I seem to "attract" people, strange people, funny people, i seem to have more "experiences" than most and for that i'm thankful. This week i'm smitten by the love of an old man.
This week has been interesting and it's made me laugh and cry in equal measure. Here are 2 things that happened to me this week that have shown me how life can be both negative and positive depending on how you face it and deal with it!! ( i really hope my written story telling can do these justice)!
So, on Wednesday morning i found myself wearing my spin gear with 2 littlest in tow outside my class 45 mins early!! Whilst i felt very smug, i simultaneously felt like a bit of a eedgit! So i decided to take advantage of the beautiful morning it was and have a coffee in a pavement cafe in Scarborough.
So armed with our Barbi dolls we sat, i hoped quietly in the corner to allow fellow diners to enjoy their coffees etc. The girls were being reasonably good, well for a 2 & a 3 year old trying to learn to share their dollies. I was sitting daydreaming a bit, basking in the glory of my total organisation at being up and at it at this time , when this ample bosomed older lady (70 plus) wearing matching golf gear and visor stopped dead and stood momentarily and stared at me!!
"look at that spoiled little brat, making all that noise and not even a tear in her eye. Shes just bloody well at it. Ungrateful spoiled brats out in cafes. Children nowadays are spoiled rotten".
Mmmm i though OK, just pacify her (8 cafe dwellers were staring)!
" oh well she is only 2", said I, " she's only learning".
"it's the parent ye know" said the old weeble. "are you their Nana?". Well i swear to god, my youngest is whiner and to some extent the old bat was right, but NANA!!
So that was Wednesday, and showed me what happens when you grow old into a self righteous, opinionated and altogether not very nice badly dressed old bat!
On Friday afternoon after school i met an old man who was the polar opposite, Ray, who will forever and a day be known as a Ray of Sunshine.
The girls & I were out for walk/scooter round a lake near here. Lily & Iz had charged ahead and I could see Lily talking away to an old man on one of the cross trainers. As i approached i could see he was probably in his 80's and he gave me a beam of a smile, told me what wonderful girls i had and we began to chat.
I could detect a bit of an accent and it turned out he'd come out to Perth in 1951 following his national service (he'd served with the marines). He told me about how he'd met his wife, who was a dancer and how she'd performed in the west end of London and at the end of Brighton Pier. They both loved to dance, went line dancing, jive, any and everything.
It was getting late by this point and the girls were getting cold, hungry and restless. After a further brief chat and the start of our goodbyes, Ray leant into me and whispered
"I buried my wife this morning, I's just trying to keep busy", in the softest of welsh voices.
I can tell you it took all my strength to not start blubbing there and then. I gave him a wee cuddle and squeezed his hand and we said our goodbyes.
I'm left wondering how one person can go into their day and berate and abuse a 2 year old and another has the heart and strength to bury their wife of 51 years and yet remain steadfast, courteous and charming. I shall look for Ray now when I visit the lake, I might even let him take me for a twirl.
