SoC 3:1

Imparting Values

 

I  t was the night of the barbeque, a day after the summer holidays had started.

When Bryony Humphreys finished barbequing the last of the sausages, the dews had already started appearing. She put out the fire and came to the table where her granddaughter and her three friends were chatting, as well as enjoying the barbeque.

A light breeze also gave them company, and out in Bryony’s back garden, the teenagers were enjoying themselves.

“Oh, Gran,” said Taylor, one of her granddaughter’s friend. “It’s time you join our conversation and quit treating us. We're absolutely full.”

“Don’t worry,” Bryony said, in her slow, unhurried manner, “I’ve finished cooking and I’ve come to join your conversation.”

“That’s good,” Kate, her granddaughter, said. “We’re talking about our love life, Gran. As you know, all of us are going through bit of a love crisis.”

“Ah, I see. A hot topic these days for you,” Bryony said.

“Well, with the exams over and the holidays starting,” Taylor said. “We wanted our love life to flourish. We wanted to be with our partners, but unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case.”

“Well, what’s the matter?” Bryony asked.

“Kate’s boyfriend is going to a football camp for ten weeks and she’s broken up with him, saying he didn’t care for her when he made that decision. But clearly, she still loves him. And it’s more or less the same case with me,” Taylor said.

“You young people lack patience and passion.”

“Ha!” Kate said. “What do you know, Gran? You’ve loved a single man all your life. You married him and continued to love him even after he was gone. Where is passion in that?”

Bryony looked away from them and watched the grass sway in the gentle breeze. It was as if they were bowing in reverence to Bryony’s gaze. She’d lived in the house all her married life, some forty years, taking care of her garden and all the trees and grasses that grew on them. She had been a scrupulous housewife, serving the needs of her husband and fulfilling the demands of the house. She'd done that with utmost dedication and devotion. When her husband died, she refused to move away. She had memories, plenty of fond memories, and she was determined to hang on to them. But now, as she continued to stare at the grass, she started recollecting things which had been buried long time back, events that had firmly stayed locked inside her closet.

“This was during the Korean war,” she said. The teenagers looked at her, happy that she was talking, that she wasn’t upset at Kate’s remark.

“I met a young boy in San Francisco. I was only eighteen and it was love at first sight for me, seeing him, this handsome, brown-eyed boy in white sailor’s uniform. He was in the navy and had come to bid my brother goodbye as he was going away. Even though they were good friends, I had never met him before.”

Bryony stopped and sighed, trying to recall the events. This was a long time back, not many knew the story, but Kate had way of digging these things out of her. Her granddaughter challenged her in many ways. At sixteen, she was young and brash. She didn’t think much before making remarks. But Bryony had vowed to Kate’s parents that she would reform the recalcitrant teenager. Kate was living with her for past six months, after having a huge row with her parents over her boyfriends and her drinking habit. Bryony had done a decent job, using her patience and passion she knew she had. The vixen had quieted down. Kate had stopped drinking. She attended school regularly. But now, Bryony had to reveal a part of her life she really didn't want to but felt it was necessary. Kate had to realize every person had a history and deserved respect.

“Since Jamie, my brother wasn’t at home,” Bryony continued. “I told him to come inside. He was due back any moment. We waited inside the living room and ended up talking for something like two hours. He was such an easy person to talk. He told me everything about himself, where he had lived, why he had joined the navy. We laughed when he told me about his training days. His first crush and things like that. As he spoke, I was starting to stare at his brown-eyes. Then, he touched my hand and said he wanted to meet me after he came back from the war. I was speechless and withdrew my hand immediately. Until then, not a single boy had touched me. But that didn’t seem to disheartened him. He said he wanted to take me out after he came back. I couldn’t believe what was happening. Nothing like that had ever happened to me. I think I was shocked and surprised, and as a result I got up and asked him to leave.”

Kate was staring at her grandmother now. She was surprised how passionately Bryony was revealing her past love life. She’d never seen her grandmother do that.

“He left of course,” Bryony said. “A gentleman that he was. But I could make out he was puzzled because until then, I had looked straight at him and conversed like I was interested in him. When I closed the door and ran to my room, I started to think about what I’d done. The more I thought, the more I felt I’d let myself down. I was in love with him, there was no doubt in my mind. The way I had acted was all wrong. After a while, I even started crying, remembering he was leaving the city that night to go to San Diego, from where he’d set sail in two days time for Korea.”

Bryony looked at the food on the table and smiled. Everyone had enough of that, and the teenagers were staring at her, wanting more of the story. Taylor, who was often bored with Byrony’s natters, was all ears, as were the others.

“Next day, I stole my mom’s money and flew to San Diego. There were ten thousand soldiers boarding the ships. I searched from him the entire day. Most of the sailors were nice. They tried to help me, but since they were so many of them, they couldn’t find him. I was on the verge of a crying when I found him. Those unmistakable large brown eyes, I could recognize them even from hundred yards away. He stared at me in disbelief when he saw me. He was speechless. Then, he started to mumble. I ran to him and kissed him. Just like that. Later, I apologized to him for acting the way I had done at my house and said I would wait for him to come back.”

“I never knew my grandfather was in the navy,” Kate said.

Bryony smiled and continued. “Even before he landed in Korea, my blue brown-eyed boy drowned. He was shot in the arm while swimming to the shore from the ship and didn’t make it. In a week, our love story was over. After two years, I met your grandfather. But if I hadn’t made that trip and hadn’t kissed him, I would have regretted it all my life. That brown-eyed boy, he made me steal money and run away from home. Not even your grandfather was able to do that to me.”

Kate’s eyes grew rheumy. She and her friends didn’t know what to say. Only the wind hissed around.

“So that’s my story. Don’t ever think that only you people have stories to tell and lives to lead. Each one of us has our own history and we could all learn if we share and respect that.

They nodded.

“So with that, I must leave you all now. Goodnight. I must retire now.”

“Good night, Gran!” they all said in unison. Bryony got up and started walking towards the house.