by Carol Holden
“Will you peel the vegetables whilst I look in the freezer to see if we have the ingredients?”
David finds salmon and plaice but he can’t see any smoked mackerel.
“I’ll just go to Dad’s to see if he has any.” He tells Anne quietly as he doesn’t want to disturb Sarah until the meal is ready.
Charlie is sat quietly reading a letter he had received from Simon just the week before.
He found the missing ingredient in his dad’s fridge and David asked him to join them for the meal.
“I know none of us are hungry but we must eat something and we should show Anne that we need this food so that at least we will feel a little better.”
Charlie agreed to join David, Anne and Sarah for the promised fish pie, as he was feeling worse, going over the memories by himself. He stood up, put on his coat and went out to see his garden, hidden under the fall of snow.
David went back to the kitchen where Anne was busy chopping vegetables and putting them in the different pans of the steamer. The potatoes she had put in a pan and they were almost on the boil. She shredded the cheese ready for the topping. David defrosted the fish in the microwave and prepared the sauce using a pot of long life cream, two fish cubes, as well as, the residue from the pan. When the fish was cooked he placed it in an oval dish with the sauce and then he mashed the potatoes with a little butter and cream. Anne brought the cheese to cover the mashed potatoes and the pie was almost ready for eating. It had only to be put in a hot oven to melt the cheese
They put the pie on one side until they decided to cook the vegetables. Now they had to wait until Sarah woke up.
Anne looked at her dad with a smile on her lips. He knew how to cheer her up, he knew she enjoyed helping, both her father and her mother, in the kitchen and the warmth and the lovely aromas that came from the cooking, always gave her a feeling of security and warmth.
Sarah woke to the smell of cooking and as she gingerly got off the bed, she felt the stiffness in her bones. She knew they would all be hungry now, so she left the room and made her way to the kitchen.
“Oh mum.” Anne cried. “We’re so glad that you slept, we hope you are feeling better. See what we have made for the meal. Shall we cook the vegetables now and put the pie in the oven?”
Sarah smiled at Anne’s enthusiasm, she knew what David had done to take their daughter’s mind off the situation, and she was, as ever, grateful for his thoughtful ways.
“We’ve invited Charlie to eat with us.” David says. “It will be better for all of us if we keep each other company for a bit.”
“That’s good.” Sarah says as she smiles at her daughter and her husband.
David has a cup of tea ready for Sarah as they wait for the meal to cook. Sarah sips her tea gratefully as she feels some warmth seeping into her body. She feels hunger pangs, as she smells the lovely aroma of their cooking meal.
Sarah has to go back to her teaching job and David is back at work. Anne is back at school and although the world seems to be in black and white since Simon’s death, Sarah is sad that Anne is living in this diminished world with them and she does try to find colour in the things that Anne is interested in. She has her to help in the kitchen and she tries to find enthusiasm in the music Anne loves, as well as, entertaining her friends. They love to come in the summertime when the lake is swarming with wildlife and Charlie entertains them with stories of his firefighting days. The days of the summer pass into winter and before anyone is aware of it another year has passed and Anne is ready to take her “A” levels. Anne, who wants to be a sports physiotherapist, has done well in her science exams, and as some of her friends are applying to be Sport teachers, she has applied to Loughborough, where they have Degree courses in her chosen subject.
David and Sarah are about to become empty nesters and Sarah is terrified of anything happening to Anne. She tries not to let Anne see her fear but she wishes that a suitable course could have been offered at her dad’s place of work.
“We can’t stifle her.” David tells Sarah. “She’ll be fine, her friends will be around, and anyway, it is the time for her to make new friends and become independent of us. I know why you have these reservations and I have them too, but Sarah we have to let her go and find her own life.”
“Oh David I do love you, you are the best husband in the world and I could not live without you.” Sarah tells him as he gives her a special hug.
They have a party for Anne before she takes off to university and David and Sarah take her to Loughborough. She waves them out of sight and David stops at the nearest lay-by and says. “We are on our own and I intend to make the best of it. Come here and give me a kiss.”
Sarah laughs but she knows David is just as sad as she is after leaving their youngest child behind.
Anne soon settles down and writes every week to her mum and dad, always with a special sheet in for her granddad. She makes friends and is soon in the midst of university life, working hard at her studies and having fun with her new friends. She often feels sad at the loss of Simon but she is resilient and strong and full of her natural enthusiasm and this carries her through the worst of her bad feelings.
Sarah and David have to resume their work and Charlie is kept busy with his charity work and his garden. Mary and Joe have their other daughter with grandchildren to console them but all the family will always feel the loss of Simon.
Anne passes her exams with flying colours, after three years of hard work and having passed her final exam, she is granted her degree. There are great celebrations and all the family is proud of her success.
Anne has been offered a job at Oswestry Orthopedic Hospital and she takes the offer up gratefully, as this hospital is one of the best in the country for the use of her new learnt skills. She loves the job and finds that helping the people with bad fractures, to be made normal and walking as well as ever they did, is very rewarding.
Anne meets Jackie at the clinic. Jackie is recovering from a broken ankle and needs treatment. She is a dark-haired beauty who is responding well to the physiotherapy. Anne enjoys her light-hearted stories of her managerial job in a local supermarket. The stories she tells about her staff and customers make Anne chuckle
“Do you know who came into the shop yesterday?” She asks.
“Who?”
“Hugh Jones, he is captain of the Welsh rugby team, he’s gorgeous, he wanted some wine, the best we had”, he told me.
Anne smiles, because she has been treating him, but does not say so because of patient confidentiality.
Jackie goes in raptures about his looks and Anne laughs outright at her. They become friends. Jackie needs a paying guest to help her pay the mortgage and Anne, who has been living in temporary accommodation at the hospital, agrees to pay rent for a bedroom and a use of the facilities. They settle in together, Anne feels at home in the cottage and Jackie’s friendly company takes away some of residue of sadness Anne feels for the loss of Simon.
Anne loves the banter the girls have,
“Who are you treating today?” Jackie is always asking. “Shall I pick you up tonight and will you bring out that lovely chap and let me meet him?”
She is sometimes involved with sports people, rugby players, soccer stars and even tennis players and enjoys the flirting she gets from them. Anne is still a sensible girl and she doesn’t let this go to her head, in fact she has her eye on a doctor, who she sometimes works with on the wards. Oswestry is on the border of Wales and now that she has a small car, she often drives out to the Breacons to walk in the hills with her friend Jackie.
Her parents visit her when they have a break from work. They stay in a local hotel and take both the girls out for dinner. Sarah has some private time with Anne when she has half term breaks; David doesn’t have these because he gets longer holidays at Christmas and in the summer. Sarah has the shorter school holidays with half -terms. She sometimes takes Charlie with her and they have days out around Oswestry whilst Anne is at work. Charlie
loves these breaks and although he is getting older, he still has the energy to keep up with Sarah, who always enjoys his company.
Sarah and David are happy that Anne has found this new life for herself and they feel she is safe.
Chapter 39
Mula
Dr Menon is determined to have Simon trained as a doctor. The Medical school as part of Khatmandu University was set up in 1994 but has not become a fully recognized college. The idea of it was to have the school as a non-profit organization with a motto of producing”technically competent and socially responsible” doctors. The main focus of the organization is to contribute in improving the overall health of Nepal. Dr Menon and his family have been the instigators of this medical college, and he means to have his grandson part of it.
Although Simon is the only “student” for a number of years by just working at the hospital and being taught by his grandfather and his aunt, he knows that he will be unable to get his medical degree, without the backing of the Katmandu University. By 2001 the medical school is formed and although Simon is the only English -speaking student, he settles down well.
Simon finished his medical degree with the help of his grandfather and his aunt Taz. He has had some difficulty with the Hindu language but he is now happy in his skin. He has found the love of his life, another student doctor he met at university and who is a resident doctor along with him. He met Mula the first year the college opened and because she came from an unstable family, she felt confused and homesick for her maternal grandfather, who was the mainstay of her life. As there were only four other girls in the whole year of forty -three students. Mula and Simon formed a friendship in the beginning. The other girls teased her but she was adamant he was her best friend and they became very close.
She was accepted by the Simon’s family and soon became one of them, coming for meals and hanging around the lovely gardens surrounding the house.
Sahida, Simon’s other aunt invited them to stay with her in Pokhara for their vacation. Simon was thrilled because he knew he loved that area as he had been trekking with his aunt on a previous occasion and he wanted to show Mula the fishtail mountain They decided to go by car and the six hour drive was through wonderful scenery with the mountains towering above them. They stayed at roadside café for a meal and sat outside where the roaring river tumbled over the rocks and sent a fine spray over their picnic. Mula was suitably impressed and hugged Simon with pleasure for the beauty of the day. The day after they arrived, Sahida took them in her four- wheel vehicle a drive to the village where her school was situated, to get them some way up the mountain before their trek. The villagers were shy but friendly and they smiled and stared at Simon as if they had seen a ghost. Sahida was very attentive as she looked at Simon in a strange way.
“Is everything alright?" Mula asked sensing that Sahida felt uncomfortable as the villagers continued to smile and stare at them.
“Yes.” Sahida replied. “They are just curious; I taught most of these villagers in their youth.” As she smiles and waves to them as she leaves in her car. She turns to Mula and Simon calling.” See you later.”
“We’ll be back later today.” Simon shouts back as she is almost on the point of driving off. The day is warm and the foothills although steep are not too arduous.
Mula takes off her coat as they trudge up the terraced hillside; the beautiful snow peaks tower above them. They both feel exhilarated by the scenery as they look up. They decide to sit and have the food they have brought with them. They see the lake at Pokhara with the lodge set in the middle of it. The mountain peaks are reflected on the lake and the sky turns it to a dark clear blue. Simon is hoping that later he and Mula will be able to work in the hospital that opened in Pokhara as it has been affiliated to Kathmandu University. They resume their trek and find they have more energy after their lunch and rest. They puff a little as the track gets steeper. They see terraces with buildings on them and fields of growing vegetables with a few hens, and sometimes, a sheep. The people working their terraces, wave to them as they pass; the sun is warm on their backs. The day has been special and they feel happy but tired as they return to Sahida’s apartment, where there is a lovely meal and a special welcome for them.
The following day there is a market in the centre of the town, where the locals sell their fruit and vegetables, as well as, carved wooden pieces depicting their gods or animals. There are also clothes, hand made, knitted jumpers and colourful jackets and shirts. Sahida is on holiday as well and she accompanies them to look around the market, where most of the wares are set out on the pavements. It is a vibrant sight the atmosphere around the market is light-hearted and festive. The three of them meander around the streets and have a day of relaxation. The following day is Mula’s birthday and Simon decides to make it a special occasion, having a dinner booked for the two of them at the hotel in the centre of the lake.
Simon has confided in his aunt that he means to propose to Mula and has brought the ring to show his aunt.
“Oh I’m so pleased.” She cries as she gives him a hug. “You are such a perfect match. I hope that you will be very happy.”
Mula is excited to be going to the Fishtail Lodge and after her shower she puts on a butterfly necklace that Sahida has bought from the market. It looks lovely on her slim brown neck and it matches the green dress she has chosen to wear. Simon wears a light stone coloured suit, looking very handsome with his velvet-like skin and dark thick hair. A very romantic looking and loving couple turn up at the hotel after the boat ride to get there. The manager has a surprised look on his face as he greets them and hands them over to the head- waiter. But everyone in the dining room looks up as this handsome pair is shown to their table. Simon is a little nervous but Mula is excited by the ambiance of the place and the rich aroma wafting from the kitchen.
“I’m really hungry.” She says as the waiter hands her a menu. “What do you recommend?” She asks him.
Simon gives the waiter an indication with a nod of his head for the waiter to leave them for a moment. He then gets hold of Mula’s hand and asks the question shyly. ”Will you marry me?”
Mula’s eyes light up and then tears show in the corners as she feels the emotion of her love for Simon.
“I’d love to.” She replies her voice full of love and hope for the future. Simon is different from any other man she knows, he has a caring way with his friends and his patients and is considerate and gentle. He must have had a loving upbringing although he has no memory of it. She has been told his story by Sahida who remembers his mother and is still grieving for his father, her brother. Dr Menon has insisted that Simon must be given the family name and Simon is content not to worry too much about the loss of his memory. Sometimes a cloud passes over his thoughts but he shrugs it off and gets on with his life.
The waiter hovers around their table and the happy couple order their meal.
All the other diners hear the pop of the opening of the champagne and give the couple a clap of hands as they all have beaming smiles on their faces.
Simon acknowledges their approval and Mula gives a wave of her ringed finger, with a happy smile on her face.
Chapter 40
Sarah and David have just retired and after a lovely family double celebration of their silver- wedding and retirement, David has secretly booked a Caribbean cruise for a treat. Sarah is thrilled that she is now a grandmother as Anne has married her doctor and they have a baby boy. She sees Anne on a regular basis, as her husband is now a G.P. in a town only thirty miles from her parents.
After the party, David folds Sarah in his arms and puts an envelope in her hand.
“What’s this?” she giggles. She is a little worse for wear because of the drinks she has been consuming during the party.
“Open and see.” David replies with a laugh in his voice. He is not used to seeing Sarah a little bit drunk.
“Oh this is wonderful.” She cries as she dances David around the room, I have always wanted to g
o on a cruise.
They settle down to sleep and Sarah is held safely in David’s arms.
“I’ve missed Simon tonight.” She whispers almost to herself.
“Me too.” David holds her tight and a few tears are spilt by both of them, “He should have been here for our celebration but we will always remember him with pride and love.” They eventually sleep in each other’s arms
Charlie always wakens early and he makes Sarah and David a cup of tea about ten o’clock.
“Come on you two sleepy-heads.” He calls from the kitchen. “Your grandson wants his grandma and granddad and Anne and Dan haven’t all day.”
Sarah is in the shower so David replies. “We’re coming but Anne can bring him up if she wants to.” At this a whoop of joy is heard coming up the stairs and Anne arrives with little Dan on her back. She gently throws him on to the bed and into David’s arms.
“Come on little one let’s have a snuggle.” As David hugs the little boy and then begins the tickling game the baby always loves.
“Oh dad I remember you doing that to me and Simon when we were little kids.” Anne tells her dad and a sad look comes over her face as she remembers her brother.
Although it is autumn, the day is bright and when everyone is clothed and fed they set off to walk around the lake. Dan wears a harness on his back and little Dan is delighted to be carried by his father, who he adores. The rest of the party follows and Dan is excited as he sees the wild life and the other walkers and their dogs.
Charlie remembers the many times he and Simon have done this same walk and although he often feels a loss, he is grateful that he has this other generation to care for. Anne will not be long before she extends her family with another addition. She says she wants a sister or brother for little Dan. Charlie will be thrilled when the family is enlarged and the house will be full of laughter again. He shakes his thoughts of Simon out of his mind and catches up with the others. There is plenty of kidding going on as Anne teases her mother about the forth -coming cruise.
