Big Summer

by Jennifer Weiner

and forgiveness and exhortations to stay the course in the upcoming week. I thought it was nice, how the women all seemed to want to help each other. When Valerie would open the floor, saying “Ladies, let me hear about your triumphs and temptations,” someone would start talking about an upcoming party, or a business trip, or how there’d been birthday cake at the office, and everyone would want to help. “They know I’m on a diet!” the birthday-cake woman had wailed. “And I couldn’t not eat it! I had to be polite!” I listened as the other Weight Watchers proposed solutions—Tell them you’re allergic! Take a slice and say it’s for later and throw it away! I wondered if this was what being an adult was: endless denial, requiring limitless willpower. Then I would think about what kind of job I could find where birthday cake was served in the office.