Night thoughts #1

I've been thinking about buying a private jet, only problem is, would I get enough use out of it?

So said my best mate when we met for coffee the other day.

We had both been in the retail business, the difference being that he listens to advice, and I fly in the face of it.

Sometimes, we swap yarns. I think his are almost unbelievable, and he thinks mine are too. But his are high flying, whereas mine are definitely down to earth.

It brought to mind an event that was far from uneventful.

It was while I was in the middle of my second divorce, facing the loss of family, house, and child.

It is difficult to contemplate losing everything one has worked for, but what hurts most is not being believed by those with power and authority, whilst having an army of believers behind one.

Fortunately, I had my little shop to keep me busy, and connect me to friends, neighbours, And visitors.

One afternoon a lady came in with her young daughter and bought a basket of provisions. I was struck by the poise, confidence, and attractiveness of the young girl, and the otherworldliness of her mother.

The next day the daughter came on her own, and bought a few things, something which happened most mornings for the next few days.

each time she came, she would relate what she and her mother had done the previous day, the walks, the trips over the water, and playing on the beach when the tide was out.

Then, one morning, as I walked along the empty road to open up the shop, I saw her standing outside the door.

She greeted me with a smile and followed me in, then without a word, started helping me put out the fruit and veg, and make the place ship shape.

I waited for her to tell me what she wanted to buy, but she just chatted gaily to me about her life, which I found extraordinary for a seven-year-old. It seemed that she was homeschooled, and that her mother led a peripatetic life.

Her conversation was way above her age, and her interest in how the shop ran, and what I did, was unusual for a child. After an hour I said, aren't you going to play on the beach?

No, she replied. I’d rather be with you, we can talk and I can tidy the shelves if you like.

Won't your mother be waiting for you? I asked, oh no, she said, mother’s gone into town today for a meeting.

This was beginning to make me feel a little concerned. But in between serving customers, I was trying to figure out what was going on.

Lunchtime came, and I said that I had to shut the shop and go to some local farms for free range eggs.

Her face lit up with a smile, can I come too? she pleaded. Oh dear, I thought, I don't want any trouble, but she reminded me of my own daughter at that age, and how she would try to get out of visiting her mother, and the relief when I picked her up at the end of the ordeal.

I expect your mother will be back soon I said, but no, she was quite firm. Mother told me to go to Tom's shop today, she said. I couldn't believe my ears.

There was no way I was going to leave her on her own in the street, and obviously, I could not leave her in the shop. The decision was made for me. Can I come with you to collect the eggs she said.

During the trip through the country lanes, She chatted away and asked me all about the places we passed, and the farms we visited. When we got back to the shop, I made us a snack, and asked her to pick a drink for herself.

She told me she was a child model, and that her face was on the front cover of a magazine due out that day.

5 o'clock came, and I was feverishly wondering what to do, And getting annoyed with her mother and concerned about the whole situation.

Everything was resolved a moment later, when her mother approached, said to her daughter – have you had a nice day? Then turned and walked back to their holiday home, holding her daughter's hand.

I went home, unable to comprehend anything anymore, and wondering about what the future held.