Harvesting Acorns

by Deirdré Amy Gower

  Phoebe saw the exchange, and saw the same hesitation in Ben. This time she sent Jean Pierre to do the prompting. He loved his wife, did not always agree with her meddling, but learned to trust her instincts. This time even he could see that she was right, and that these two needed to admit to themselves first, and then each other. He called Ben aside. He told him what he felt he and Phoebe could see was obvious – Ben’s feelings towards Chloe were not purely those of gratitude and friendship. There was something more there, and they could see how he fought to hide it. Ben put his head down and remained silent for a while and then he looked at Jean Pierre and told him:

  “She deserves so much more. She is strong and beautiful; independent and determined. All I have shown her these last few months is a man who is weak and easily broken. I can’t offer her anything, could never make up to her all she has done for us. I couldn’t ask her to take on the responsibility of us. Maybe one day I will be the kind of man she deserves. One stronger than her, who can be someone she can lean on.”

  Jean Pierre told him to sit down, so he could tell him a story.

  “You see the relationship I have with my wife. It is rock solid and based on love and mutual trust and respect. It was not always so. When we first met I did not always treat her the way she deserved. I would come and go as I pleased, and she was always there, waiting for me when I returned. I did not deserve her love, and I did not deserve her. I knew it and my actions reflected that knowledge; I subconsciously tried to push her away every way I could. After a while her patience with being treated this way began to wear thin and she called me on it. I told her that I was not ready to be with her, that maybe, one day, when I was deserving, we could be together. I will never forget her words. She told me…” and he was interrupted by Phoebe who had overheard and had come over. She finished what he had started saying:

  “When love knocks on your door it does not ask if you are deserving. The reason it is at your door is because it has already found that you are. All that it asks is that you let it in. And if you do not open because the circumstances are not how you wanted, or the stars are not aligned the way they should be, or whatever your excuse; then the risk is yours alone that it may not knock again.”

  Ben nodded at them both.

  “But how do I ask her to take on me and Hannah and all of our challenges?”

  “She already has,” Phoebe smiled, “now you just need to love her.”

  And she took Jean Pierre’s hand and they left Ben alone with all he now had to think about. He was sitting where they left him, trying to think how to approach Chloe, when he was completely startled and caught off guard by the sound of her voice. He looked up and she was standing in front of him.

  “Ben, I uh… could we…,” she couldn’t find the words she needed. He stood up and as soon as they were eye to eye they both knew without words what the other wanted to say. Ben took her hands in his and then led her out to the garden.

  “Chloe, you deserve the world. All I have is what I feel in my heart…”

  “Ben, with you and Hannah in my life my world would be complete.”

  There was no need to say any more. He took her in his arms and they embraced what had been flickering between them all this time. Ben was still holding her when they heard a burst of applause. Everyone had come outside and were cheering at what they were seeing. Joel said at the top of his voice:

  “Well it is about time! We all wondered when you two would stop circling each other widely.” Everyone erupted into laughter and Ben and Chloe smiled blissfully at their extended family. Hannah came out and Ben called her to them and the three of them hugged each other and felt the love surrounding and completing them. James came over and took Chloe’s hand and pulled on it gently so that she came down to his level, and then he whispered in her ear:

  “This was the silent part of my wish that I never told anyone – that Hannah would have a mother too.” Chloe looked at him with such love, she couldn’t answer him, this was all still too overwhelming for her. He continued:

  “Chloe, you have made all my dreams come true and now I have something special I have been keeping for you.” He took something out of his pocket and brought his cupped hands towards her. As he opened them she gasped… a perfect acorn.

  “You have helped everyone else’s dreams come true… this one is for you.”

  Not for the first time since she had arrived in the village, tears streamed down Chloe’s face as she found unexpected beauty.

  “James, it has been such an honour to get to share in the beauty that reflects from your heart. You have taught me so much and I will treasure our time beneath the giant oak tree forever.” She took out a tissue and wiped her eyes and then continued. “I hope we can keep up our autumn tradition of harvesting acorns and distributing hope.”

  “I would love that very much,” he replied and hugged her tightly. Then he and Hannah went inside to play.

  The next week at work, Chloe wrote a follow up article about Hannah’s transplant and her progress during her recovery. She still had a long way to go but was doing well and getting stronger. Chloe had gone back to her normal editing position but now wrote one feature a week on the understanding that she would only write about issues that would inspire and touch lives, giving people opportunities to help each other and build communities, lower their impact on the environment and do their bit for humanity as well as wildlife.

  Their magazine sales were increasing all the time and feedback from the public was always positive. Their community was hungry for hope and opportunities to be involved. Within a year and a half of Chloe taking over the editing of the magazine, they had branched out to distribute to the rest of the country and double their issues to weekly instead of bi-monthly editions. They had submissions from top journalists around the country but they all knew that Chloe’s criteria for publishable articles was strict with regard to shock content and thrill factors. She would only accept contributions of a high calibre and was particularly opinionated in her rejections of sleaze and gossip that a few chancers often attempted to submit.

  She had received numerous offers from rival magazines, but her loyalty was with Edward and Beth Taylor. They in turn valued her contribution and efforts in producing a top quality magazine. They had just won the award for Magazine of the Year and Edward, in his letter of acceptance and appreciation revealed without bars the high esteem they held Chloe in and commended her work ethic, professionalism and authentic journalistic contributions.

  On a personal level, she and Ben were now officially dating and getting to know each other on a more relaxed, comfortable and personal level. They found they had many interests in common and the connection between them was deep and intense. She and Hannah had bonded strongly and the three of them spent many weekends picnicking beneath the giant oak. Hannah had not yet been able to return to school, and Chloe had arranged to work mornings only so that she could tutor Hannah until she was ready to go back to school. She still met with Phoebe and Jean Pierre for their weekly dinners; and to catch up on the events of their lives.

  Grace called one Friday evening and asked if she could visit with Chloe the following day. She had some news. When she arrived she was beaming. Chloe welcomed her in, and they sat chatting. Chloe brought some tea and freshly baked rusks – her skills were improving now that she had a little girl in her life to play kitchen with from time to time.

  “Chloe, I have some exciting news,” Grace began. “After we spoke to the antique dealer and we got our drawing back, Joel was so delighted he could not let it rest. He has been trying since then to find a way to trace Logan or his grandson, just to thank them for the effort they went through to return it.”

  Chloe listened to her recount all they had been through in their investigations. Joel had done some research and rediscovered, on the internet, the island he and Simon had washed up on all those years ago. By what he had read it was still as unspoiled as possible, the inhabitants had fought many legalities and b
attles to protect their land and their rights to freedom of way of life. Their community had grown as well as their village as more and more Flower Children left the mainland seeking an alternate, simpler way of life. Joel had eventually traced Logan’s family.

  Logan had passed away a few years ago, not too long after sending his grandson out with the painting. It seemed he was tying up loose ends towards the end. Joel had been given an e-mail address for Logan’s grandson, who he found out was named Blake. Joel had been overjoyed, he remembered Blake. He had been a toddler at the time Joel and Simon had been stranded on the island. Joel had spent a lot of time reading stories to him or carving little wooden sailboats for him and then delighting in his little squeals of pleasure as Joel had sailed them in a tub of water.

  Blake had replied to Joel’s e-mail, expressing his joy that the drawing had found its way home and told how it had been so special to his grandfather and therefore really important in the time before his death that it was returned. He always told Blake there was magic in that drawing – whether it was in the lines of the artist or the image itself, the tree. Blake had expressed his disappointment at not being able to find the owner before his travels in that area had ended. Obviously he had been too young to remember Joel’s time on the island.

  Grace and Joel were both so happy to have been in contact and for being able to thank him for his part in it all. It had rounded off that bit of mystery perfectly for them. On a last whim, they had invited Blake to come out again to meet them and get to know them. Joel had very precious memories of his time on the island and all he had learned, both about himself, and about life. He especially remembered with fondness his time playing with Blake and would love to meet him as an adult, and hear his stories of the island and their lifestyle.

  Grace had just wanted to share it with Chloe. Chloe had really developed a strong love for that tree and it bonded her closely to Grace and Joel. They were strong parental figures in her life and her relationship with them had deepened through everything. She had enormous respect and admiration for them and their relationship she held as a model to follow and learn from.

  On the next Spring full moon, Ben asked her to join him on a special date. She had been delighted when he had arrived to fetch her in a horse drawn carriage that had taken them for a ride along the beach front, through the village and to the park. He had set a table beneath the giant oak and had prepared an exquisite dinner for them, complete with pink champagne and a cellist providing mood music. He got down on one knee and asked her to spend the rest of her life with him and Hannah. He promised to love and respect her and always do everything he could to make her feel cherished and special and like the angel she was to them. In absolute ecstasy and amazement Chloe said yes and they danced together beneath the tree to the cello music.

  Hannah squealed with delight the next morning when they told her. She was beside herself with joy that she was going to have a mother, and that it was Chloe. Next was to tell all their friends. No surprise, everyone was thrilled. They were all eager to start planning the wedding and offering help wherever they could. Chloe and Ben said they would take their time with the planning, they wanted their day to be perfect. They didn’t want a huge church wedding, rather something small and in an intimate setting. More of a celebration and commitment to their love rather than a huge traditional ceremony.

  Chloe asked Phoebe to be her maid of honour and Ben asked Jean Pierre to be his best man – after all, if it had not been for their ‘meddling’ Chloe and Ben would never have taken the first step in their relationship. Chloe phoned home and told her parents and her best friends. They were really stunned at this turn of events. They had been following all of the media around Hannah’s transplant and Chloe’s role in that as well as her career. They had been in touch throughout it all, but a wedding was a huge surprise. They all promised they would do their best to be there for her on her special day.

  Chloe, Ben and Hannah revelled in this new stage of their lives. They had all been through so much, individually and together. Finally they would have all they could wish for in a supportive, loving family unit. They spoke about it and planned together and eventually decided that the wedding would be held in the park beneath the tree where it all began. It would be a short, informal ceremony followed by what other than a picnic in the park. This was tradition and nothing would be more fitting than that for their special day. Hannah would be the most beautiful flower girl and James a dashing page boy.

  Chloe had a special task for James, which she would keep just between the two of them as a surprise on the day. She also asked Grace to play violin, and for Joel to accompany her, singing Amazing Grace. It just seemed fitting. Phoebe offered to do the catering as well as to provide accommodation at her guest house for Chloe’s family and friends who would be able to come through for the wedding.

  Now the only thing was to set a date. Chloe said, for reasons she would not share at that point, that she would like a late autumn wedding. The park would be all shades of brown and gold and the weather neither too hot nor too cold for an outside wedding. That meant that they had roughly eight months to go which was more than enough time to prepare and what seemed like an eternity to wait for. They were eager to begin their new life together but Chloe was adamant that was the way she wanted it for everything to be perfect. Ben did not question her on that, he trusted her judgment and that her reasons would be valid.

  Chapter Twelve

  During the next eight months Chloe juggled her career, her soon to be new family and her wedding preparations with grace and elegance. Her wedding organising was as meticulous as her research and editing. She made all the décor herself, from invitations to table place cards and thank you gift boxes and notes. Hannah helped her as well and together they discovered a new, useful hobby they both enjoyed – they made all the candles for the tables themselves. They were varying shades of brown with gold details as Chloe had thought would be fitting for their autumn theme.

  They rummaged through the antique store and other stores for glass covers for the candles to protect the flames from the autumn breeze. Chloe decided on off white table cloths also with overlays in shades of brown. Closer to the time they would collect the autumn leaves that fell from the oak to decorate the tables.

  She had been told that Jessica was a talented seamstress in her spare time and so Chloe had asked her to help design and make her dress. She had decided on a simple flowing satin dress in a rich white with gold shimmer. She did not like anything overdone with lace and beads and the like or big trains and stiff petticoats. She just wanted something that followed her natural curve and made her feel feminine and graceful. Hannah, on the other hand, wanted something with a little more flair for her flower girl dress. She wanted to look like a princess and Jessica was very patient and creative in styling the perfect princess dress for her, complete with sequins and tiara. James had a simple white suit with a gold waistcoat and tie.

  Phoebe popped into her office almost daily with either pictures of wedding cakes or samples of cakes she had practiced baking. In the end she decided on just a simple one tiered square and trusted the decorating to Phoebe’s care. The meals would be simple, picnic style; salads, breads and cheeses, fruit and yoghurt and an assortment of easy foods that could be served without heating.

  Everything was coming together perfectly. Everyone had their roles to play in the special day and Chloe, Ben and Hannah could finally relax in the last month leading up to the big day. All was prepared and so there was no pressure or last minute stressing to get things done.

  That just left James’ task and Chloe met with him the first Saturday of the month before the wedding to discuss it with him. He was so happy to have such an important role and to be able to contribute and be included. Chloe asked him to keep it as a surprise for the day, but knew she did not have to worry about him spilling the beans. She remembered all the patience she had learned while waiting for him to reveal his own secrets all that time ago when s
he had first met him. She knew this was safe with him and that he was well equipped to carry it out perfectly. He would handle his part alone and then they would get together a few days before the wedding day to put it all together.

  Chloe’s parents, her brother, and her sister and her family would be arriving a week before the big day, and her two best friends would arrive four days before. Phoebe had organised their rooms as well as arranged for them to be collected from the airport in the neighbouring town. She wanted to make sure that the only thing Chloe needed to focus on was marrying the love of her life and stepping into her new role as wife and mother.

  Edward had given her their gift early, when the preparations had first begun so that she could plan properly. He and Beth were giving Chloe and Ben the gift of a two week honeymoon. He asked Chloe to discuss it with Ben and give it some thought as to what kind of honeymoon they would like. An island honeymoon, in the Seychelles or Mauritius, with lazing on the beach and sipping cocktails; or a skiing honeymoon in Switzerland with fireside hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows; or perhaps a historical or spiritual tour, Machu Pichu or Tibet maybe – anywhere in the world they wanted to go for two weeks would be the Taylor’s wedding gift to them. After much discussion they had decided on Alaska. Chloe had always dreamed of seeing the aurora lights and Ben would love to go husky sledding. Hannah would stay with Jessica and James for the two weeks and Grace and Joel would be on standby to help out. Of course Hannah and James were thrilled with this idea. She really had been recovering well and Ben felt confident that she would be in capable hands while they were away, and when they returned they would take her on a weekend away with them to celebrate their new family circle.