Down in numbers just eight of us on a cold foggy morning in Sue's house. Sheila got the most votes.
Next month "Staring out"
MORE IMPORTANT
Jason was a kind and helpful boy. He
preferred the outdoor world and was very pleased when he, and his parents moved
from the town to this village. They had a lovely cottage overlooking the
rolling countryside. From most of their windows they had beautiful views of the
hills covered with wild flowers and trees. He loved it all from day one and got
into a habit of going for walks after school.
Sometimes his new friends from
school showed him the local sights, places to play and walks in the nearby wood,
but mostly he liked to explore on his own. On one such walk he came across an
elderly lady sitting on a fallen tree looking at the pretty fungus that was
growing on it. They chattered for a while and it became obvious that they both
liked walking and watching the birds and seeing Nature at its best. They bumped
into each other frequently and he found out that her name was Mrs Lacey and
since her husband died a couple of years ago she had been doing all the
gardening on her own. It wasn’t a very big garden she said but she really
enjoyed the ‘pottering’.
During the summer that Jason left school he still
hadn’t decided what to do for a job. He thought it was more important to do
something out in the open, not being stuck in an office job somewhere. He was
telling Mrs Lacey this and she mentioned that lately arthritis in her hands were
making it difficult for her to work in her garden, sooo, while he was deciding
about a job would he please consider helping her a little bit in keeping it
tidy? He said yes, but he didn’t know much about gardening. She said that she
would tell him what to do. He was a quick learner and soon could tell the
flowers from the weeds. He enjoyed planting out the little plants that they
both raised from seed. After a short while he realized that this is what he
wanted to do as a job.
Mrs Lacey told him that if he was serious then he should
do it properly and go to Agriculture College. So he thought about it, then
discussed it with the career officer, applied to the nearest college and was
excited when he was accepted. The college was near enough to stay at home, so
at the weekends he was still able to do Mrs Lacey’s garden. After he qualified
he got a job with the local council working in parks which he enjoyed
immensely. Over the years Mrs Lacey was his confident and knew all about his
girlfriends, then one in particular who eventually he married. Mrs Lacey,by
this time, was getting quite frail and shortly after Jason got married she
died. He was broken hearted. She had been there for most of his life and he
knew he would miss her terribly. A few days later he received a letter from Mrs
Lacey’s solicitor telling him that in her will she had left him her estate. Not
just the beloved garden, but the sweet little cottage that she had had so many
happy years in. When all the official stuff had been sorted out Jason and his
bride moved in with the knowledge that hopefully they would have as long and
happy a life as she’d had.
