Sarah Smile

"Micheal Elliott," I said in a tired voice into the phone, sitting at my desk and wishing I was somewhere else on a winter's day.

A long second of silence followed before she said, "Sarah Lingenfelter. Is that seriously how you answer the phone?"

It had been ten years since I'd last seen her. Then, she was my Administrative Assistant, killing time until she and her family moved to New York. Ridiculously over-qualified for the position, she impressed everyone. Members of my own Board of Directors tried to hire her away from me but she takes her commitments seriously.

Since then, I'd seen pictures of her three children, knew that she ran a School mentoring program for the State of New York and lived in a place so far out in the wilderness the city prided itself as being sinless.

"Hey Sarah," I said immediately perking up.

"Do you remember," she began, "when you said that I had a job if I ever wanted to come back?"

"Yes," I replied.

And I had. Sitting on the beach one day, instead of being in the office where I was supposed to be, she'd called me. Sarah always had this knack of knowing when I was doing things I wasn't supposed to be doing. Rather than deny what I was doing I answered by asking her, "Now aren't you going to miss this when you're gone?"

And I told her if she ever wanted to return she was hired on the spot.

"I want to come back," she said. "Do you still mean it?"

It took a couple of months but by April she was living in Savannah and working as a Vice-President for the company.

Then God got involved.

I found myself suddenly single. She divorced. I left the company. And on a wonder summer's evening we kissed on the beach.

And that was that!

We've been married for over a year now, happily exploring Beach Bum lifestyles while creating new work together.

And today's her birthday.

So Happy Birthday my love!

As soon as I can figure out where to stick the bow, I'm giving you this present!