"I do not have a lot of time to explain, Hannah." She folded her hands together as if in prayer and then smiled up at the filthy ceiling of the trailer, in a gesture of appreciation. "This opportunity has come for me, and we are taking it. Hurry. Get your best things packed, and remember we do not have space for a lot of unimportant things."
"But why are we leaving?"
She laughed and swept her hand across the small inside of the trailer. "Why? Why would we want to leave this place, this town full of gossips, a place where there is no place for dreams, a two by four trailer? Why?" She laughed, and then she lost her smile. "You are supposed to be so smart, doing so well at school, and you are asking me, why?"
"Where will we go?" Hannah asked panicked.
"Any place other than here. We are going to go on an adventure to look for a nice place where I can have the opportunity to do more with my life. Now that your dad is dead, we can go anywhere we want to go." She said with determination, "Get busy packing."
"What about school and everything?"
"You'll go to a better school." She laughed with glee. "This is so exciting! What could possibly be wrong with trying to find a better place to live? Anyway, I can see you aren't happy here anymore."
"That is because my dad died!"
"Exactly and nothing is going to ever change that, so we are leaving to make a new beginning. A fresh start is what we both need."
Hannah stared dumbly around her, at the suitcases scattered across the room, the mess of clothes thrown everywhere.
Her mum added, "I have a surprise for you as well. I was going to wait until we are on the road before I told you."
"Nothing can be a bigger surprise than this."
"Our first stop is going to be at your dad's family. Finally, you will meet them." When Hannah did not reply, she asked, "Well, aren't you excited?"
Her mum was right. This news was a great surprise to Hannah. Hannah took a deep breath. Her heart was pounding fast, because everything was happening too quickly. She could not think straight. Something did not feel right. "Shouldn't we plan this better? We should talk about it first and get ourselves better organized."
"No, because then we will end up not doing it." She sat down on the sofa and motioned for Hannah to join her.
Unsure Hannah sat down.
Her mum pulled her into her arms for the first time probably in her life. She held Hannah tightly. "This move is just what we need. Once we get going you will soon realise that I am right." Softly she stroked Hannah's hair, and Hannah did not want her to stop. Softly her mum insisted, "Now, I want you to go and pack, and remember only one suitcase."