The Swans
By Elizabeth Smith Inspired by E. B. White “Are your worries ever extreme?” Dr. Hutchins asked, the image of his face projecting from the large desktop computer. Lisa paused. What worry was ever not extreme? When she worried her twins would choke on grapes, she pureed them into slushies until her kids’ third birthday. When her car got rear-ended on the off-ramp, she avoided the highway for months. What about the time she started her emergency fund after her sister was evicted? Lisa spent a few years going without takeout on weekends, so she could put that money aside in an extra savings account until it reached $15,000. Was that over the top, or was that just common sense? Was signing the bloated life insurance policy for her and Ethan too much? Probably. Ethan already had life insurance through his benefits at work, and Lisa’s job wasn’t a huge deal, just a little side hustle for vacations and the occasional maintenance repair. With the current pandemic, there was that cleanliness is...
