It was another Tuesday night PTA meeting. As usual, there were a relatively small number of parents there. Eighty percent were mothers with a few fathers in the mix. Of the men, they were pretty much of two varieties. First there were the divorced guys who had heard on good authority that the PTA was a great place to meet women, single or otherwise. They were pretty obvious, paying no attention at all to the discussion and instead focusing their attention on scoping out the other attendees. And none of them were getting the slightest return in interest. The other subset of men were dorks. Most of them were overweight and very concerned with participation. Few of them had much in the way of social skills. It was somewhat of a mystery as to how they found partners to have the children who were now students.
The rest of the audience was made up of various categories of mothers. There were the overachievers who wanted to demonstrate that they knew how to do everything and better than everyone else. And there were the lurkers, knowing that the PTA was important so they should come to the meetings but desperate to avoid actually doing anything. Most of the women were there to help out in any way necessary, not wanting to lead things but happy to do what was needed. They made up most of the leadership team, despite the overachievers' conviction that they could do it all. Finally there were the newbies. They were usually mothers whose first children were just entering school. They were eager to help but generally had no clue as to what to do.
As Christine stood up in front of everyone, she could clearly see who were in the different groups. She was recruiting for someone to help her with the arts program. As the parent of a sixth grade girl, she had grown the program to the point where it was the most popular thing that the PTA was doing. She wanted to find someone who would continue to nurture it and keep it healthy as her own daughter moved on. Beyond that, she was looking for a certain type of woman with whom to work; a young fresh face who was not burnt out and who was excited to help. Christine didn't want one of the women who volunteered for everything but had lost their enthusiasm some time ago.
Christine had always been a gifted speaker. Dynamic and articulate, she was able to convey well what she was looking for to the attendees. Beyond her presence, Christine was very handsome. Older than most of the other parents, Christine had her child when she was in her mid-thirties and as a single women. But she kept very good care of herself, working out 5 or 6 times a week for at least an hour. Her long auburn hair cascaded down her back. Christine was always careful to wear clothes that showed her off to her best advantage. At forty-six, she was well aware of her body and what would flatter her and what wouldn't. Tonight she had on a tight sweater and a simple but form fitting sheath skirt. She finished up with a smile and expressed her hope that those interested would talk to her later.
Sitting down, Christine noticed a younger woman somewhat nervously watching her. Meeting her glance, Christine flashed an encouraging smile. "She looks interesting," Christine thought.
Kara was indeed interesting. She was likely the youngest mother in the crowd. While many of the other mothers had been in the workplace for a while before getting married and having kids, Kara married her boyfriend during the summer after high school graduation. He was three years older than her and had been away at college. Afraid of losing him, she encouraged him to pop the question. It was not long before she was pregnant and before she was twenty, had already the mother of a baby boy. Now five years later and with a kindergartner, she looked the young, still somewhat innocent and sexy twenty-four year old that she was. She had some curves but they were all from the natural shape of her body. She too worked out to make sure that she stayed attractive. She was just barely a C cup but her breasts were the perfect size and shape for her body. Her black hair was cut short to a stylish bob that framed her heart-shaped face. While she would have been extremely attractive no matter what, it was her sky blue eyes with the dark hair that made her stunning.
Art had always been one of her favorite things, but not one that her husband had encouraged. He was busy with his job selling business system software. He often didn't have enough time for her anyhow, let alone to do something in which he had no interest. Kara was looking for something to help her feel a little more valued and perhaps volunteering with something that she enjoyed would be just the thing.
After the meeting, Kara wandered over to try and talk with Christine but she had to wait. A couple of the other PTA leaders were talking with her. Christine noticed her waiting and nodded at her, again with that encouraging smile. Feeling a bit like a student waiting to talk to her teacher, Kara tried to be patient. After what seemed like forever the other two women left. One of them gave her a glance and then looked back at Christine with a slight smile.
Christine stood looking at Kara, waiting for her to come closer. Still showing her nervousness, Kara moved forward. Kara was not particularly tall, nor was Christine extremely tall but somehow Kara still felt little next to her. Even talking to Christine's friendly face seemed intimidating.
"You're Kara, correct?" Christine asked with her rich pleasant voice. She had long ago figured out the value of learning people's names. It put them at ease and made them feel recognized. Christine reached out and shook Kara's hand. "I'm Christine. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"Yes, that's right," Kara responded. As intended, she was flattered that Christine was aware of her. "It's very nice to meet you too." Withdrawing her hand from Christine's, Kara was conscious of the feeling of lingering warmth from Christine's fingers. "I was listening to you talk about the art program, and well, I'm interested in helping."
"Excellent! I am glad someone is! I can't believe how hard it has been to find other parents with a passion for art!" Christine's eyes sparkled as she got more enthusiastic. "Perhaps we could get together for coffee some morning this week and talk further about it."
After comparing calendars, they settled on a day and time to meet. With the meeting breaking up, both of them also wanted to get home.
The following Thursday, the two women met at a locally owned coffee shop. It was very homey in an older building. The barista did a great job making them a couple of delicious mochas. An eclectic building, Kara and Christine were able to find a nook where they could talk without interruption. As she did so often, Christine emphasized her points by touching Kara's arm or hand. The two of them quickly felt a connection. Kara's innate intelligence shone through despite not having gone to college. She was quick and curious, two features that delighted Christine.
For her part, Kara found Christine fascinating. She had the education that Kara lacked and then used it to build a successful software company that Microsoft had gobbled up. Even though she had a great offer to go to work for Microsoft, Christine chose to take the money and move on. Her life was filled with lots of travel around the world and meeting interesting people. As their conversation went on, Kara at times wondered why Christine would want to talk to her. As far as Kara was concerned, she considered herself uninteresting, especially in comparison to some of the people Christine was describing to her.
When Christine discovered that Kara had not been to the art museum downtown, she insisted that they make plans to go see it. "Kara, if you want to help on the art program, don't you think it would be wonderful if you had the chance to see some of the art we want to teach?" Christine asked.
