The Hole In The Tree

Star fiddled nervously with the hem of her dress. It was a habit she carried with her since she was a young girl. She thought back to her mother and how annoyed she would become whenever she saw her grab for the bottom of her dress or skirt. “Star, stop it,” she would mutter firmly slapping her hand away before she even got the chance. Star always wondered what it was about her nervous habit that bothered her mother so. After all, a child could do much worse when feeling anxious and yet her mother gave her little grace in how she channeled her emotions. Her mother gave her little grace with most things growing up.

“Star,” a somber voice to her left said suddenly. She turned sharply, snapping out of her thoughts. It was her cousin Mark looking at her with a curious expression.

“I didn’t think I would see you here.” He said sounding genuinely surprised. His tone could have just as easily been interpreted as disappointment. Star didn’t blame him for his lukewarm reaction to seeing her. When she packed her suitcase at the age of seventeen and swore to never look back, she never did. Sure she had sent postcards home every now and then. One in particular to Mark two years after leaving that she simply signed, “Miss you. Wish you were here.” It had been ten years since she left but to her he still looked like the nine year old boy she spent endless summers climbing trees with.

“Why wouldn’t I come? She was my grandmother. I should be here.” Star said softly. Mark stared at her for a moment chewing on her response. His face was frozen in a stoic expression as though he was still trying to decide how to feel about her returning after so many years. Star could feel the resentment he must surely still hold against her. They promised each other as kids they would escape their small town together and travel the world but when it came time to leave, Star tossed their pact aside with little thought. She had hoped he understood that her mother’s constant barrage of criticism had become so unbearable she had little choice but to go. Still, she felt a pang of guilt looking at him now knowing she had left behind the truest friend she had ever known.

“Of course. She would want you to be here.” Mark responded before starting to walk away. Star reached out and grabbed his arm to stop him. Mark turned abruptly his eyes darting around them to make sure no one was close enough to hear what she would say next. He knew the question she was about to ask before it even spilled from her lips.

“Have you found it?” Star asked quietly.

She also looked around to make sure none of their relatives were within ear shot. As expected, most of her family members were chatting up the guests who had arrived to her grandmother’s house to pay their respects. She caught a glimpse of her mother in the corner of the living room lightly dabbing the corners of her eyes so as not to ruin her full face of makeup. A woman patted her shoulder gently, unknowingly feeding into her dramatic showcase of feigned emotion. Star never could understand how her mother could be so different from her grandmother. Her mother was her grandmother’s daughter yet she lacked her mother’s warmth and kindness. Growing up, Star found all the affection her mother failed to give her in the arms of her grandmother. She looked back to Mark holding her breath in anticipation.

“Yes. It was under the kitchen floorboard by the stove. Where she said it would be,” he said in a voice so low she almost didn’t hear him.

Her heart began to pound in her chest. Over the years she had thought of what her grandmother had told them as children that one summer day. That one day she and Mark arrived to their grandmother’s house covered in dirt after another day full of tree climbing. Star’s grandmother knew how much trouble Star would get into with her mother if she arrived home looking like such a mess. It had become routine for Star and Mark to wash up at their grandmother’s house before heading home. That one day their grandmother had a plate full of warm chocolate chip cookies waiting for them on her kitchen table and asked them to sit with her a moment.

“I want to tell you a secret I hope you’ll remember when the time comes,” she said patting my head as she often did when she wanted my full attention. “One day I won’t be here to help keep you out of trouble, like I do now,” she said her eyes glossing over. “When that day comes, I want you to look under that floorboard,” she said pointing to the floorboard in front of her stove. “I will leave something special for you both but only for you two, my only grandchildren. Until then, never speak a word of it.”

Star stared expectedly at Mark, waiting for him to show her what exactly their grandmother had left them. Mark sighed and pointed to the front porch wanting to get away from the prying eyes and ears of their family. Once on the front porch, Mark pulled a small black notebook from his jacket pocket and handed it to Star. His face gave no indication of what was inside. Star slowly opened the notebook unsure of what she would find. Her eyes landed on the few short sentences in her grandmother’s neat handwriting written in the middle of the first page:

“To my grandchildren, my favorite memory will always be standing on my front porch and watching you both climb the big oak tree in my front yard with the hole in the middle. I remember how you both loved leaving little notes in that hole for me to find. How I looked forward to checking the hole for your sweet messages. I loved those summer days. I love you both. Never stop climbing.”

Star looked up at Mark after reading her words perplexed. Mark shrugged, likely sharing in her confusion over why their grandmother would make such a mystery of hiding a small black notebook to leave them this message. Her heart filled with sorrow thinking back to the letters she and Mark would leave inside of that oak tree for their grandmother. Letters filled with silly stories or reminders of their love. Suddenly she had a thought. Marching over to the oak tree with Mark following closely behind her, she reached into the small round hole in the middle of the tree and pulled out a black plastic bag hidden deep inside. The same spot she and Mark would hide their notes to their grandmother. She opened the bag to find rolls and rolls of hundred dollar bills. She looked back at Mark stunned.

“Money. She left us money. Must be close to $20,000.” Star said slowly. Mark’s eyes widened.

“What should we do with it?” He asked sounding more like the young boy she remembered. Star thought of her grandmother’s words and how her eyes looked when she told them about the secret she would leave them. This was her love note to us, Star thought. She looked at Mark and remembered the pact they had made so long ago in this very tree. How they promised to leave their hometown and embark on great adventures together. She knew exactly what they should do.

“Let’s go travel the world. And climb some trees.”