What Hand Was I Given?
On a Friday night, a week before Christmas, the ABC Company was hosting their annual Christmas party. There were approximately 500 attendees, and the venue was extravagant. There was lots of food, decorations, entertainment, games, and music. I have been an employee of the ABC Company for ten years, and I’ve witnessed the new and innovative events that are added to the annual Christmas party.
This year I arrived a little late, and by the time I arrived, most of the tables were full. I became a little nervous because I didn’t want to sit in the back of the ballroom. As I began to scan the room, I noticed two tables in the middle of the ballroom, one table with two seats remaining that was filled with mostly guys and the other table with one seat remaining with all ladies. I thought, “Let me grab this table.” I quickly walked to the table and sat down.
The other four ladies were very welcoming, and I immediately thought, “Great, I think I picked the right table and this is going to be a good night.” As I looked to my far right, I noticed Carmen. I met her two years ago when she began working for the organization. We worked on projects together and attended different offsites. We both made eye contact, smiled, and spoke to each other.
Divine Connections
While the food was being served, we started with a small conversation about our families and our jobs with the ABC Company. I blurted out, “Before the servers get to our table, why don’t we introduce ourselves and mention one thing we are most proud of?”
All the ladies agreed. I was first.
“Hi, my name is Nicole, I work in marketing, and I have been with the ABC company for ten years. I love going to church, and I am most proud to be the mother of two kids, a young adult son in college, and a daughter Jada (16 years old), whom I adopted at three months old.”
Next was Krystal, who worked in IT for seven years, and was most proud of her only daughter Tiffany (15 years old) and the fact that she has traveled to all the seven continents. Then there was Carmen; she worked as an executive assistant for two years. She was most proud of her three kids, two adult sons, her daughter Ayanna (15 years old), and her granddaughter (Ayanna’s six-month-old daughter).
Tanya was next. She worked as an attorney for four years, and she was most proud of obtaining her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. She has twin girls and is also raising her niece Stephanie (12 years old) as her daughter since her parents passed away when she was five years old. Last was Vanessa, who has been in finance for five years, and she was most proud of working in her dream job and her daughter April (14 years old).
The timing was perfect. After Vanessa finished her introduction, the servers were at our table, and we could eat. While eating, the band was performing, and the people up front had finished their meals and began dancing.
We noticed all the excitement from the people up front, and to our surprise, the person that had their attention was none other than the CEO, Mr. Daniel Walton, AKA “Daniel,” by whom everyone was so amused and astonished due to the serious stature he carries at work.
The TV monitors in the ballroom were all focused on “Daniel” doing his portrayal of Michael Jackson’s moonwalk. Everyone was so surprised to see someone serious being so free and hilarious. All the women at the table were saying, “Girl, do you see this? Let’s take a picture so we can remember this night.” We were laughing so hard that we could barely eat our food, and the night was still young.
All the Single Ladies
After we ate, the band played “Single Ladies” by Beyonce, and of course, we ran to the floor. We all had our phones out, taking selfies and making this moment as memorable as possible. We were so hyped that it felt like we had traveled back to our high school days. You couldn’t tell us anything; we knew this was the start of an unexpected bond between us single mothers. After that exciting moment, we headed back to the table for drinks to cool down because we knew this was only the first peak of the night. After we finished our drinks, we were ready for more entertainment.
Tanya looked at us and said, “Hey guys, let’s go into one of the breakout rooms to see what’s going on there.
We all got up and tip-toed out and went into breakout room number five. To our surprise, there were a lot of games we played in high school, and it brought back so many memories. The game that caught our attention the most was UNO, so we decided to sit down at the table and play a hand. As I dealt the cards, we established the rules.
While playing UNO, we were looking to have a mom-less night of fun, but somehow, we still got on the subject of parenting. It started with Tanya discussing the Christian Single Mom’s Club. She mentioned the powerful support system she has with other moms and how it helps her raise her niece. She also mentioned the powerful support system in the other moms while raising her niece as her daughter. One of their mantras is “God controls the hand we are dealt in our individual lives and with our families.” It was unreal because, at that moment, there was a unanimous “Yes, girl!” that came from every mom at the table.
Carmen belted out, “Isn’t that ironic that we’re talking about the hand we were dealt as we play a hand of UNO? Little did I know what I thought would be a playful hand of UNO would turn into an intense conversation.
While we were playing our first hand, Tanya began to talk more about the Christian Single Mom’s Club. She mentioned the different topics they discuss, and she started to talk about abandonment. Immediately, I drifted off and had a flashback of my daughter Jada (16 years old), who I adopted at three months old, and how she felt abandoned by her biological family. I tried so hard to stay in tune with the game, but surprisingly, this became so emotional for me. I kept drifting in and out due to this topic being so personal. Even in trying to remain focused, my mind still went to my Jada and her struggle with abandonment. My memory of it isn’t so pleasant, but I know God always prepares us for the hand He dealt.