Starting Anew

Olivia woke up to the bright sun peeking through her half-opened blinds. She yawned as she sat up in bed and drowsily looked at the clock on her bedside table. It read 7:22 am. She took the sun’s early greeting as a welcome into the new year. Today was New Year's day. The realization struck Olivia and she rushed to get ready for work. For Olivia and Seek For the Better You, the company she worked for, New Year’s Day was the most important and busiest day of the year. She had completely forgotten about the early start time they had implemented to try and fit in as many people as they could and she silently prayed she wouldn’t be too late. Seek For the Better You, also known as S4BU, was a company dedicated to help people break their bad habits, find their true calling, and ultimately leave behind their unwanted and unenjoyable lives. Olivia could understand why the first day of the new year would bring the most customers. People used the new year as a fresh start. Most who came in looking to start a new life had been wanting to for a while and used the arrival of the new year as their final push. 

S4BU’s large white building loomed over Olivia, mocking her 10 minute late arrival as she rushed inside. She swerved a disheveled small woman who was standing inside the front entrance, oblivious to Olivia’s hasty entrance. She hopped in the elevator and set the destination for floor 3. As she traveled up, the glass elevator revealed a very full waiting room on the second floor. It’s what Olivia was expecting, but the large crowds of people guaranteed her a long and tiring day.

The elevator door smoothly slid open and Olivia wasted no time heading to her boss’s office to apologize for her tardiness. She politely knocked and her boss, Miriam, called her in. When Olivia entered her boss’s organized and brightly lit office, she saw that Miriam didn’t look annoyed or mad, but exhausted. “I’m so sorry for how late I am,” Olivia blurted out. “I totally forgot about our early start-” Olivia was cut off by a wave of Miriam’s hand in the air. 

“It’s alright, Olivia. Your first customer should be waiting in your office as I told him you should be in soon,” Miriam quietly said. Olivia realized Miriam must’ve had a lot to deal with already that morning and she thanked Miriam and excused herself. 

She anxiously headed over to her office wondering who her first customer would be. The people who came to S4BU consisted of every possible type of person. There were young people in their early 20s and 30s who had no idea what to do with their lives and were seeking to find a purpose, there were those in their 40s and 50s who hated their careers and life choices and wanted a fresh start, and then there were those in their 70s and 80s who had lost a great amount and wanted something in their life to look forward to and to live for. The age limit of 18+ prevented youngsters from coming in. Olivia understood that it was because they were still legally under their parents supervision and needed to follow their rules, but she felt sorry for those who were born into a rough family environment and had to wait to change the bad hand they were dealt in life. 

She opened the door to her familiar office to see a large burly man sitting in front of her desk, his back to her as she walked through the door. “Good morning,” Olivia said to the man as she sat behind her desk. “Sorry I’m late. Let’s not waste any more time. You can go ahead and tell me why you’re here and I can outline the different ways we can go about finding a proper solution to your problem.”

The man introduced himself as Bartholomew and his southern accent was strong as he explained the reason he was there. He took his time explaining his life as a farmer and how his constant working diminished his chances at finding love. “I really only became a farmer because my father was one, but I am not a fan let me tell you. Those long hot days, the constant prayer for rain, and lastly nobody really wants to marry a farmer. So I guess I just want to start over. Find a career I really want and give myself another chance at love.” Olivia nodded at the man and smiled kindly. She found it adorable that this huge rough looking man was so keen on finding true love. 

“Well the good news is this sounds like we can find an effective solution. I’m going to give you a few aptitude tests to find out what career would best suit you and I’ll do some research on great programs and groups you can join to meet new people who are also looking for a life long partner.” Bartholomew grinned at Olivia, his chipped front teeth not quite reaching his bottom set of teeth. 

“Thank ya so much! I am greatly appreciative of you and your patience.”

“Of course!” Olivia said smiling. “I will send these tests off with you and once you send them back we can set up another meeting and hopefully you can start anew.” Olivia walked the man out and sat back down once he left her office. She smiled to herself. Bartholomew was a very kind man and although he was very chatty, it was a good start to the morning. 

The morning slowly turned into afternoon as Olivia worked with many different people, helping them through their life problems and offering them solutions to the various situations they were in. Olivia did not have a break from her appointments for 3 straight hours. And after her 50 minute break she was met with another endless stream of meetings. The clock hit 6 and Olivia received a message from Miriam telling her she had one last appointment. She looked up as a hunched over figure rushed through Olivia’s open office door and took a seat on the plush wooden seat. Olivia sat up in her seat and eyed the small person. They were wearing a large jacket, the hood pulled over their head. “Hello how can I help you today?” Olivia asked. She was a little suspicious of the strange figure, but she wanted to quickly get through this last appointment and go home. The person looked up at Olivia and she realized it was the woman she had almost run into in the lobby early that morning. 

“Ok well…” The woman paused and glanced nervously around the room. “Do you record these conversations? Or- can anyone hear me?” The small woman looked down at her hands, unable to meet Olivia’s eyes. 

“They are not, no. It’s a part of our mission statement to protect our customer’s privacy,” Olivia answered. She was even more suspicious of the strange woman, but this was not the first time a customer was hesitant about sharing their life story. 

“Mhm, ok.” The woman nervously shifted in her seat. “Listen,” the woman whispered, finally looking at Olivia. She motioned for her to lean in closer. “I’ve done some… not so great things,” she said, still whispering. “I’m… well… I mean.” She sighed. “I’m running from the police and I need you to help me change my identity or do something because I have a wonderful daughter at home who I’m not going to leave. And I’m not going to jail. So that’s why I’m here.” She leaned back in her chair and breathed out a sigh of relief. Olivia squinted her eyes at the lady and pursed her lips, thinking.

“Well, that is certainly the… uh… the problem you have there.” Olivia had never had to deal with a fugitive before, but she was fully aware of the rules against aiding in anything illegal or withholding any illegal information from the company and ultimately the police. Olivia did feel for the woman, who mentioned she had a young daughter she needed to take care of. “Have you thought of putting your child in foster care and then turning yourself in? This might give you a chance of receiving a lesser sentence or punishment.”

“I’m not leaving my daughter!” The woman practically shouted at Olivia, but immediately put her hand over her mouth. She took a deep breath before speaking again. “She’s so young, and she needs me! No matter what, I’m not putting her in some sketchy adoption center and allowing for the possibility of some horrible family to get a hold of her. Just- please. Please help me.” The woman quickly swiped at the tears that had begun to silently roll down her thin face. Olivia quickly typed something into her computer and scanned the results and nodded at the screen before turning back to the woman. 

“Ok,” she said. “There’s this very underground organization I know of. They may be able to help you. Give you somewhere to hide, take care of your child, and help give you a new identity so that the police can’t find you. It’s risky, but I believe they will be successful at helping you.” Olivia passed a small piece of paper over to the woman, an address and other important information scribbled on the front. The woman stared at Olivia and thanked her over and over again. Olivia just smiled. “It’s the least I can do.” The woman thanked Olivia again as she left the office.

Olivia went home more exhausted than she thought she would be. It was tiring being a partial therapist, partial life counselor, and partial business woman all in one. The endless people’s lives she had tried to fix in one day was a great feat and was not something to be taken lightly. She was also not proud of what she had done to help the fugitive who had bravely entered Olivia’s office, desperate to find any possible way to not abandon her daughter. Although it went against the company’s strict rules, she had done what she felt she had to. She would probably never find out if it was indeed the right choice or not, but she felt in her heart that it was. 

That night, Olivia reflected back on all the appointments she had. All the people who had wanted to start anew, to leave their old lives behind, and who wanted to find their purpose in this confusing game called life. She was thankful she was able to help them, to play a part in their journey to a new successful life. Olivia knew this was her purpose and she slept peacefully that night knowing she had helped so many turn from their old habits and lifestyles and change for the better.