KIMBERLY AND TARA LEFT KINGS MEADOW AT NINE o’clock on Saturday morning. It was one of those perfect days in May when the sky was crystal blue and the earth splashed with varying shades of green. Green was not a color Kimberly thought of first when she thought of Idaho. Not after spending her life in the Seattle area where the average annual rainfall was over three times more than here.
The highway followed the Payette River, which ran high on its banks and roiled and frothed over boulders and trapped logs, but Kimberly couldn’t enjoy more than the occasional glance in the river’s direction. The winding road required her full attention.
Once they were out of the mountains and headed into Boise, Tara read aloud Janet’s detailed directions to the recommended shop. Fifteen minutes later, the car turned into the parking lot beside Déjà Vu Couture. Nerves tumbled in Kimberly’s stomach.
Please let there be a dress that Tara likes that I can afford.
With the prayer repeating in her head, she opened the car door and got out.
The secondhand clothing store was in a converted brick house in an older section of the city. If not for the store’s name and advertising, no one would have known the beautiful gowns inside had been worn before.
Before her husband died, Kimberly hadn’t entered thrift shops for any purpose other than to drop off items they no longer wanted or needed. She’d done her shopping in upscale department stores and specialty shops. When she’d seen something she liked, she’d bought it, scarcely noticing the price tag. It shamed her now to remember it. She’d been careless with their resources. She’d forgotten—if she ever knew it at all—that Christians were stewards, not the owners, of whatever God entrusted to their keeping. It had been a difficult lesson to learn—or relearn—and she often wondered if she hadn’t been a spendthrift when Ellis was alive would things have turned out differently after he passed?
Tara made a beeline to the round racks holding dresses in her size. Kimberly followed at a more sedate pace.
A clerk soon joined them. “May I help you find something?”
Tara looked up from the dresses. “I’m going to the prom next week and need a dress.”
“I thought all the Boise and Meridian proms had been held already.”
“We live in Kings Meadow,” Kimberly answered.
“Oh. Of course.” The woman eyed Tara. “We should have a good number of dresses that would look wonderful on you. Do you prefer long or short?”
Kimberly answered, “Whichever you like, honey.”
“Short, I think.”
“Well then, you’re in the right spot.” The clerk patted the top of the round rack. “But if you change your mind, the floor-length gowns are over there.” She waved her hand in the direction of the racks holding long dresses that lined the far wall. “Call if you need assistance. The dressing rooms are in the back.” Again she motioned.
“Thanks.” Tara started to look through the gowns before her.
Kimberly stood back and waited for her daughter to pick the ones she liked best, hoping they wouldn’t have any arguments. Like many mothers and daughters, she and Tara often disagreed on style choices, especially when it came to tops that exposed too much skin or cleavage. Kimberly refused to budge on that one. Not that they’d done much clothes shopping recently. Not even in secondhand shops.
The first dress that caught her daughter’s eyes was champagne colored with a rhinestone-embellished waist. Unfortunately, it was a strapless gown and a little mature for Tara. But Kimberly held her tongue, willing to wait until her daughter tried on all her finds.
The next one was a sleeveless black dress with various sized gold sequins scattered over the fabric. It had a sheer neckline and a keyhole opening in the back. Modest, yet appropriately flirty for an almost-sixteen-year-old girl. That was a relief.
Tara released a soft gasp. “Mom, look at this one.”
Her daughter drew a turquoise dress from the rack and held it against her torso. The gown had a wide strap over one shoulder, and the bodice—which covered all that Kimberly wanted covered—glistened with silver sequins. The top-layered skirt was scattered with beadwork. The underskirt had a playful ruffled hemline. It was perfect.
“How much?” Kimberly asked, afraid to know the answer.
Tara checked the tag. “Thirty-five dollars.”
Kimberly was able to breathe again. It was an amazing bargain. The dress must have cost at least two hundred dollars when it was new. “Try it on, honey.”
Tara didn’t hesitate for a moment. She hurried through the racks toward the dressing room, leaving her first two choices behind, along with her mother.
Kimberly smiled as she followed after Tara, her gaze scanning the store. In addition to gowns, there were shelves of shoes off to her right and trays of jewelry in a glass case near the register.
The woman who’d helped them earlier looked up from some papers on the counter and said, “I guess your daughter found something she liked?”
Kimberly nodded. “If it fits, it will be perfect.”
And it was perfect. When Tara stepped out of the dressing room a short while later and spun in a slow circle before the mirrors, tears welled in Kimberly’s eyes. Where had this stunning young woman come from?
“It’s beautiful, Tara,” she managed to say past the lump in her throat. “You’re beautiful.”
“Can I get it?”
Kimberly nodded, thankful that she didn’t have to say no. God bless Janet for telling them about this store. And thank God for her temporary job.
“What about accessories?” the sales clerk asked as Tara disappeared back into the dressing room.
“Perhaps some shoes. Nothing else.” To herself she decided they would stop at Fred Meyer to get Tara a strapless bra before heading back to Kings Meadow, right after they enjoyed a nice, relaxing mother-daughter lunch.
Kimberly sent up another quick prayer of thanks for the ever-increasing hope she was starting to feel in her heart.