"Hello?" the feminine voice answered on the other side of the line. I was pacing back and forth. A little upset that my cell phone had no phone cord to fiddle with as I pushed down my anxiety.
"Um, yeah, hi. Is this Kathy?" Of course it is. She gave me the number to her cell, after all.
"Hi, Anna. How are you?" I could feel the all knowing smile spreading across her face, 80 miles away. The smile that three months ago I hated with a passion. Mistaken the smile for arrogance. For indifference to my situation and my needs even though she didn't owe me anything.
"I'm good," I said automatically. Jesus Christ, I just said that to a psychiatrist. "Honestly, I am. It's been the first time in a while that I can genuinely say that....How are you?"
"Relived to hear from you again!" she said. I don't know whether she meant it. It didn't really matter.
"I just wanted to say," I started. Might as well get this over with. "Actually, I want to thank you. Today is the one year mark from my suicide attempt and well, I know you get this a lot, but you really helped me."
There was silence on the other end. Still listening.
" You were the first one that actually listened. A stranger. And I honestly think I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for me accepting your help. So yeah, thank you."
After a few moments of silence, I heard the wavering tones of breath. With tears in her words, "My dear, hearing you say that means so much. But it was all you."
We both smiled. Two strangers, 80 miles apart, held together by one of the strongest bonds.