, and even attuning with the angels. She picked up a bottle with a dropper and thought, Not sure what you’d do with that. “Elizabeth, there you are. See anything you’d like?” Amanda stood beside a very pretty blonde with bright-green eyes. “This is Emily, the medium I was telling you about.” Emily was a straightforward, no-nonsense woman who stood about five feet eight inches tall. Her sweet, angelic face and the twinkle in her eyes made people feel comfortable around her. Even as she told people about their dead relatives, friends, or pets, still no one was truly afraid. Not really. “Hi, I’m Emily Gordon. So you’re a friend of Amanda’s?” “Yes, we’re friends. I’ve been a client of hers for six years or so. She’s a great massage therapist!” Amanda smiled. “You’re too sweet, Liz. Thank you. Look, girls, I gotta go. I’d love to stay and chat, but I have another client coming in a few minutes. I’ll see you in a couple of weeks, Liz.” Emily waved good-bye as Amanda headed back to her massage studio. Emily smiled and turned back to Elizabeth. “She is great! She’s done wonders on my lower back. I work full-time as a nurse and part-time as a medium. So I’m on my feet all day, and my back is throbbing sometimes.” They chatted for a little longer about Amanda and Blessings. “I hope sometime you can come in for a reading,” Emily said as they were about to part. “You might really enjoy it. It was a pleasure to meet you!” “And you as well,” Elizabeth said. “I just might take you up on the reading.” They shook hands and said good-bye. And so it began. Elizabeth purchased the lavender essential oil, bought a small print with a picture of Jesus on it, and booked a reading with Emily. It all happened so fast that, as she drove home, she decided maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. She had never been a staunch Catholic exactly, but her family went to church. Heck, Elizabeth went to eight-thirty morning mass at St. Matthew’s two, three times week. She was one of the youngest regulars there. Oh, for heaven’s sake, this isn’t a big deal. Get a hold of yourself, woman! One reading, ask her some questions about a couple of long-passed relatives, and I’ll be on my way. Unbeknownst to Jack, of course. Her husband was such a freak about the paranormal. He couldn’t even watch scary movies. He watched plenty of pornos, though. But then, so did Elizabeth. She couldn’t throw stones there. As Elizabeth pulled into her driveway, she decided she was looking forward to meeting with Emily. She planned to ask about her father. Over the years, she had tried to forgive her father for not being around most of her childhood. She had barely seen him, especially after he and her mother had divorced. As a sea captain, his job had taken him all over the world. Elizabeth had grappled with abandonment issues for years. Then there was her brother Harry, who had passed a long time ago. Such a sad story. Maybe that should be better left alone. Elizabeth made a quick stop at the grocery store and then headed home. The garage door opened, and she drove her car inside. She had only an hour before it was time to pick up the kids. She put the groceries away as quickly as possible. Then she ran down three flights of stairs to put yet another load of laundry in. She was amazed at how stinky her son could get his gym shorts. “Good God, what the hell does he do to these things?” she asked herself aloud. Never mind, she then thought. He was a teenager, and she really didn’t want to know. More detergent for this load. The next forty minutes were filled with returning p