The room is full
Of good friends
And loving
family
But I’m
still lonely
There is
laughter
Happiness
and jollity
Kindness in
abundance
But I’m
still sad
There is
warmth
In the
familiar smiles
And in the
tender hugs
But I’m
still cold
I continue
to be lonely
I continue
to be sad
I continue
to be cold
Because
you’re not here
The Dulcets
are a collection of villages and hamlets comprising of Dulcet Meadow,
Dulcet-on-Willow, Dulcet Green, and Dulcet-on-Brooke, to name but a few,
and of course Dulcet St Mary,
where
Doctor Harry Yorke had his practice.
Harry had never believed in love at first sight or in soul
mates he thought them rather fanciful notions the stuff of romantic fiction and
sentimental movies.
That was
until he met, he met Nurse Melissa Ness and he was instantly smitten, and
he thought she may have felt the same.
Even his
sister had noticed and after she had seen them together, she said
“You two
are like two halves of a different whole, and that each of them was the missing
piece in the others puzzle”
It wasn’t
many months before when she was nagging him about getting a wife he had said
“I’m not
looking for a life partner” well he thought he may have found one whether he
was looking or not.
But after
the practice dinner at The Cross Keys, he was beginning to think he and his
sister had misread the situation and over the following week that feeling was
reinforced as she appeared to be avoiding him.
Harry had a
couple of late calls in the village on Christmas Eve, because of the weather he
decided not to drive, so he had to go out in the cold and trudge across the
village through the snow.
After his
second call he went back out into the cold night and by the time he got to the
made road it started snowing again and by the time he reached the crossroads it
was coming down hard and fast.
In fact, it
was coming down so rapidly that visibility was reduced to zero.
It was so
disorienting that he couldn’t have even found his way back to the house he’d
just left, despite being no more than 15 minutes away from the Owen’s
residence.
So, he
inched his way along the footpath tucking up close to hedges, picket fences and
garden walls so he didn’t wander off course.
When he
reached the end of a row of houses, he had to take a leap of faith, as he
couldn’t see the other side of the road.
As he
trudged onward, he realised he had gone off course because he hadn’t reached
the other side.
He had no
idea how far he had gone as he had no point of reference, so he decided the
best course of action was to veer left to try and find the footpath again.
Unfortunately,
he had no idea how far left to go or for that matter how far left he had
already gone.
Harry was
just beginning to panic when he tripped on a kerbstone and crashed into another
lost soul, and they fell to the floor in an untidy heap.
When he had
scrambled to his feet, he found he was outside the Post Office
“I’m saved”
he thought as he envisaged taking refuge in the shop until the snow abated, but
first he had to help the other poor traveller he had left prostrate on the
snowy ground.
“I’m so
sorry” he said as he grabbed a handful of coat and pulled the stricken body to
its feet.
The
individual muttered incoherently under their breath as they brushed themselves
off and he got the impression his apology was not being accepted gracefully.
And when
they began to turn in his direction, he was bracing himself for a volley of
abuse but to his great surprise he found the previously stricken figure to be
Nurse Melissa Ness and the muttering scowling indignant face instantly
changed to a beaming smile when she recognized the face of her assailant.
“Harry” she
said excitedly, before cautiously giving a long look in the direction of the
shop doorway then in a quieter voice she continued
“I didn’t
know it was you”
“Are you
ok?” he asked
“I am now”
she replied and glanced again at the door
He looked
her up and down and realised why he hadn’t recognized her straightaway, she was
dressed in heavy duty winter clothes.
Her lovely
thick black curls were completely covered by a red woolly hat, her dainty feet
were in wellies and her slender figure was concealed by a puffer jacket.
She was
still looking anxiously towards the shop doorway and then impulsively she
steered him around the side of the building and kissed him as the snow fell
steadily on them, which he reciprocated.
After a
minute of mutually beneficial passion, he said
“Does this
mean you’re talking to me again?”
“That
depends” she said enigmatically
“On what?”
“On whether
you go around kissing random women every five minutes or not” she said
“I see, you
are referring to the mistletoe kiss in the pub”
“I didn’t
see any mistletoe” Melissa said
“So, you
thought it was just a snog?” he asked
“Yes” she
replied and looked down at her feet.
Harry
lifted her chin, so he could see her eyes and then he kissed her.
It was less
prolonged than the first however because a voice called from the shop doorway
“Mel?”
So, Harry
released her reluctantly and she called.
“I’ll be
there in a moment sis”
“I have to
go” she said and kissed him again
“Perhaps we
can pick it up again later” he said
“I’m going
to Connie’s for Christmas in Purplemere”
“How long
for?” he asked
“Until the
New Year” she replied
“In which
case I’m going to need another kiss before you go” Harry said and then they
kissed one last time
“Happy
Christmas Mel” he said
“Happy
Christmas” she echoed, and she paused at the corner and added
“I’ve got
you a present”
“You’re the
only present I want” he said, and she ran straight back into his arms.
Harry then
watched as they drove away and then turned around and continued his journey
home as the snow abated and he spent all that Christmas looking forward to the
New Year.
Now that it’s Christmas
There’s
something I must do
Or there’s
something I must say
My heart is
so full of love for you
I must tell
you how I feel
Say how
much I love you
And how
much you mean to me
Then hope
that you love me too
And if you
don’t then I will know
But I will
still love you
The Dulcets
are a collection of villages and hamlets comprising of Dulcet Meadow, Dulcet St Mary, Dulcet Green, and Dulcet-on-Brooke,
to name but a few, and of course Dulcet-on-Willow,
a large sprawling village beside the gentle shallow River Willow, which ran
unhurriedly from the Pepperstock Hills to the more vibrant River Brooke, and it
was on the banks of the river where the home of Clare Gammon was situated.
It was
previously her family home and she had lived there all 26 years of her life;
she had lived alone in the house for 2 of those years.
She worked
in Dulcet St Mary for the Dulcet Garden Centre as a senior buyer, but she had
many more strings to her bow.
Clare was
very active in the church, at St Bede’s as well as farther afield.
This
involved among other things, being a greeter at the church services, delivering
Parish Magazines, helping at the Christmas Bazaar, Summer Fete, and Sunday
School, you name it, and she did it and that was only in the village.
Her wider
good works included the Soup Kitchens in Finchbottom or Purplemere, who were
always desperate for volunteers.
The
Christmas Charity Wagon in Sharpington, which was an old Mornington Brewery
dray, pulled by two white shire horses, which was bedecked with tinsel and
lights and carried on the back, a multi denominational choir singing Christmas
Carols.
Clare was
not however, among those going from door to door, as the wagon drove around the
town, collecting donations in plastic buckets and handing out sweets to the
excited children, no she was in the choir on the back of the Dray because she
had the voice of an angel.
She also
volunteered for the Roving Angels, which had been in existence for about two
years and was similar to the Street Angels, Street Pastors and other groups
that had sprung up all across the UK in the previous 20 or 25 years.
They had
made a really positive impact on crime and antisocial behaviour in Finchbottom
and Purplemere town centres over the first two years, particularly in the
general vicinity of the bars and clubs.
Providing a
calming presence on the streets late at night in situations where a police
uniform might have the opposite effect.
In the
first two years of the Roving Angels, they had contributed to a 29% fall in
public place violence on the weekends.
It all
began when Christian Churches in the area came together with the Police and the
Borough Council’s to establish the Angels.
But it took
people of Faith to make it work as with so many things in life.
Clare had
been doing it for two years so had not been with them since the beginning.
But one of
her favourite good deeds was to help out on the Santa Express, which was
something to behold, and she loved it because it reminded her of her childhood.
The Santa
Express was in reality the Finchbottom Flyer, a 4-6-2 standard gauge
four-cylinder steam locomotive built at the Northchapel Works in 1933, liveried
in the black and gold of the DCRN, Downshire County Railway Network.
It was a
great work horse of the DCRN from 1933 until 1962.
After it
was taken out of service it was stored at the Northchapel Works and remained
there for twenty-five years, until it and several other engines and assorted
rolling stock were acquired by the Downshire Railway Preservation Society, with
the financial support and patronage of Baron St George of Mornington, who was a
man with a strong sense of history and his stewardship of the Mornington Estate
wasn’t restricted just to the land and properties within the Estate, they also
ensured the protection of historically significant buildings and landmarks
under threat from modernizers.
Although
steam railway engines didn’t really fall within the Estates normal parameters
his Lordship made an unprecedented exception.
The
acquisition of the Flyer was made in 1988 and the restoration was completed in 1992.
The maiden
journey for fare paying customers was on the August Bank Holiday in 1993 and
ran from Sharping St Mary to Sharpinghead and then onto Sharpington.
It wasn’t
until seven years later when the Sharpington spur line was completed, they had
access to the main Finchbottom line and were able to go County wide.
It was two years earlier than that when the Flyer had its first outing
as the Santa Express which ran from Sharping St Mary station to a secret
location where Santa was waiting in his village and grotto.
It was actually the old herb drying sheds which had been preserved and
renovated and dressed for the season.
The train picked up children and their parent’s late afternoon so that
they arrived at the grotto in darkness in order to make the most of the
spectacular lights.
It ran every day from the first of December up until Christmas and
there were always plenty of Elves aboard to ensure the children didn’t escape
from the carriages.
Clare
Gammon was one of those Elves, it was one of the high points of her year, she
well remembered her parents taking her when she was a young girl and she liked
to see other kids as excited as she used to be at their age.
On
Wednesday afternoon she drove to Sharping St Mary and when she got there the
kids were going crazy with excitement and she found the excitement was quite
infectious.
But her job
on the trip was to make sure none of the over excited little darlings fell off
the train.
There were
always plenty of helpers, many of whom she already knew, but there was often a
new face or two, and that Wednesday was no difference, but one helper fell into
both categories.
She had
just got aboard the carriage and closed the door when a voice behind her said
“My God its
Miss Piggy”
Only one
person had ever called her Miss Piggy, and that was Michael Cooper, but she
hadn’t seen him since they were at school together when they were 14, because
he moved out of the village, she didn’t know where to.
She turned
around to face the speaker,
“It is you”
he said and laughed, and the schoolgirl crush she had on him as a 14-year-old
girl flooded over her again, even though the tall man with broad shoulders and
hands like shovels, short brown hair, neatly trimmed beard, and hazel eyes, was
so different from the boy she worshipped, only his infectious laugh was the
same.
“Michael!”
she exclaimed
“The very
same” he replied
“Not the
same” she corrected him “but definitely you”
She had
never believed in love at first sight or in soul mates, she thought them rather
fanciful notions, the stuff of romantic fiction and sentimental movies.
That was
until she met the grown-up incarnation of Michael Cooper when she was instantly
smitten, but she doubted he would feel the same.
“What are
you doing here?” she asked
“The same
as you”
“That’s not
what I meant” she said, but then became aware that the sounds of bedlam were
emanating from her carriage
“I’d better
go” she said regretfully
“I would
love to catch up though” she called over her shoulder
“Me too” he
shouted after her
She did
catch sight of him a couple of times after that, the first time was when one of
the Elves, Lily Farmer managed to trap him between the carriages armed with a
bunch of mistletoe and only when she had satisfied herself in the pagan ritual
did, she let him go.
Irrationally,
having witnessed the kiss, she was not at all happy about it, but she did enjoy
seeing him again.
Now if the
kids were excited on the way to the grotto, then judging by the decibel level,
they were even more so on the way back to the station.
The second
time she saw him was when they disembarked after the return journey, and the
children and their parents made their way home, when her own cousin Eleanor kissed
him and said goodbye.
Sadly, she
never got to speak to him again, not that day at any rate.
She drove
back to Willow rerunning the day’s events in her head and just as she pulled
onto her drive, her phone rang, so she came to a halt and answered it.
“Hello!”
“Hi Clare”
her cousin Eleanor said
“Guess who
asked me for your number today?”
I’ve waited all year to bestow
A kiss
beneath the mistletoe
A kiss to
leave you all agog
Not just a
cheap drunken snog
A kiss to
leave you all aglow
A
passionate kiss to let you know
That I hold
a flaming torch for you
I hope you
feel the same way too
Dulcet St Mary was where the Dulcet Garden Centre was located, which
was where Jane Price and Mandy
Hubble
first met, and was also where Jane fell head over heels in love, with Mandy.
Jane had
worked at the Garden Centre since she left school but
Mandy joined
as a new hire in October, and was also new to Dulcet St Mary, and actually
lived in the same mews as Jane.
She was a
year younger than Jane, but like her she was socially awkward, and lacked
confidence.
As a
result, they just smiled at each other for the first month, but at least sat at
the same table for lunch, and by December they progressed beyond monosyllabic
conversations, and in the week before Christmas they arranged to go Christmas
shopping together in Abbottsford.
Jane was a
little concerned there might be an awkward silence on the drive over, or at
some point during the day as they had never spent more than half an hour in
each other’s company before that day.
She needn’t
have worried as Mandy chattered away for the whole journey, as she was so full
of excitement.
Jane had a lovely day, and she was pretty sure that Mandy had too, so
when they were heading back to the car park, walking past the library, hands
full of bags and chatting, Jane formulated her plan.
Just after the library they turned left by the art gallery and down a
cobbled alley which led to the carpark, then they put all their bags in the car and set off
back to the Dulcets.
Mandy was anxious to go and show her mum her purchases, but Jane had
other ideas.
So, when she parked outside her cottage and they had retrieved all the
bags, Jane locked the car and rushed up the path to her front door.
“Come on Mandy” Jane called “come in for a
minute”
“Ok I’m coming” Mandy called back “Just for five minutes though”
“Alright come in and close the door” she said and went inside.
Mandy followed her in with bags in each hand and closed the door
behind her as instructed, but when she pushed the sitting room door open, she
found Jane standing in front of her holding up a sprig of mistletoe, and before
she could react Jane took her by surprise and kissed her,
“I didn’t think we were doing presents until next week”
Mandy said, dropped her bags and kissed her back.
Mandy had stayed much longer than five minutes when they shared a
soft, gentle, and affectionate farewell kiss, before Jane opened the door and
Mandy went home to share her news with her mum.
It has taken the festive season
To give me
the perfect reason
To hold
this sprig of mistletoe
And kiss
you softly in the snow
