Writing for Fun
January 2018
Not What It Seemed - Jeanette Rothwell
To: Dearoldfriend@yahoo.co.uk
From: Exneighbour@sky.com
Subject: Mystery Gift
Hi Jane
Happy New Year to you. Did you have a good Christmas? We stuffed ourselves silly and the only event that marred things was my nephew, John, lost his phone down the side of the sofa on Christmas Day and we had to turn it upside down and undo the bottom covering to retrieve it while everyone stood around offering advice and only one of the aunts actually got down on her hands and knees to riskily weave her hand inside the foam of the sofa and inch the phone out of its hiding place. Great relief all round as you can imagine. John is a teenager and as with all of them, it is his life!
I received a very strange present from one of my daughters. It was an envelope containing a cryptic message that read 'Halfway through January you will find out what this present is.' She wouldn't tell me any more. I will keep you informed once I have more information.
Take care.
Regards. Pauline.
To: Exneighbour@sky.com
From: Dearoldfriend@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: Mystery Gift
Hi Pauline
A Happy New Year to you too. We had a fabulous Christmas apart from me having a bit of a cold but nothing to interfere with the festivities!
Looking back on your nephew's mishap over his phone must have been rather amusing but a bit anxious at the time. I hope the sofa suffered no ill! The present from your daughter sounds intriguing. Keep me up to date.
In the meantime, we are gradually getting back to normal life after the upheavals of the festivities. The scales show a bit of a weight gain, which is no surprise so I will have to start walking a bit more and saying no to a few more biscuits!
Regards to you and your family.
Jane
To: Dearoldfriend@yahoo.co.uk
From: Exneighbour@sky.com
Subject: Mystery Gift
Hi Jane
Regarding the present from my daughter, all that has happened is that she has told me to mark my diary with a date in January. Bert and I are instructed to wear something smart casual on that day. Are we going to the theatre? Or to dinner somewhere posh? Who knows!
Watch this space.
Regards Pauline
To: Exneighbour@sky.com
From: Dearoldfriend@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: Mystery Gift
Hi Pauline
How exciting! If it's the theatre, I hope it is a play or musical you want to see. A posh dinner would also be nice. At least it is keeping you wondering through this dreary January. Hasn't the weather been miserable? Other than this mystery, have you been out anywhere nice? My family have taken themselves off to Centre Parks for a long weekend to cheer them up. Lots of bike rides and swimming indoors. Not sure that is my idea of fun but it keeps the young ones occupied.
Let me know about this mysterious present.
Regards Jane.
To: Dearoldfriend@yahoo.co.uk
From: Exneighbour@sky.com
Subject: Mystery Solved !
Hi Jane
My dear old friend, you cannot imagine what we have just experienced. My daughter had rung us to say we should be ready by 8.00am on the scheduled day. A chauffeur driven car arrived outside. The driver said nothing. We got in and within a very short time we had arrived at Southend Airport. There was a courier waiting for us. He handed us some flight tickets to Manchester. The flight was due to go within the hour.
When we reached Manchester, another courier showed us to one more chauffeur driven car. Again the driver was silent. We both knew that my daughter lived in Macclesfield, so it was possible that we would see her and we were right. The car drove us to her house. She came out and warmly greeted us, then led us into the lounge of her pretty semi-detached house.
There was a man sitting in an armchair with his back to us and as we stood in the doorway, he spun round and stood up. I thought his face was slightly familiar. He held out his hands and said, 'Hello Pauline, Long time no see.' For the moment I couldn't think who it was and then the penny dropped as I recognised his similarity to my father. It was my father's brother who had emigrated to Australia a very long time ago. What a surprise!
After all the greetings and explanations, it seemed that my daughter had been researching the family tree and had come across Tom (that was his name) when she searched abroad for some relatives. Having contacted him, he told her that he was due to come to the U.K. on a project for his company and would love to meet up with the family.
My clever daughter thought it would be an unusual gift to help us to pay her a visit and meet Tom at the same time. He was a charming man with lots of stories to tell about his adventures in Australia and having made contact with his long lost family, we were invited to visit him and his family in Australia, later in the year. A noisy afternoon ensued with my daughter and her family bombarding Tom with a barrage of questions.
So, our mystery was solved. We thought.
However, as the afternoon progressed, I began to remember conversations I had exchanged with my Father, who, as you know Jane, passed away some years ago. He spoke of Tom as the 'Black Sheep of the Family'. I probed further and he told me that, some 15 years ago, Tom was a bit of a gambler and had got very deeply in debt.
At about that time, his then wife had fallen down the stairs in their home and later died of her injuries. Tom's alibi of being elsewhere had never been verified but he inherited quite a lot of money from her because she had come from a wealthy family. He repaid all his debts and then emigrated to Australia with a question mark over his innocence. He wasn't quite what he seemed! Is he a reformed man?
Needless to say, we will not be visiting him in Australia, but the question is 'do I tell my daughter?'
Keep in touch.
Regards,
Pauline.