Chapter 20 - The Sweetest Harvest
A year later, the summer sun was beating down on the farm once again. But this time, I wasn't wiping sweat away in frustration. I was wearing a wide-brimmed straw hat, standing in the middle of a bustling farmer's market that my parents and I had expanded onto the front acreage of our property.
The sweet corn was flying off the wooden stands. Families were laughing, children were running through the pumpkin patch we had planted for the fall, and the cash register was ringing constantly.
I had sold the house in the suburbs and used the money to build a beautiful, modern farmhouse right on my parents' land. I was exactly where I was meant to be, surrounded by people who genuinely loved me.
As I was helping a customer bag a dozen ears of corn, I caught sight of a familiar figure near the parking lot.
It was Mark.
He was wearing a faded neon vest, pushing a long line of shopping carts across the scorching asphalt of the grocery store plaza across the street. He looked exhausted, sunburned, and miserable. I watched as he struggled to steer the heavy carts, a manager yelling at him from the automatic doors to hurry up.
He paused, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and looked across the street toward our bustling farm stand. For a brief second, our eyes met.
I didn't feel anger anymore. I didn't feel sadness, or betrayal, or even pity. I just felt completely, wonderfully indifferent.
I held his gaze for just a moment, then gave him a polite, brief smile, before turning my back to him and handing the fresh corn to my customer.
"Have a wonderful day!" I told the customer, the joy in my voice completely genuine.
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"You too, honey! Working hard out here, aren't you?" the older woman asked, handing me a twenty-dollar bill.
I smiled, looking around at the thriving farm, my laughing parents, and the bright blue sky above. "You know what they say," I replied, dropping the change into her hand. "A little hard work is good for you."
