Chapter Ten
Amanda
Ten years ago
Amanda DeCarlo was thrilled to have found a job. She’d been looking for a while, ever since her last job laid her off because they were closing their doors. At twenty-six, Amanda was starting her life and career over again after losing her boyfriend and job practically at the same time. But now, after a year of looking, she was hired to work as a receptionist at an insurance agency in Malibu.
Malibu!
Amanda’s parents were so proud of her. Her father, Ronald, was a plumber, and her mother, Rena, had worked for years as a salesclerk in a large department store. Amanda had been the first in the family to go to college and get a degree—even if it was only a two-year business degree. She’d started a job immediately out of college for a large business supply company as a receptionist with a chance to become a sales representative, but two years later, both she and her boyfriend of nearly two years were laid off when the company closed down.
Amanda had applied everywhere from banks to offices and even in the many stores in their area, but she was either too qualified or not qualified enough. And being such a large town, there were hundreds of applications for every job. Soon, her unemployment insurance ran out, and her boyfriend found a job in San Francisco. Amanda thought about following him there but wasn’t completely sure about moving so far away. Finally, she said goodbye to her boyfriend and ended up moving home—back to where she’d started four years before.
And then she widened her search and found her new job.
Of course, that meant finding something affordable to rent as close to Malibu as possible, which wasn’t easy. After searching, she found a tiny studio apartment on the edge of Santa Monica, and even though she would still have a long drive to work, she didn’t mind.
From the very first day, Amanda knew she was going to like working at Craig Winslow’s Insurance Agency. The owner, Mr. Winslow, was an older gentleman who always wore a suit and was professional but friendly. She remembered the managers at her last place of employment barely even looking at staff on a lower level than they were, let alone talking to them. But Mr. Winslow—he said to call him Craig, but she had trouble doing that—treated everyone equally.
The staff at the agency included Walter Carson, a middle-aged man who was nice and was both an agent and the office manager, Gerald Rameriz, a younger man who dressed a bit more casually but was always smiling, and Andrea Simms. Andrea had been the receptionist before Amanda was hired but had studied and passed her insurance exam and was a new agent there. She helped Amanda the most since she knew the receptionist job well.
“You’ll do great here,” Andrea said. She was medium height with short brown hair, warm brown eyes, and an infectious smile. “You’re pretty and sweet, and people always feel more comfortable when they are greeted by a friendly receptionist.”
Amanda had appreciated Andrea’s compliment, but she didn’t believe she was pretty compared to Andrea. Amanda was shorter and curvier, with an olive complexion and dark hair and eyes. Despite always trying new diets and exercise programs, she never felt she was ever thin enough or pretty enough. But she did know she was a good worker and she prided herself on that.
“And you know you can always study to become an insurance agent in your free time,” Andrea told her. “It takes a while unless you have loads of free time, but it’s worth it. I just started, and Craig handed over a few of his own clients to me to get going. It was so generous of him. I can make money right away while I build my client base.”
Amanda thought working toward becoming an agent was a good idea. But first, she had to master the flow of this particular office.
After a few weeks of working there, Amanda felt comfortable doing her job. She answered the phone, made appointments, sent out mailings, greeted customers, and did a lot of data entry work. But that was good. She was learning the terms and procedures for selling insurance policies from all the data entry. She also learned Craig’s schedule by heart. His main office was in Torrance, but every two weeks, he drove to Monterey to check on that office and then stayed a day or two in Malibu to spend time in this office.
She wondered if his wife hated those weeks when he was gone or if she was just used to it. She knew he was married, because of the picture of his wife on his desk and from how much he spoke about her. Craig was a loving and attentive husband—there was no doubt—and that was one of the many things she admired about her employer.
After three months of working there, Craig called her into his office one Thursday afternoon.
“How are you liking your job here?” he asked Amanda. Craig had the largest office in the building, with big windows that looked out toward the ocean. He sat behind his desk, his suit jacket hanging over the back of his chair and his tie loosened.
“I love working here,” Amanda said eagerly. “Everyone has been very helpful and kind. Andrea said I picked up the job quickly.”
Craig smiled. “That’s wonderful. I knew the moment I met you that you were a go-getter. And I know you are working hard. Are you interested at all in becoming an agent someday?”
Amanda’s heart beat faster. She would love to study to become an agent. But she’d looked online to see what she’d have to do, and the course work and tests were expensive. “I am interested,” she told him. “But I’m afraid the cost is out of my reach right now.”
“Well, that’s the benefit of working for me,” Craig said. “I’ll be happy to pay the fees if you want to take the classes. All I ask in return is that you work for us for two years after earning your license. After that, you can move to another agency or go out on your own if you wish.”
Amanda was stunned. They’d actually pay for her class materials? “That sounds wonderful,” she said. “Where do I sign?”
Craig chuckled. “No signature needed. I trust you. So far, I’ve found most people who I’ve helped get their license stay with us. Tell me when you’re ready, and we’ll buy you the class materials.”
“I’m ready now,” Amanda said. “I had wanted to move up in my old job, but then they closed their doors. I’m anxious to work toward a better future.”
“That’s great,” Craig said. He opened his top desk drawer and pulled out a credit card. “Have Andrea show you the website and help you choose the classes you need. You can put it on this credit card.” He stood and handed her the card. “I’m thrilled we’ll have a new agent here soon.”
Amanda stood and took the card. She was so excited, she wished she could hug him, but she knew that would be inappropriate. “Thank you so much. I couldn’t have done this without your help.”
“You’re very welcome,” Craig said. “I’m always happy to help someone move up in the world. I’ve been so blessed; I want to be able to use my resources to help others.”
Amanda felt she’d been blessed, too. Fate had led her to this good job and this generous man. She was on her way to becoming successful.
***
Amanda soon learned that wanting to be successful and doing the work to get there were two different things. Andrea helped her sign up for the online classes and buy the class materials. After that, it was up to Amanda to do the work and pass the tests. So, at night, after a full day of work, she sat down at her computer and took the online classes. She worked on the workbooks and studied the materials. Sometimes, she asked Andrea for help when she didn’t understand something. Andrea, Walter, and even Gerald helped her by explaining important topics that were confusing or calculations that she didn’t quite understand. They even gave her hints of what might be on the test and what to study for. Each test cost money to take, so she did the practice tests several times so she knew the material backwards and forwards. Still, even though she knew she was smart enough to learn all of this material, it sometimes got the best of her.
Late one Thursday afternoon, Amanda was going over her test materials and feeling like a failure. There were no more appointments for the day and she’d finished her data entry, so she was studying her work. But she was so frustrated. It just couldn’t be that hard!
Each of the agents said goodbye to her for the night as they walked out the door. Soon, Craig came out with his coat and briefcase in hand.
“Oh, are you still here?” he asked Amanda, looking surprised. “Everyone is gone. You might as well go home, too.”
Amanda looked up, surprised she’d stayed this late. “Sorry,” she said, piling all her workbooks together to leave. “I hadn’t realized it was getting late.”
Craig chuckled. “Not a problem. How are you getting along with your classes?”
“Okay,” she said without much enthusiasm. “I’m studying the material, but my brain doesn’t want to retain it.”
Craig set his coat and briefcase down and leaned against her desk. “Don’t let it get you down. It’s a lot of information to learn all at once. Give yourself some time to let it sink in.”
Amanda looked up at his kind face, pushing a stray strand of hair away from her face that had fallen out of her ponytail. She always wore her long hair up because she thought it looked more professional, and, with her baby face, older. “What if I can’t learn it? Maybe I’ll only be a receptionist for the rest of my life.”
Craig shook his head. “You know that isn’t true. I’ve seen you work around here. You pick things up quickly and never need to be told twice how to do something. You’re smart.”
Amanda wrinkled her nose, not quite believing what Craig was saying.
“Amanda,” Craig said. “You know all that data entry you do? It has codes and figures on every sheet, right?” He waited until she nodded. “It takes most people a long time to figure out those codes and type them in correctly, yet as far as I’ve seen, you picked it up quickly. No one has complained that you’ve made any mistakes. Do you know how rare that is?”
Amanda was surprised by this. It all seemed so easy to her. “Really? Or are you just trying to make me feel better?”
Craig smiled. “It’s true. Between you and me, Andrea took a long time to do the data entry flawlessly. She was here two years before she passed the test to become an agent. You’ve been here, what? Five months? And I’ll bet you’re almost ready to take the test.”
Amanda smiled back. “That does make me feel better. And yeah. I’m hoping to try to complete the practice test in a couple of weeks.”
“See? You’re a natural. Why don’t you get your things, and I’ll walk you to your car?”
Amanda placed her books and workbooks into a canvas bag and followed Craig out the door. He walked with her to her car in the small parking lot. The office sat on a hill above Malibu and was up just high enough to see the ocean over the houses that lined the Pacific Coast Highway. “I’ll never get over this view,” Amanda said. “I still can’t believe I work in such a beautiful place.”
Craig looked over at the view and sighed happily. “I never get tired of this view. My wife, Marsha, and I recently purchased a home in Palos Verdes overlooking the ocean. We love it. It was her dream house.”
“That would definitely be my dream home,” Amanda said. “But I doubt I’ll ever own anything that luxurious.”
Craig gave her a long look. “Never say never, Amanda. Always reach for the stars.”
Amanda nodded and got into her car. She waved at Craig and drove away toward her little apartment. She hoped Craig was right. Maybe someday, Amanda would have everything she wanted. She’d just keep working hard and do the best she could.