underneath fluffy white chickens riding ponies and toasting marshmallows around a fire It looked a whole lot like Jewish summer camp But the description That was a doozy It described the Colorado ranch as a camp for kids struggling to navigate life’s challenges Rivka wanted to gag Forging connections through riding therapy horses was not her idea of fun At least there wouldn’t be any more family dinners And the chickens looked kind of cute Rivka surveyed her packing progress A stack of clean jeans and T-shirts A couple of flannels Socks and undies Pajamas Brown cowboy boots Her raincoat with the zip-in fleece liner A Red Sox baseball hat There was a knock at the door What Rivka It was her mom Can I come in I’m changing Rivka lied Are you okay her mom asked through the door She didn’t sound sour or pinched She seemed almost sorry It made Rivka feel like her skin was on too tight I’m fine Mom Just packing 7
After a long silence her mom asked How’s it coming along Fine Another silence Really said Rivka I’m fine On the other side of the closed door her mom shifted but didn’t leave Finally she said I’ll be in the living room if you need me okay I’ve got it under control Mom said Rivka And she did She was positive of it All Rivka had to do was get the heck away from her family and their expectations They left her alone that night and the next morn ing Rivka stayed in bed feigning sleep until the rest of her family had left for Natalie’s bat mitzvah at the synagogue Twenty-four more hours and she’d be on her way out of town The clock couldn’t tick fast enough 8
Chapter Two The plane trip was weird Rivka had never flown alone before Usually she and her brothers sat together and fought over a limited supply of Hi-Chews But on the long flight from Boston to Denver she was jammed between strangers On one side of her was a businesswoman in a pantsuit who bent over her laptop the entire time On the other was a gray-haired man who fell asleep and snored for the duration Flying alone turned out to be super boring Her mom had been adamant about the no-technology rule at Quartz Creek Ranch Rivka’s tablet the one she used to text with her favorite cousins was in her desk drawer at home and the airline didn’t even 9
show a movie on the flight When they landed the flight attendant made a completely mortifying announcement that an unaccompanied minor needed to get off the plane first At the gate a college-age girl with sunglasses on her head and dark hair in a bouncy ponytail was holding a sign that said WELCOME RIVKA SIMON in rainbow bubble letters This was even more embarrassing than the announcement on the plane That huge sign with those dorky bubble letters made her wish she had thought to sign up for camp with a different name Clara or Tina or June anything that would let her blend in more Come on said her flight attendant bodyguard Let’s get you on your way Rivka followed her to the girl with the sign wondering if she could make up some kind of nick name She hoisted her backpack more firmly over one shoulder and waited while the airline representative checked the girl’s identification and had her sign for Rivka like she was a UPS package When that was done the girl turned to her and smiled She wore blue jeans with the legs tucked into well-worn cowboy boots and a bright blue T-shirt that said Keep Calm and Swim On in white letters 10
