Mother's Day Switch

Penny looked at herself in the mirror.

She was wearing a not unflattering mini dress, that was adventurous, but not slutty. It showed off her curves, her busty frame and round tight ass. Her shoulder length hair was done to neatly hang, loosely draped behind her shoulders. Her make up was light but stylishly done and she had to admit she looked good. Completing her outfit, she slipped her feet into her two-inch strappy heels, and walked out of the bathroom.

Penny looked around the front room and not seeing her daughter, she called out the house in general, "Violette? Violette? Are you ready yet? We should really be getting going."

A half-interested voice drifted down from the second floor, "You go ahead mom, this is your thing, not mine."

Penny felt the very familiar frustration and anger raise in her mind. That's not going to help right now. Taking a few deep breaths, she climbed the stairs and opened her daughter's door.

Violette was laying down on her bed playing with her phone.

Penny said, "Violette, I love you, and I respect your views. But you will get off that bed and get ready to go, right now." Her voice was stern and steady.

Violette put down her phone and slid off her bed, "Alright, alright, jeez. I never agreed to this anyway. This is so stupid, but fine, fine. I'll do it."

Penny breathed a silent thank you and a sigh of relief. Violette used to be so kind and happy and eager to just be with her mom. Of course, then the teen years started and now that she had gone off to college, she barely recognized her little girl anymore.

"You know mom," Violette called from her bathroom, "I'm only doing this because it's Mother's Day. I hope you appreciate that."

And there it was. Violette wasn't her 'little V' anymore. She was head strong and prickly, she was perpetually in a bad mood, and Penny found herself walking on egg shells around her own daughter, in her own house. Well, today might go a long way to fix that.

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"Jesus Christ mom! This place is way more out of the way than I thought! Did you pass two, or three state lines to get here?! Jesus! I guess my fucking plans are shot!"

Penny closed her eyes as she got out of the car and waited for her daughter to join her. The ride was long as Penny had expected. She hadn't told her daughter that the trip was just over three hours though. Violette's mood had gotten darker and more outspoken the longer she drove.

Violette got out of the car and stormed ahead of her mother, "I am never going anywhere with you again. You knew damn well I had plans tonight and now I have to cancel because my 'empty nest' mother wants to 'reconnect' with me. This is the last goddamned time, mom. I'm not fucking kidding."

Penny lowered her head, pushed her shoulders forward, and followed Violette into the foyer of The Retreat and Spa.

Penny was struck by the general relaxing atmosphere that met her as soon as she stepped into the building. She almost didn't notice Violette scowling at her from a fountain across from the registration desk. She smiled to her daughter comfortingly as she made her way over to the desk. She checked in both herself and her daughter and was directed to ballroom number three, down the hall to the right.

Penny was really impressed with the place, everything from the décor to the architecture, to the carpet just screamed 'high end.' Violette, of course, was not impressed.

"Ok, may you please stop scowling at everything? This is supposed to be a nice day, for the both of us," Penny pleaded.

"I told you, this is your thing, not mine. But I'm here. My plans are shot anyway, so whatever. I'll be here, mom." Violette hunched her shoulders forward and let her hair fall over her face. This was Violette's 'this conversation is over' posture. Penny decided to just let her sulk. Once the seminar got under way, she was sure Violette would come around.

Penny had planned, and was looking forward to this, for a while. She had been taken by surprise when Violette started to balk and push back against even some of her smallest requests. She was at the end of her rope and just needed help. The sweet, kind, helpful daughter that she had sent off to college had been changing into a bit of a monster and with no one else to turn to, she turned to the internet.

She had found a special Mother's Day retreat slash seminar at The Retreat. She had never heard of this particular spa before. The Retreat seminar was one day, and had a full itinerary, with both lunch and dinner included. There would be facials and a spa makeover. The Retreat boasted good reviews, their services were high end, and the products they advertised were not cheap. The one-day Retreat seminar was a touch pricey, but coming from this place she could see why. What had sold her on the whole package was that it promised a 'better understanding between mother and daughter that would transform home life for many years to come.'

That was music to her ears and eyes and signed up immediately, grabbing one of the quickly disappearing spots for the one day, exclusive, mother/daughter event. And now here they were, looking at the heavy oak door to ballroom three. Violette pushed past her mom into the ballroom and stopped short just as Penny stepped into the room.

The room was richly decorated, there was a buffet table with hors d'oeuvres off to the left with a fondue fountain and a chocolate fountain framing the long table with pristine white table clothes. There was a grand fountain in the middle of the room. Most of the ceiling was one giant sky light that made the room seem more like a garden villa atrium, than your usual ball room. There was only about two dozen other mother/daughter couples in the room.

"Hello. You must be Penny and your beautiful daughter Violette?" a cheerful feminine voice said at Penny's side.

Penny turned her head, nodding to the voice and blinked. The woman speaking to her was dressed in a deep purple shiny mini dress. The dress cupped and pressed her medium breasts together, giving her plenty of cleavage. The attractive woman's hair was super curly and draped behind her back, held together by what she suspected was a beret or hair pin. She wore almost obscenely high heels, over four inches, by her guess.

The woman smiled at the pair, "You two are the last ones to arrive and we'll begin shortly." The woman smiled brightly, her lips were deep red and just as shiny as her latex dress. "But we don't want to rush either of you, so please enjoy the buffet and mingle, if you'd like." The woman smiled again and turned to leave.

"I'm sorry, but what is your name?" Penny was just able to ask.

"My name is Alexandra, I'm the owner," With a last winning smile and a wink, Alexandra left the two new comers to peruse the buffet table.

Violette either didn't hear the attractive owner speak, or acted like she didn't. She walked over to the buffet and started munching on a mini egg and spinach quiche. She was attracted to the mimosas on the far side of the table in tall fluted glasses next to the fruit and chocolate fountain.

Penny decided to just let it go. It's not like her daughter was chugging the alcohol. She grabbed a few pieces of sausage and a mini egg quiche before finding her assigned chair at a round table. The table already sat two other mother/ daughter couples. Penny smiled as she waved her daughter over. The other two couples' daughters looked just as grumpy and irritable as Violette did. Penny hoped this wouldn't be a total disaster.

Violette had grabbed a fresh tall fluted glass of champagne and orange juice as she sat down. Penny smiled to the other two couples and introduced herself. The other mothers introduced themselves politely while the twenty something daughters just nodded their heads. None of the daughters acted like they actually wanted to be there, something they all had in common.

"Good morning, mothers, and daughters. I want to take a moment to welcome you to The Retreat, and our annual Mother's Day, mother/ daughter seminar and spa day." The voice was being pumped through speakers and Penny immediately recognized Alexandra's voice and turned her chair to better see where the attractive owner was standing behind a podium.

"We have a very full schedule lined up for you all today, so let's not waste any time," Alexandra had a very easy-going manner and she exuded confidence and poise. Penny found herself paying very close attention to her.

"At your tables you will find an envelope, this envelope will have your itinerary for the day. Here at the Retreat, we pride ourselves on personalized attention. There will be some group activities, and of course meals will be here in this ballroom with everyone. But, other than those specific times, you can expect to get personalized care and direction from my amazing staff."

Penny eye brows furrowed a little at hearing this, she opened her envelope and scanned the itinerary. She took a sip of her mimosa and read the events. She didn't see anything blatant but the words "discipline" and "assertive", caught her eye, describing the first group activity. She reached over and opened Violette's envelope and saw where hers had read "discipline" and "assertive", Violette's read "acceptance" and "agreeable".

Penny felt a weight drop in her stomach. Violette wasn't into acceptance or being agreeable when she didn't want to be. This sounded like it would be a talking to the daughter's about helping their mother's, remembering the love they had for their mothers, and the hard work moms had to do to run a household. If Violette was exposed to that, Penny wasn't entirely sure her daughter wouldn't just walk out of the place.

Penny sat through the rest of the introduction in a bit of a funk. What was she going to do? This morning had already started off bad. She barely noticed that the couples were getting up. Penny took both, her's and Violette's, itinerary up to Alexandra before she left the podium.

"Miss Alexandra?" Penny asked holding the two pieces of paper up in front of her chest.

"Yes? Penny, wasn't it?" Alexandra was all calm and smiles, the picture of a woman who was always in charge.

"Um, yes I'm Penny and I'm here with my daughter Violette." Alexandra nodded in understanding. Penny continued clearly nervous, "I had a question about the itineraries. I was reading my daughter's and I am not quite sure what this means to be honest."

Alexandra looked a little confused but smiled, "Penny, you and your daughter are here to learn how to better 'relate' to each other. Everyone is here because there is a power dynamic that isn't conducive to a healthy or happy household. We are here today to give you the tools to shift that dynamic."

Penny looked a little flustered, "Yes, I know, and that's why we're here. But Violette has never really been agreeable in the best of times. Would it be alright if I took her itinerary and she took mine?"

Alexandra's face dropped, only a fraction, but it was there. On another person's face, Penny might have said it was shock. "That is not a good idea, Penny. You are the one who has the most responsibility and the most say in your relationship with your daughter. It sounds like you have given up too much control, and we're here to help you take some of that back."

Penny wrung her hands and looked over she shoulder at her daughter, who was on her phone at the table. Most of the mothers and daughters had moved to the exits and were filtering out of the room.

"Alexandra, please. I know this might seem irregular, or whatever," This caused Alexandra's lovely shaped eyebrows to rise on her forehead, "But, I know my daughter. She is not going to give this the time of day. Please, I'm begging you, if this whole day is going to work at all, I really think Violette should take my itinerary."

Alexandra gazed at the distraught woman standing in front of her. Penny felt like a bit of a fool begging this woman, but she wanted, she needed, today to work for both her and Violette.

"Penny, here at The Retreat, we pride ourselves on experiences that are true to one's self and enacting real change, sometimes even when the person who has trusted us to make those changes don't quite agree those changes are even possible, at first." Alexandra leveled a steady gaze into Penny's eyes, "Penny, are you sure?"

Penny nodded without hesitation, "Yes, yes, I'm sure. Please, I just need today to work."

Alexandra gave a small smile, maybe one of sadness, maybe one of disappointment? Penny couldn't tell, and she really didn't want to try to figure this amazing woman out. Right then the only thing she cared about was reconnecting with her daughter.

"As you wish," Alexandra said with a smile and nod and took both itinerary's and handed Penny back Violette's original schedule. Taking the itinerary reserved for Penny, she walked over to Violette and handed the young woman the piece of paper and directed her towards the door where the last mother, aside from Penny, had disappeared behind. Violette grumbled something Penny couldn't hear, but headed towards the door without much protest. Penny heaved a soft sigh of relief as she made her way to the door the daughter's had walked through.

Penny made her way into a much smaller room that had a few rows of chairs. There was a raised stage on the far end of the room with a podium. The lights in the room were dimmed and the whole wall behind the stage was one big projection screen with the word, "welcome" in simply black font floating on the screen. Penny took a seat towards the back of the room, behind the other daughters. As she was settling in, she noticed music was playing through the PA system, it was very faint, but pleasant. The music combined with the low lights, gave the room a very relaxed atmosphere and Penny found herself relaxing and hoping that Violette was having a similar experience.

A few minutes later a door near the stage opened and Alexandra swept into the room and took her place behind the podium. The lights stayed dim, and a soft shuffling was heard through the room as the girls put their phones away and sat up.

Alexandra smiled, "Thank you all for being here. As you know, we are here to help you and your mother reconnect. But there is stuff in the way, isn't there? Everyone in this room feels that your mother no longer understands what you're going through, and therefore you don't have any common ground anymore. Does anyone here disagree?"

From her vantage point in the back of the room, all of the girls in the room nodded their heads. Penny had never really thought about things from Violette's perspective. She had been young and gone off to college too, but maybe the modern world was just a different experience from what she went through, maybe she hadn't been giving Violette enough space.

Alexandra continued, "Before we go any farther, I am going to ask you all to trust me. I know you have no reason too, but I am going to ask for your trust. Do you trust me?" Alexandra stepped up to the first row of chairs and stopped at the first girl and looked down at her smiling, "Do you trust me?"

The girl looked up into the stunning woman's face and nodded silently. Alexandra nodded, "Thank you, now please hand me your phone, tablet, and smart watch."

The girl looked very confused and a little shocked, she covered her watch protectively with her hand and Penny saw her feet shift to protect her purse resting under her chair. Alexandra didn't move, her smile never faltered, and her eyes bore into the young woman with confidence and power.

The room had been quiet and calm before, now it was oppressively still. Penny still, if she concentrated, could hear the soft music playing. Every girl in the room had their attention focused completely on Alexandra. The woman irradiated confidence as she stood over the girl. The girl started to move and Penny watched in amazement as she slowly slipped her watch off, and held it out to Alexandra. Alexandra smiled warmly and took the offered watch and waited for the girl to slowly fish out her phone and tablet from her purse. Alexandra slipped the items into a shoulder bag that Penny hadn't even noticed that she was carrying.

"Thank you for trusting me, sweetheart," Alexandra said and moved to the next girl in line.

Penny was spellbound by this woman. With no effort at all, it seemed like, Alexandra was able to, through force of her will alone, to convince these head strong girls to give up their most prized electronics and only window to the outside world. Penny had no idea how long it took, and Alexandra wasn't in any hurry. She focused on each girl individually, and gave each girl her full attention and, as far as she could tell, genuine gratitude for their obedience.

Alexandra finally came to Penny, and Penny didn't hesitate to give up her phone. Alexandra made her way back to front of the room after handing the shoulder bag off to another woman that Penny hadn't noticed before that moment.

Alexandra smiled to the room, "I'm very proud of all of you, and again, thank you for trusting me. I want to start off the day with each of you thinking back the past few years. Think about all the arguments you have had with your mom. Every time she showed disappointment or concern for one of your decisions. Think about all the times you blew your mother off. And as you think of each of these small 'victories' over your old fuddy dutty mother, think about what happened the day after or the week after. Think of all the times you and your mother have argued and how sometimes, the arguments spiraled out of control and you and your mother, the two people who should share the most love for each other in the world, ended up thinking and believing that you hate the other person."

"I know you love your mothers, that's why you're here. But I offer you a parable. Think of when you were little, playing in the park. There was a creek nearby wasn't there."

Almost all the girls nodded and Penny found herself nodding too. She remembered a park she spent hours at when she was younger. There was a happy little creek that ran though it with steep, though not high, banks. Gentle ferns grew up along the banks with their soft leaves that she used to love rubbing her face with.

"Imagine that creek, especially during winter, when the water level was low. The creek still ran, but barely at a trickle. Now imagine if we put a heavy piece of moss in the creek. Can anyone tell me what would happen to the creek?"

There was a brief silence then one of the girls said softly, "it would dam up the creek? Or slow the water down even more."

Alexandra smiled to the young woman, "That's exactly right Riley, the creek wouldn't flow as well. Now let's add some sticks and maybe even a branch to that pile of heavy moss. Now the creek is dammed up completely, isn't it?" Every girl in the room nodded, and Penny found herself nodding as well.

"Now that heavy moss, the thing that started this whole big mess, I want you to imagine that that moss is the first time you balked, or talked back, or ignored your mother. And every argument, every tense moment between you two has been twigs and branches and more moss piled into that poor creek. Now, over years of debris build up, we're here. The creek is our relationship with our mothers, and paths of communication. We have dammed up the creek. We need to look at ourselves and find when we put that first piece of moss into the creek and when was the last log we dumped into it. To free up our relationship, we need to take away those blockages."

"Now, imagine if we had never added that piece of heavy moss, or if that piece of heavy moss had never got caught on a rock. That is what we have in our control, and it's so easy to just let that moss flow down the creek of our relationship. Instead of arguing, and pushing back, and balking, and finding every excuse in the world why we should fight and resist our mother, we need to just allow that issue to happen, let it go, and let the creek flow. Sometimes that's just cleaning up the bathroom, which needs to be done anyway, or honoring our promise that we made to our mother to be somewhere. A flowing creek, is a happy creek, and we can help that creek by just accepting and letting the water flow."