The Makeover (13 page)

Phoenix felt
her face freeze section by section as she took in Paulo’s complete confident
calm.  “Uh, He
told
you to stop and speak to me?”

Paulo
chuckled.  “Yes.  And no, I am not crazy.  The Spirit of the
Lord put it on my heart, while I was doing my Saturday morning run, to stop and
speak to you.  So I did.”

“Wow, I uh,
used to think God spoke to people directly.  Nowadays, I rarely come
across people who believe they hear from God, unless they are…”

Paulo
laughed.  “I get where you’re going, Doctor Psychologist.  I am not
schizophrenic nor do I suffer from bipolar disorder.  I hear from God
because I am a Christian and He, through His Holy Spirit, speaks to all of His
children that have asked Jesus into their hearts.”  Paulo almost laughed
as he remembered how close he was to thinking that he was crazy as well. 
He continued, “And He told me something else, this morning, but I didn’t know
what it was for.  But I am glad I obeyed.”

Phoenix slid a
little closer to the edge of the bench, prepared to run if needed.  “Oh
yeah?  What’s that?”

“He told me to
bring one of my business cards on my run, which I never do, and to offer my
services for free.”

Phoenix tilted
her head.  “
What? 
And what kind of business are you into?”

Paulo threw her
another calm, assured smile, and shrugged.  “You never know when and how
the Lord is going to answer your prayers.”  He slid a card into her hand
and stood.  “So if you decide to take me up on the help He told me to
offer, just give me a call.  God bless you.”

Paulo took off
in a light sprint that allowed every golden muscle to glint and quiver in the
blazing rays of the sun.  Phoenix lost her train of thought as her eyes
zeroed in on Paulo’s strong legs and the long muscles of his torso.

“Sweet Jesus,”
Phoenix murmured.  Speaking His name suddenly reminded Phoenix of Paulo’s
words.  Looking down, she read the card that caused her to leap up from
the bench and gasp, “What the—?”

Looking right
to left, Phoenix felt her heart swell. 

“God, I can’t
believe this.  Did you really send him to me?  That would mean he was
already sent before I even prayed for—?”

Again, Phoenix
was silenced by the overwhelming awe for the God she had begun to feel had
abandoned her long before she was even born.  Or was it that she had
abandoned Him?  Either way, she couldn’t believe it.  But she knew, in
her heart, no matter how unbelievable it seemed, that the words on the card
confirmed what she knew was true.

God had come to
her rescue.

Even before she
had formed the words to pray, he had already sent help.

Trembling she
read aloud the words on the card:

The Lord’s Table Christian Fitness
Center

Using Biblical Principles for
Achieving Weight Loss and Overall Healthy Living

God’s Way!

Call now for an appointment

212-555-7777

Paulo Elias, MS, RD, CDN

Owner, CEO

NYS Registered Dietician and NYS Licensed
Nutritionist

Certified by the American Academy of
Sports Dietitians and Nutritionists (AASDN)

ACE-Certified Personal Trainer

NCCA-certified in Christian
Counseling, Lifestyle & Weight Management

Chapter 9

Many
will say they are loyal friends, but who can find one who is truly reliable?

Proverbs
20:6

San and Nic were staring at Phoenix as if her head
had exploded all over San’s gorgeous Italian leather furniture.

“What?” Phoenix rolled her eyes.  “Y’all are
looking at me like I’m sitting here with a syringe and heroin about to shoot
up.  What?”

“Girl,” San flashed a benign smile.  “You
really think
God
sent this…this Paul—”

“Paulo,” Phoenix snapped, “pronounced
pow
-lo.”

“Whatever,” San continued, “this ‘Polo’ to help
you?  Really, Phoenix?  Look, it’s great that you got this guy
offering to help you and all, but ain’t you going a little too far with the God
thing? I mean, for all you know, this dude could be out for something, just
like Cedric was.”

“Yeah, Fe,” Nic was nodding as she reached to snatch
another bunch of grapes and slices of cheese from the glass tray.  “Maybe
he was out generating new business and took a look at you and thought that
you’d be the perfect client.  Why bring God into it?  I mean thank
Him or whatever, but don’t go around saying God told this dude to speak to
you.  Sounds like something out of a Tyler Perry movie.”

“And what’s wrong with saying God told him to speak
to me, Nicola?  I thought you both believed in God.  I was just
sharing with you what he told me and asking if you think I should take him up
on his offer.  That’s all.  No need to make a production out of it.”
Phoenix busied herself trying to build a mini sandwich out of Ritz crackers,
pepperoni, sliced provolone and olives.

San eyed her with disgust as Phoenix shoved the
entire triple-decker cracker sandwich into her mouth.  “Well whoever sent
him, it doesn’t matter.  Go on and call him Girl.  Maybe he can help
you better yourself.  Ain’t nothing wrong with a little self-improvement. 
Lord knows you could use it.”

Phoenix felt her face grow hot as her friends
watched her eat.  She struggled to quickly chew and swallow her
snack.  “Why are you insulting me, San?  I came here to talk to you
guys about this, and get your feedback, and all you do is put me down?  Is
that supposed to help me?”

“Oh you know she ain’t mean no harm, Fe,” Nic chimed
in, the ever-ready, even-tempered peacemaker between the two head-strong
women.  She got up to walk over to San’s floor-to-ceiling mirror in the
hall.  After smoothing her skin-tight mini sweater dress down over her
petite, hourglass frame, she finger-combed her waist-length hair.  Leaning
close to the mirror, she checked her even teeth and peered closely into her
green eyes.  Blowing herself a kiss, and having the nerve to allow her
ivory-colored cheeks to blush, she returned to the sofa.  “You know we
love you Girl, but you do need to get yourself together,” she smiled.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to do!” Phoenix shouted. 
“It’s hard for me.  I’ve asked you girls to take me with you when y’all
work out, but you always go without me.  It’s crazy how you guys keep
making comments about my weight but won’t even help me.”

San’s gray eyes narrowed into slits.  “Help you? 
How?  You have to help yourself.  You have to love yourself enough to
get up and work out.  You think it’s easy to look like this?  I’ve
had four kids and I’m about to be thirty-five.  I do this because I want
to keep myself healthy.  I work out an hour a day and go for a walk after
dinner every evening with David so that we
both
stay in shape. 
Lord knows my husband would pork up if I didn’t stay after him.”

Phoenix eyed her high school friend, washed in a
wave of bitterness. 
It’s not fair God how good she looks. She’s as
dark as me but looks gorgeous.  
Her eyes skinned over the
vanilla bean-colored silk that was San’s skin.  Her natural eyes were a
slate gray and her hair a thick, natural mass of waves and curls that landed in
the middle of her back.  Standing at a curvy five-foot-eight, she was the
tallest of the trio and the most slender, with most of her weight settling on
her wide hips and curvaceous derriere.  

“Yeah, you guys work out, but you forget I’ve known
you both from high school.  You guys have
always
had the best skin
and figures.  You may exercise to keep it, but you’ve always had it. 
And Nic, you eat worse than me!  All your weight goes to your
backside.  The other day, I watched you polish off a whole rack of ribs, a
mess of fries, and chocolate cake.  I could never eat all that in one
sitting and look at me.”

Nic was busy putting on an extra shade of lip
gloss.  She gave a lazy shrug.  “I guess I’m blessed is all. 
All San and I want for you to do is put in a little effort.  I know you
try but it ain’t hard enough.  And look, ain’t everybody out there got
nice shapes.  Plus, since we’re both Haitian, we grew up on that starchy
Haitian food.  My sister has always been thick, taking after my
papi
’s
side, but you can’t tell her she ain’t
gorgeous.  She dresses nice, keeps her hair and nails done, and always
looks her best.  You could have been doing that ‘til you lost the weight,
but you don’t.”

“Again, I ask you guys to go shopping with me to help
me pick out stuff and you refuse.  I don’t always know what to wear.”
Phoenix felt tears burning at the back of her eyes but she blinked them back,
knowing her cries would destroy the last of San’s patience.

“Go shopping with you?” San laughed.  “For what? 
So that you can feel bad about the fact that you have to go into plus-size
stores while me and Nic don’t.  We’ve tried that, remember?  All you
ended up getting, after hours of shopping, was a new reason to feel sorry for
yourself.  Now look, your man done left just like I warned you.  I
kept telling you to get yourself together but you refused, and now, you’re
trying to say we ain’t good friends because we didn’t
make
you do
it?”  San waved her hand and sucked her teeth.  “Yeah right, Phoenix,
just like I didn’t
make
you put down all those crackers and cold cuts
you’ve been inhaling?  You see fruits and veggies, why go for the fatty
meats and cheeses?”

“I haven’t eaten since last night.  It’s three
o’clock!  Why
put
them there if you think I shouldn’t eat them?”
Phoenix snapped.

“Why should we suffer ‘cause you don’t have
self-control?  Come on, now.  That’s not right, Fe.  You should
be the one to control yourself.  How you going to be a psychologist and
can’t change your own behavior?” Nic jumped in as she reached for a slice of
swiss
cheese, popping into her mouth with a flourish and
batting her eyes at Phoenix.

“That’s why I am doing it, so I can
learn
for
myself, even as I counsel others on how to do it.”

“Well, Physician heal thyself!  I hope you learn
soon, girlfriend, ‘cause you need to really do something about your weight,
your style, and your overall situation.  We have tried to help.”  San
threw her a nasty sneer as she reached for a plate and loaded it with crackers,
bleu cheese,  carrots, and dip.  “I can’t do it for you.”

“But when I came here, telling you I have someone
who can help me, and how God blessed me with the help I asked for, you guys
make fun of me.”  Phoenix jumped up to pace.

“You’re talking about how
God
sent him and
all,” San snapped.  “At this point, I don’t care who sent him.  You
didn’t call.  It’s been two weeks and you haven’t even called the
guy.  See that’s what we’re talking about.  You’re sitting here
saying God sent you help and then you don’t even take Him up on it?  If
you are not serious, so why should we
take
you seriously?”

Phoenix gulped back the anger that was clawing its
way to the tip of her tongue.  “I wanted to get your feedback first. 
I haven’t been able to get a hold of you guys for the past month.  Even with
everything going on.”

“We were out of town, Phoenix,” San retorted. 
“We went on a trip to Miami for two weeks.  Before that, we were, you
know…busy, I guess.”

Phoenix’s face grew cold then hot then cold
again.  “You guys went on a
vacay
and didn’t invite
me?”

Nic and San looked at each other and Nic looked
down. 

San leaned forward, her eyes cold and
unrepentant.  “Don’t blame Nic, blame me.  I thought we should go
without you.”

“Why? San, are you kidding me?”

“No.  I needed a trip, Fe.  I needed to get
away.  I knew if we took you, it would be another pity party.  Me and
Nic would want to go to the beach, in our bikinis, just to flirt and let our
hair down, and you would feel out of place, so—”

“Would feel out of place or
be
out of
place?”  Phoenix had stopped pacing and had returned to the armchair she
had vacated.

“Both.  Sometimes, even though you’re the
psychologist, I feel like I spend a lot of time trying to pick you up from your
consistent lows.  I’m sorry we weren’t there for you when all that went
down with Cedric, but I am not going to apologize for choosing which friend I
want to take with me on vacation.  I just needed to have a good time
without worrying that you’ll feel bad about the men who approach us, or not
being able to dress like us.  Like Nic said, if you were confident and
loved yourself, even at your size, like her sister, we could roll.  But
you never feel comfortable no matter where we are.  You are always
checking yourself in the mirror and complaining about what you see.  It’s
just hard to have fun with you sometimes.”