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(aka Bike) Part 689 by Angharad |
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I felt tired and irritable as I tried to make contact with Sam Rose’s secretary. It took over an hour and I had nearly given up on the task, when she answered it. I explained that I needed his advice urgently and she promised to get him to call me back as soon as he could.
Effectively, this meant that I was now tied to the phone, so the girls had to amuse themselves for an hour or two and I busied myself with making bread and cleaning the kitchen which seemed to be a pig sty. Stella came down with Puddin’ who was making great progress and as Mima was out with the other two, I could have a crafty cuddle without anyone else getting jealous.
The two older girls were riding their bikes and Meems was using a scooter, but it wouldn’t be long before she wanted a bike too. Stella and I chatted over a cup of coffee and the phone rang. I dashed to answer it, but it was only someone trying to sell me double glazing—for an eighteenth century, grade II listed farmhouse—I don’t think so.
The second time the phone rang it was someone from a telecoms company promising me the earth if we used their service. I slammed the phone down and stormed back to the kitchen. I’d only just got back there when it rang again, I glanced at the caller display which read ‘withheld’ so I picked it up and ranted at it.
I blushed a moment later when a familiar voice said, “Cathy, is everything alright?”
“Oh, Sam, I’m so sorry, but I‘ve had a series of stupid calls today,” I felt about two centimetres high.
“Okay, you asked for some advice, you having problems? Not Trish, I hope?”
“Trish is fine, no I’ve acquired another five year old, a female whose mother and father have died in tragic circumstances...” I went on to explain briefly what had happened.
“Goodness, woman, you do know how to make life hard for yourself, don’t you?”
“Yeah, it keeps me from getting too bored.”
“So you have three under six, with two of them the equivalent of twins?”
“More or less. Livvie knows about Trish, so does Mima in a background sort of way.”
“So Livvie is coping with Trish’s medical condition?”
“Yeah, so far very easily.” As I said it I thought, there is loads of time for it go wrong.
“You want me to see Livvie and see if I think she needs some therapy?”
“In a nutshell, Sam.”
“Can you bring her in this afternoon, say half three.”
“To the usual place?”
“Yeah, hopefully I’ll be through most of my clinic by then.”
“Okay, Sam, I’ll bring her in—I might have to bring the others with me as well.”
“No prob, it’ll give me a chance to look them over while I’m at it.”
“Trish is now living 24/7 and attending a convent school.”
“Good, I look forward to hearing an update from her as well.
“See you at half three,” he rang off and I felt much better. It seemed to give the day more focus and after lunch, I had to start cleaning up the kids and myself. The girls I dressed in school uniform, and Mima in a tidy dress, which she objected to, until I explained we were seeing Dr Rose.”
“I wike him,” she said and beamed a smile at me.
Somehow, they all stayed clean until we got there and I registered at reception. I had the three of them around me as I read them a story, plus one or two other kids, which made me feel a bit self-conscious.
“Lady Cameron,” called the laid-back quack from his consulting room.
“Come, girls, let’s go and see the nice doctor man.” Mima and Trish almost dashed ahead and hugged him, while I walked a little behind holding the sweaty palm of Livvie. “He’s nice, you’ll see,” I tried to reassure her, but her hand clasped tighter around mine.
“Hello Cathy,” said Dr Rose giving me a quick hug, “this must be Olivia or Livvie?”
“It is indeed, Sam, you haven’t lost your powers of deduction.”
“Elementary, my dear Watson,” he said and laughed.
“I thought Watson was the doctor?” I replied, pretending to challenge his assertion.
“Oh dear, does that mean you get to be Holmes, again?”
“’Fraid so, Sherlock’s sister, Ideal.”
“Ideal Holmes?” He puzzled for a moment, then laughed, “Bit of an exhibitionist then?”
“Absolutely.” He and I laughed while the three stooges looked on with totally perplexed expressions.
Sam Rose cursorily examined Mima and Trish, the latter keen to tell him that she could ride a bike without stabilizer wheels. After, I asked Trish to pick a book in the waiting room and to read to Mima until we came out. Sam asked reception to keep an eye on them.
“So, it’s Peaches Olivia Richards, is it?” he said looking at Livvie.
“No, I’m Livvie, just Livvie Richards, and I want to be Livvie Watts or Cameron.” I blushed as she said this.
“Why? Richards is a fine name,” said Sam.
“You have it then, I want Mummy to adopt me.”
“I see, why is that?”
“My first Mummy and Daddy are dead.”
“I’m sorry,” said Sam.
“I’m not,” said Livvie.
“You’re not? Why is that?”
“Can I call you Peaches, Dr Rose?”
“Hmm, I think I’d prefer it if you didn’t,” he replied.
“They didn’t love me, they didn’t love each other, like Mummy and Daddy do.”
“Hang on, which mummy and daddy are we talking about?” Sam was confused.
“Mummy Cathy and Daddy Simon, they love each other, my other parents didn’t, they only loved themselves. My old daddy killed my old mummy, then killed himself. If he loved me he wouldn’t have done that, would he?”
“I doubt it, young lady.”
“So I want to be Mummy and Daddy’s girl like Trish and Mima. I want to be adopted, I don’t like being an orphan.”
“Does it matter who adopts you?” asked Dr Rose.
“Yes, I wanna be adopted by Mummy and Daddy,” she grasped hold of my hand and held on tightly.
“Do you sleep at night, young lady?”
“Yes, though sometimes I have bad dreams and see my mother.”
“Does she do anything bad to you?”
“She wants me to go with her.”
“Go where with her?”
“To hell, she’s going to go there.”
“How do you know?”
“Because we learned it in Sunday school.”
“One advantage of being Jewish,” said Sam as an aside to me.
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Comments
I think Livvie's been going
I think Livvie's been going to the wrong church, they seem to have caused her no end of upset and she's not even there anymore! Unless she got that from the school she and Trish are going to, in which case Cathy may have to look into finding an alternative for them both!
Keep up the good work Angharad!
Saless
"But it is also tradition that times *must* and always do change, my friend." - Eddie Murphy, Coming To America
"But it is also tradition that times *must* and always do change, my friend." - Eddie Murphy, Coming To America
"Christian" schools do some horrible things
My wife is Jewish and we're very good friends with the family across the street and their little seven year old boy. One day he told us that the people at his school - a "Christian" school - told him that he should stay away from my wife because since she didn't believe in christ she was a bad person and would go to hell. Whew, blows me away that a school would teach that to a kid. Now I know he may have gotten it a bit wrong but the message seems to have been given. Religion of love and tolerance? Hypocrites!
They Seem So Sure Of Themselves
The people at that school must be pretty sure of themselves, but they forget one thing. It is not up to them who goes where. They also seem to forget that Jesus was raised as a Jew and only when he began his ministry, did he start to call the leaders in the temple to task for some of the things they were doing to further their own selfish interests. I am pretty sure that he would take a lot of so called Christian churches to task for their arrogance too. Comedian, Tim Wilson, had a line in his song "The 39 Things My Uncle Told Me On his Death Bed" How many get to Heaven , No one knows, but Hell will be asses and elbows" When I transitioned, many people in the church I grew up in, looked at me like I was lower than a bug to be squashed under their feet. There have been a few exceptions to that, but that has been the prevailing attitude over it. Jesus spent most of his time with the outcasts of society and he showed what love was really about. These people turn away the very people who Jesus spent time with. It is sad that that little boy is not told the truth about what Jesus really stood for.
Actually...
while there is no hell in Judaism, there is the Yiddish word Geheina. According to the Rabbis, when you die you either go to "Shamayim" (Heaven) also called "Olam Habah" or you spend a year in what the Christians would call Purgatory. There you expiate your sins before you are allowed into "The World to Come".
I spent too many years sleeping thru Yeshiva and Hebrew school classes to get it all. This is the best my memory can give on the issue.
Nora-Adrienne
Adina Nechama bat Efraim Yosef
>> No Hell...
Indeed, the most liberal Jews see no particular problem with there being no particular God, and no afterlife at all. We argue about whether "the world to come" is from Sinai or is a later invention of the Rabbis to compete with the Elyssian Fields and such of the surrounding "Nations."
Some Jews believe quite comfortably in reincarnation instead of, or in addition to an "afterlife" of some sort, and there is no equivalent of the Nicene Creed that pretty much every Jew agrees to. You name it, and there are Jews who believe it, within reason. Many (but not nearly all) Jews believe in some sort of Panentheism, but the article referenced above is wrong, since I know many Modern Orthodox Jews whose opinion approaches (at least) Panentheism, and indeed this is the considered opinion of my LOR (Local Orthodox Rabbi) whose shul is right down the street.
I quite like him, and he's smart as a whip, although he looks (to me) like he's just out of high school.
Cheers,
Puddin'
-----------
In any case, one need not be Jewish to go the "Heaven."
Moses Maimonides (pretty much a mainstream view) maintained that the righteous of all the nations of the world have a portion in the world-to-come. [Mishneh Torah, Repentance 3:5]
This fits in well with Panentheism, because we none of us have any clue about how big God is, or what God is at all, so maybe Hindus, for example, are seeing their version of what God is, no better and no worse than what Jews think God is, so we can know them by their works. If anyone is kind and compassionate to all, and refrains from cruelty, who are we to say that God isn't somewhare behind it? Contrariwise, if one is wicked and does nothing but evil deeds, it doesn't much matter what one says; it probably isn't inspired by what we most of us think of as "God."
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
Livvie Needs Love
And she has it in her new family. With out that love, she will die.
May Your Light Forever Shine
May Your Light Forever Shine
Livvie is definitely in need
Livvie is definitely in need of some therapy, because she is fragile right now even being 5 years old. This stuff could cause her problems as she grows older if she is unable to "divorce" herself from it. Hopefully Dr. Sam can recommend someone who can help, and hopefully that person is much better than the "kook" Cathy had to deal with previously. Along with this, perhaps Cathy really needs to contact the Pastor and have her sit down with Livvie and talk with her. J-Lynn
Great idea
Cover two topics - wedding and talk with Livvie.
Agreed!
Cathy has been putting off visiting that minister about her wedding to Simon for much too long. And she (the minister) is just the person to show Livvie what the true message of Christ is (love and forgiveness, rather than hating anyone who doesn't conform to what that particular sect believes).
Jenny
Jenny
OOPS! It happened again!
Somehow, my message got posted TWICE! I just hate it when that happens!
Jenny
Jenny
Me too
It is better since the server has been upgraded. A lot better.
Livvey need help, a lot of it. A stable home environment (even if there seem to be an abundance of sharp tongues). I suspect Stella will come around liking young kids, if she doesn't already.
Looks to me
like Livvie has made up her mind about where her future lies, Livvie might be very young but she certainly knows her own mind And her comment about her daddy not killing himself if he really loved her was so very true.
Kirri
Unfortunately,
Most suicides don't stop to consider what effect their act will have on those around them. Suicide is one of the most selfish acts a person can commit. They believe they are hurting so bad that they have to kill themselves to end the pain. However, it is those left behind who wind up hurting the most when there is a suicide.
Fortunately, Livvie has chanced into a new family who do love and care for her. Hopefully, between the love of Cathy, Simon and the rest of the impromptu clan and whatever therapist she sees, she will come to realize that she is, in fact, loved very much!
Jenny
Jenny
I disagree with that.
The reason they don't stop and consider is because of the pain. They are incapable of judging the consequences, right and wrong, that is why it is called mental illness.
So, Sam's...
Jewish... And doesn't have to worry about hell... At least he's seen the "bull headed" side of Livvy. I wonder if he noted anything on Mimma's hearing. Time will tell.
So much happening. WOW. I go away for a few days, and play catch up. And, it's quite a catch up to do.
Seems Ms. Stella's doing fairly well. That's encouraging!
Thank you!
Annette
How Do You Ride Those Things?
without getting a back ache? I just look at that ending picture and can feel the pain begin! I had a friend who used to loosen the screw thingie holding the bars tight and turn them around so he could ride sitting more upright. At my age (and his), we can't do that 'hunkering down into the wind' thing any more. [Sigh!] Just thinking of the good old days -- as opposed to the bad new days when I'm old!
Yours from the Great White North,
Jenny Grier (Mrs.)
x
Yours from the Great White North,
Jenny Grier (Mrs.)
religion
I hope I dont ruff up anyone's panties/skivies over this comment. 1st of all I was brought up in USA version of Assemblies of god. I've not entirely rejected any of it,just the zealosy of aspects they use.
what i've never understood, is that if m history is more or less right the old testiment was more or less based on dead sea scrolls which look to me as an outsider looks to me more an a jewish/hebrew history text. moving along we have the beginnings of new testament & the great council that decided which made it into the roman church version.
then i forget the century we had all the book burnings (12th-13th?) here we see anything not accepted b the church being destroyed, there was tons of book, us modern sceptics would dearly would of loved to get our hands if only to see what the heck the church was sp deathly afraid of.
next up is commission of the King James version edit of the bible. AND I use EDIT very liberally, because we do know from other sources. Ole Kings (England) was at war with Spain @ time. What bothered him most was that the demands of church for tithes to church was bankrupting his country, also quite a few of the church hiarchy was going behind his back & monies meant for Rome were ending up in Spanish coffers funding war efforts.
Let's just say if the King james translation was legit for sake of arguing. a few hundred yrs later we now have minimum of 300+ denominations preaching out of the king James Version of the bible. All of them swear they are the ones with the truth & the others are wrong..
how on earth can that be ???
if everyone is reaing outta one version of the same book how can we get 300+ TRUTHS and if I pick one out of that 300 ... how can I be sure it's the right one.
then, there's alway the catholics & spinoffs, muslims, hindu ...geez the list go on & on
Do you know that in the USA The church of Satan even uses king james in some of it meetings. heck even the Nazi's were using it.
I think there's gonna be alot of disappointed people when they discover they were all or mostly wrong. I myself have some interesting ideas how all these got it wrong, but I'll stop here.
I will say this , at beginning of I mentioned I was brought up by a certin denomination whom are about as zealous & completely against the susposed admonition I am (TRANSSEXUAL) Yes, I was quite clearly told this by my church several yrs ago (I had barely started transitioning @ time). Three yrs ago my mother passed on. I wasnt even allowed into the church for the funeral. I was escourted out by police. (thankfully not charged with anything when Judge discovered what I was in there for
so, I keep an open mind, I believe there is more than meets eye. I've seen too many wierd things not to believe there's some enity out there. i just wont accept any single doctrine of how or what i have do to deal with getting that afterlife if there truely is such. there are certain protocols (let's use 10 commandants for lact of anything that come to mind) and say I use that as my blueprint for life & leave the rest of mankinds manipulations for the enity's so called judgment. I think if I do that, I'm more likely to find that heaven faster than the other Sheeples out there.
to the FORUM MANAGERS OR TO ANGHARAD.
if you wish I'm not sure this commentary might not be acceptable here.
I have no problem if any of you decide it' too contriversial or it's placement here is even appropriate. I am totally sorry if it is. IT's a personal belief of mine and maybe make people think & fry too many brain cells
PLEASE FEEL FREE to delete it if anyone complains. Thank you
Pedals
still no pedals on the bike...... what good is a bike with no pedals ???????
Nice to see our writer appreciates the Stooges
Well, now everyone knows exactly how and why Olivia feels.
Great shrinking, Sam.
I know it's not red, but a good bike for Simon
Cefin