Episode #32: Overcoming Trauma #32: Friday

Feb,09 2026

<-#31: Overcoming Trauma #31: Wendy's version

John had to cram more design work for the modular houses in order to make construction-ready plans. He is used to it, and this is a small project, but he wanted to make it perfect.

So, I had a great evening with both of my kids, impressed at how good I was at Captain Toad.

I wasn't born yesterday, and my fine motor skills are out of this world.

No, I am not bragging. It comes from years of working in the trauma room, learning to refine my precise movements.

I am also very observant, so most of the levels were simple enough for me.

I did love playing as Toadette in the second chapter. I feel like many of her levels were more open or active than with Toad. But it is the second block of levels.

But I think what shocked them the most was my ability to freeze enemies while staying on course. Cassie and Sarah would double-team to do it effectively.

The levels were getting more and more innovative. Floaty Fun Water Park reminded me of the level in Mario 64 in which you could change the water level. John could finish that game, but I only ever just casually played with it.

I think that what impressed Sarah the most was my two-step approach to levels. I think they didn't fully realize that each gem needed to be collected only once. As such, you could do the level, collecting all the gems, and then redo it to fulfill the low number of touches without bothering with the gems.

And yet... while playing, I had two little monsters by my side telling me about their day at school, including the whole rumor mill.

Kyle went first for a bath, with Sarah wondering what John was working on.

"He is helping Martina and Luis. They want a house at the resort. Luis is a carpenter, a builder, but he needs to know what to build"

"Wait, so Dad is designing the house for Martina?" says Sarah, excited.

"That's the plan"

"Could we have, like, a sleepover there once? Perhaps before she moves in?"

"Why?"

"I've always wanted to sleep in a house that Dad designed"

I look at her, and this fills my heart with joy.

"They will also do other copies to be rented; we could rent one instead of a camper once they are done"

"We could? I would love that."

There is a pause.

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"I know the rules about naturism, but I really want to hug you. To thank you for being such cool parents"

I smile. I grab my towel, put it around me, and open my arms. She comes close, and I gently stroke her hair.

"You are a cool daughter too"

She soon breaks away. "I am, you are right. And I am a great big sister"

"You are"

She smiles. Kyle just came out of the bathtub, so she goes in it. Yes, we share bathwater. It has nothing to do with naturism. Our water heater cannot endure 3 baths, and half of the people in the house insist on baths instead of showers. Yes, it's the two women... But Kyle prefers a bath, even if he doesn't mind a shower.

John is busy with his designs, so I offer to read a story to Kyle. Sarah doesn't mind; this means she gets a few more minutes to play on her tablet.

Kyle, however, is excited to get his mom instead of his dad for his bedtime story.

I ask him what he wants, and he points to the book on his bedside table.

"Wait, Dad is reading you a book now?"

"Yeah. He was running out of ideas recently, and I like it"

This is new; John didn't mention it at all. Is he ashamed of it? I pick it up, and it's Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan. It's a book I liked, but that John loved.

There is a bookmark, and I realize that they are still near the start of the book. This means the transition to a written book instead of a crafted story occurred right around the time John recalled his trauma. That explains everything.

I read, trying to make the voices, and get excited by the action, and seeing how Kyle laughs and reacts, I feel I am not doing a bad job.

When I finish the chapter and see that it's time to end, he tells me. "You do it better than Dad". I kiss him on his forehead, happy but sad for John.

I also tuck in Sarah, who mainly wanted to talk about school, which is fine.

But I ask her. "Dad began reading a book to Kyle. Would you like me to read you one?"

"You mean, an actual book?"

"Yeah. I know you stopped wanting stories because you didn't want improvised children's tales anymore, but I could pick a book you might like and read it to you and such"

She thinks. "We could try."

"Pick a book. I can order one if we don't have it"

I nod.

When I am about to leave, she has a proposal. "Francine is reading A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking, and she says it's the best book ever"

I laugh. "That is sure an intriging title"

I kissed her on her forehead, turned off the light, and wished her a good night.

In our room, I saw John still at work, so I ordered the book. It will arrive Sunday.

He is done quickly enough to join me in the bathtub.

We talk a little. He is doing well. The new project is helping him a lot. I told him about my conversation with Sarah, and he felt like an idiot.

"Of course she would pick up on it. Trying to hide the whole project was stupid", he says.

"No, not stupid, but we needed to adapt. How is it going?"

"I think I have a plan. It's rough, but we will tweak it, and for this project to work, we need Luis to be on top of his game"

"He wins a lot"

"Yeah, but we do too"

"John, we won't suffer if we don't get our house there. It's nice not to pay to visit, but we can afford it. For him, the stakes are higher"

"I know. But I want him to succeed"

"Oh, I agree. I like Martina, but it's our family first"

"Our family first", he says.

We had a nice time in the bath, and after the bath, and the next day, I was back into the trauma room from the start!

Martina was in an even better mood than usual, and even a few doctors noticed it. Which is a miracle in itself because janitors are usually invisible to doctors.

I think it was enough to help us on this surprisingly light day. We mainly got elderly patients and two traffic accident victims, but for one of them, the ER might have been enough. Both ever were conscious!

At home, however, my husband arrived before the kids did.

"John?"

"Luis and I need to meet with Phil at the resort. Almost everyone was away this afternoon, so I got out without needing an excuse."

"Why the sudden meeting?"

"I need to present the clear plans and the bill of material so he can approve the order. Luis would start tomorrow"

"This early? You thought of this project only a few days ago"

"They want to move before winter"

"Right, time is money. "

When the kids got home, we just packed their things and ran over to the resort. Both were excited, so it wasn't a problem.

We still went with two cars, in case John needed to stay longer or something.

Phil was at the counter and was thrilled to see us. John had arrived just a bit earlier because he drives more aggressively than I do and was already in talks.

"You'll probably have your return on investment in a single year", says John.

"Well, yeah, but that's not what I worry about", said Phil. "Will you be done before it snows? Because that's my worry. It's a lot of work"

"Wait, the plan was to slowly build the units, one by one. If you want to rush this, it's a different deal"

"Ok, like what?"

"Well, for starters, free rent for Luis too. He's going to work full-time and needs not to worry about money while doing it"

"I can swing that. Would it be enough?"

"I don't know; you are asking for many houses, and I know you are paying for the materials. Maybe you'll need to swing some money for him in one way or another"

"But that lowers the return."

"Phil, there are no foundations. He can work even in the winter"

"Right. And it's not like we will get a lot of volume of visitors. Ok, perhaps more time is needed, and my deadline makes no sense"

I interrupted them.

"Is there a place where the kids can do their homeworks?"

"Sure, the community center. It's the big building on the right"

I thank him, and we get going as John keeps negotiating.

Homework was light, so we brought the school stuff to my car and got our towels to use the pool.

Kelly, Candace, and Jimmy soon join us, and the four kids get into a fun rhythm with a sort of "pick-up tag" in which they need to pick up items dropped at the bottom of the pool when touched by the seeker, who is the one dropping the items.

The coolest part of their game isn't that they came up with it themselves, but that it was built by many of the participants. Kyle is the one who proposed that the seeker throw the item, while Jimmy mentioned the one-breath rule: once you go under the water, you pick it up without going to the surface, or you are now the tag.

Candace and Sarah also proposed rules.

"It's great to see your kids getting along with mine", says Kelly.

"Likewise"

"Madeline and Patricia are older, and Cassie and Candace get along well enough, but they clash a lot. I am impressed at how much Sarah can get along with both"

I don't tell her she finds Candace boring... Instead, I volunteer a plausible but not quite true theory.

"I think that Sarah is a personality that is a little in the middle of Cassie and Candace"

"It could be"

There is a pause.

"Do you think I am making a mistake?" Kelly says.

"I am not sure what you are talking about"

"You do. I decided to go all in with naturism, but now, I worry that my kids are paying the price"

Shit. I do not want to be in this conversation. Not now, not ever.

I am not in agreement with how she raised her kids, but it is not my place to judge her.

What can I say? I want to be friends with her, and this feels like a make-or-break moment.

"You are doing what you feel is best for your kids. Not many mothers do that"

But scoffs at me. "All mothers do that"

"Not mine. She only ever did what was best for her"

"For real?"

"Oh yeah."

"Ok, maybe I am not that bad of a mother"

I pause.

"Winter is coming", I say.

"It is", she says.

"It's going to get cold", I add.

"Really cold", she admits.

"Will they and you get dressed?"

"Well, did you read Ruth Chapter 1?"

"I did, but I am not sure which one it is"

She quotes, "Even when they speak of wearing clothes during the winter, this is often just putting a cloak over your shoulders to protect against the wind when outside."

"Right, I remember that."

"We are nude at home, and we have long insulated cloaks to move around, and yet, every winter, there are days when the sun is just right, and the temperature is just perfect, and we go and play in the snow"

"Nude?"

"Yeah. It really helps with the circulation and the mood"

"Sounds like fun"

"I can call you this winter when we do it."

"And your kids?"

She laughs. "They are even more in a rush to do it. Sometimes, they twist my arm, and we go when it's a little bit too nippy."

"Yikes"

"But then, we go inside and warm up with hot cocoa, and we laugh like we are all kids."

Huh. She gives me more stories of how they reconcile living nude and the cold winters we get, and I realize something.

She does live a simple life, but it's not a boring or monotonous one. Sure, she might not have a TV or video games, but I hear her talk to me about snowball fights and snowman building and moments on the floor, under a mountain of blankets, just laughing with her husband and her kids.

Nadia somehow wasn't playing with her daughter, and I had to remind her to do that.

But Kelly eliminated almost all distractions from her kids and put them front and center of her life.

She isn't boring; she is dedicated. She isn't simple; she is warm and kind.

In fact, she isn't that friendly with adults because her mind is focused on her family, not on socialization.

And that, I could respect.

<-#31: Overcoming Trauma #31: Wendy's version