The Trip of a Lifetime – Part 1

The date of the trip loomed. There seemed to be so much the boys had to prepare before their departure. Alisha spent much of the time fretting over what she had heard Archie saying and kept warning the boys to “be careful”, hoping that they would realise what she really meant.

Nicholas spent much of the time before the departure in the local library researching the places he and his brother would be travelling to.

They had decided the first place would be China. They wanted to visit the place their grandparents and Uncle David had once spent time whilst their mum was away at school. Grandma Prue had sold the house shortly before she died so it meant that Archie and Nicholas would be staying in a hostel.

The journey to China was long and when the boys arrived late in the afternoon they wearily made their way to the hostel Nicholas had found on the internet. The room was basic but the view was pretty good of the rolling hills which surrounded the town. Too tired to even think of exploring they laid sprawled on their beds flicking through the tourist leaflets they had picked up from the reception desk. That night both went to sleep wondering what adventures would await them.

Life Goes On

I don’t mind admitting that I struggled after losing both my parents and longed for some privacy to grieve alone, but with children and a husband around it was hard. One afternoon David invited me over saying he needed to talk. I thought I was going to have to do the whole big sister comforting her little brother bit, but I was mistaken. We sat and talked about Dad and Mum and how strange life felt without them. David handed me an envelope and I immediately saw Mums handwriting spelling out my name on the front.

“She asked me to give you that when anything happened.” said David.

David went to make us fresh coffee, leaving me alone to open the envelope in private. Inside was a letter.

My dearest daughter, Alisha,

If you are reading this then it means I am no longer here. I am so proud to call you my daughter and with your father and I no longer here I know you will make a fine head of the family and carry on the Macey name to a fine and proud future. Enclosed in this envelope you will find a cheque. I know you refused when I offered before but I would be so happy to know you have used it to create yourself you own space to let your artistic flair show. You are more than a wife, mother, daughter, head of the family, you are a person  and like all people need a space to call your own. I know how hard it can be when you are trying to juggle all of your roles and responsibilities, so please think about it. Create your own studio, I gave David the plans I had drawn up for the idea originally. Think of me as you paint and sculpt, remember the good times, but don’t dwell on the past.

Your loving mother

Prue Macey

My eyes filled with tears as I read the letter, my mother was still advising me from beyond the grave. I knew she was right, especially as I had been wishing for a bit of privacy. David brought the plans out and a few weeks later I had my own little underground studio. It was pretty basic, just a room big enough to paint and sculpt and a small bathroom off from it, as the household bathroom was a few floors above. The best thing though was it was here I could escape from my family (as much as I loved them) and grieve my losses in private.

Working underground meant I was in ideal conditions to sculpt using ice. I even made ice sculptures of Sam in funny poses.

The next thing we had to sort out once the studio had been built was my mother’s bedroom. After Eva and Greg moved out she had moved into their old room. Since her death it had stood empty and unused. The boys were rapidly approaching their teens and it seemed unfair to make them share one small room when there was a huge one just gathering dust. With Sam’s support I completely redid the room for the boys to move into. It was bright and cheerful and gave the boys plenty of room to mess around in. They loved it when I showed it to them.

My boys bring so much joy to my life. Despite being so very different they are very close, Nicholas will quite happily sit reading whilst Archie plays the latest video game. I think in a way their opposite personalities compliment each other. Archie seems to give Nicholas the courage to try things he might otherwise shy from, and in turn Nicholas seems to know how to prevent Archie from pushing his luck that one step too far.

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It felt like only yesterday I had brought two gurgling blue bundles from the hospital, yet here I was now preparing for my babies to become teenagers. We decided to treat the boys to pizza and birthday cake before letting them go off with their friends for the evening (Helga’s Cove I bet). I took one last look and gave a wistful sigh as my boys blew out their candles.

Archie.

Nicholas

My boys looked so grown up as we gave them their presents. We had decided to encourage Nicholas with his writing and bought him a top of the range laptop so he could write on the move. He idolises David and his success as a writer, but Nicholas says he’d love to be the one who takes books and puts them on the big screen, or write plays. I see a possible career as a theatre director looming.

As for Archie we caved in and bought him a keyboard and music lessons. He was so excited when, I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up being a musician of some kind.

We had one final surprise for our boys. After talking Sam and I had decided it would be nice if the boys could see some of the world and experience new things away from the Valley. So we’ve bought them a couple of decent tents, a camera each and tickets to China, Egypt and France. The boys could hardly believe it when we told them. So we sent them upstairs to see the evidence for themselves, as that was where we had left the tents and camera’s.

Sam and I sneaked upstairs and listened to the boys excitedly cheering and talking at a million miles an hour as they realised they really were going on an adventure.

“I’m going to have to get travel books from the library.” said Nicholas excitedly.

“Never mind that bro, what about the girls, we’re gonna meet loads of them…. and they won’t be able to resist two fit young guys.” replied Archie.

I frowned a little at this, hoping Archie wouldn’t get himself into trouble. Sam saw my expression and insisted that they’ll be fine. I know Sam is right and I guess with my history I can’t really judge them. Just please boys, don’t make me a granny before I’m old.

Alisha.

The Last Goodbye

Following dad’s death, Mum was inconsolable. To be honest I think she just kind of gave up. She kept going on about “getting things in order.”

One day she arrived home with two packages. She called me into the sitting room saying she wanted to speak to me alone. She started by saying how proud Dad would have been of everything I had achieved and how my life had turned out despite a shaky start.

“I went over to the old house today and I’ve brought back something I’d like you to have.” she said tearing the paper from the packages.

“These are two portraits of your grandmother Poppy, painted by her great aunt. This one is just after I was born.” she continued pointing to a photo of my grandmother Poppy holding a small infant, my mother.

It was the most touching gesture since my dad handed over the legacy to me. I proudly hung both pictures in the sitting room a reminder that my mother’s side of the family would always be just as important as my father’s side.

The boys were growing up fast. Nicholas loved to spend time with Mum reading. Mum joked that she wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up being a writer, just like my brother David.

Archie, on the other hand doted on his dad and really missed Sam when he went away for games.

My little babies weren’t to stay that way forever, no matter how much I’d have loved them to. Soon their birthdays approached. We kept it to just the family, David and his family were away in on his latest book to movie project. Eva and Greg were holidaying in Egypt, so it really was just family. I didn’t mind, it felt kind of bitter-sweet holding a party without dad being there. As it was a nice day we took a table out into the garden and surrounded it with balloons. It seemed that in a blink of an eye my baby boys became little boys.

Nicholas

Archie

It was amazing how quickly their different personalities became apparent. It seemed Nicholas certainly had somehow developed David’s love of writing, spending hours tapping away on the computer creating fantastic tales. I guess it was no surprise really, given that David had written a short series of books using my two boys as the main characters who had fantastic adventures. Nicholas loved being in his uncle’s books and constantly begged him to write more.

Archie loved music, just as much as when he was a baby, even more in fact. He often listens to me playing the grand piano and is already begging Sam and I for music lessons. We’ve told him that if he works hard at school and works hard developing skills he’ll need when he’s older we’ll think about it and maybe buy him his own guitar next birthday. He says he wants to be famous just like Sam, but not a footballer.

My two boys seem to be complete opposites.

Now the boys are older I’ve taken up painting again. I was busy painting in the sun room when mum came in. I should have guessed there and then that something was wrong.

“You’ve such a talent Alisha. Your dad and I, we loved to paint. Such a shame you haven’t your own space, a studio to paint and sculpt in.” (I have recently taken up sculpting too).

“I wish we had the room Mum, but the boys will be wanting their own bedrooms soon enough instead of sharing. Plus I’m not sure we can justify spending money on extensions with two children to feed.” I replied.

“What if I could help out? I’ve sold the house in China and nothing would make me proud than if you build yourself a little studio. I’ve already had a contractor over and he said it would be easy to build a little basement studio under the existing basement.” she said excitedly.

“Mum, no. I can’t, it’s too much.” I replied.

“Please Alisha, I’ve already given David and Maisie a share of the money from the house sale, so here is some for you too.”

I refused telling Mum to do something special for herself with the money.

Sadly mum never got the chance to do anything with the money as she passed away a couple of weeks later in her sleep. I think she’d just got to the point where she wanted to be with dad again. The hardest thing is that I had to deal with it alone, Sam was away with the team and couldn’t get back straight away and David was still away. When Sam finally got home, I just fell into his arms sobbing. All I could think about is the wasted time I’d been apart from my parents when I was at Lowood Eyre, time I’d never get back.

The funeral was a small but dignified affair as we finally laid her to rest beside dad. We’ve made the grave looks at beautiful as possible with flowers and a cupid statue to represent the life long love shared between mum and dad.

Daniel and Prue Macey, may you rest in peace.

Alisha

 

 

Dad

Happiness never seems to last long as we soon found out in our house. I couldn’t believe Dad had gone and here I was in the funeral home saying my final goodbyes to him before the funeral. I knew the time I had left with Dad was getting shorter, but I guess part of me believed he’d carry on forever which made his passing all the harder to deal with.

Dad doted on my two boys, although secretly I think he favoured Archie slightly more than Nicholas and I’d often find him sat patiently with him trying to teach him how to talk. That fateful day was no different. Dad was upstairs with the boys, Nicholas busy playing with his blocks and Archie, who equally doted on my dad hanging onto his every word.

I was in the next room sorting through some old clothes and things, when suddenly I heard dad shout me, sounding rather panicked.

Even though I immediately dropped everything and ran into the room I was too late, Dad had already gone and poor Archie and Nicholas were sat there looking utterly bewildered as I tried to keep myself composed for their sake.

I immediately phoned Sam who rushed home from training there and then. Thank goodness he wasn’t playing an away game. Mum was over at David’s at the time so I called him and he broke the news to mum who was understandably devastated. I mean her and Dad had been together for a lifetime as  childhood friends and later husband and wife.

The funeral was a dignified affair. Many of dad’s ex colleagues from the fire station came along for the service, as did people whose lives he had once saved. It seemed Dad had touched the lives of most people in the valley in one way or another over the years. We kept the actual burial as a family only affair. We’d chosen a big gravestone to mark all dad had achieved in his life, it seemed only right. I was so glad that I had Sam by my side, I don’t think I could have got through the day alone.

So there we left my dad to rest in peace, alongside his parents as to his wishes. I can’t believe I’ll never see him again. The responsibility of carrying on the family legacy seems even greater now he’s gone. How will I cope?

Alisha.

Parenthood

Life settled into a routine and soon it felt like my two wonderful boys had always been around. I had decided to take extra time off work so I could stay home and look after them. I also decided to make use of the piano Sam had bought me and with the help of some dvds and books from the local store I was soon tinkling away on those ivories. I ended up having to set up a cot for Archie in the same room, he seemed to love listening to the music I played, I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t grow up to be musical himself.

Nicholas on the other hand preferred the quieter environment of the study where he usually kept mum company as she wrote her latest fashion related book. Maybe Nicholas is going to grow up to be a writer like his Uncle David? It’s weird how much I try and imagine what kind of futures my children will have, I wonder if Mum and Dad did the same with me and David.

Dad simply adores Archie and Nicholas and is always fussing around them. I think it’s brought a lot of memories back of when David and I were babies as he’s always telling the boys stories of the old days.

To celebrate the arrival of my boys I even went and got a tattoo, my very first tattoo…. arrrgh. Still the pain was worth it. It’s a celtic type design, four knots all joined together. A knot each for Sam and I and a knot each for Archie and Nicholas.

My babies didn’t stay that way for long. Before I knew it their birthdays were approaching. To mark the occasion we decided to have a party, inviting family only. David and Maisie came along with Flora who was now a beautiful little girl who was doing well at the local school. Her twin sister Bronwyn no longer lived at home full time. It had been discovered she was an extremely gifted child, so when she’d been offered a place at a prestigious academy in the city of Bridgeport it was felt that the opportunity was too good to miss. I had felt David and Maisie were doing the wrong thing letting her go, but as Sam pointed out to me the difference was that Bronwyn had been desperate to go away to school, whereas for me it had been something I’d had no say in. Plus the Bridgeport Academy was nothing like Lowood Eyre.

Anyway back to the party for Archie and Nicholas. We kept it to just family, and there was a great surprise for Sam when his sister, Marsha turned up bringing along with her her now teenage daughter, Sammi. Sam hadn’t seen either for a number of years, they hadn’t even bothered to attend our wedding, so we were surprised when Marsha and Sammi came along to the party. Whilst me and Eva were upstairs talking about it Eva said she thought maybe Marsha had felt she needed her family close to her since her and Sam’s mum had died, admitting that since Aunt Leela had died she had felt the same. I’m so lucky to still have both my parents around even though they are both very old now.

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The party was a huge success, the boys blew out the candles on their cakes and suddenly were no longer babies, but toddlers. Archie seems to have inherited Sam’s sandy brown hair, whilst Nicholas has my blonde hair. Their personalities seem to be really starting to shine through too. Nicholas seems to take a great interest in his dad’s football, of course Sam is delighted thinking he may have created another footballer in the making. He’s already planning on buying him his own strip.

Life is just so perfect at the moment.

Alisha.

A New Year, A New Chapter

After a lovely but very short honeymoon in the holiday home in China I arrived back in the valley with my wonderful new husband just in time for Christmas. Mum and Dad were still staying at the house. They seem to have slowed down quite a bit lately and prefer to just spend time here in the valley than travelling to and from China as frequently as they had done. Of course they told David and I that they simply wanted to be closer to the family, but I had overheard Mum telling Uncle Cameron one day that she doesn’t think there will be many more trips to China for them if any and whilst they had thought about selling the house there Dad had felt it should be kept for David and I to use. I can’t even begin to contemplate a time when my parents might not be around.

After a sleep to recover from the journey Sam and I began to look through the wedding gifts we had received. Dad announced he had a very special gift for us in the sun room. We all trooped in and there stood two easels with two beautiful paintings on them.

“Just a little something I had  been working on.” said Dad. “Actually Eva asked me to do the one of you and her as a reminder of your friendship, the other one is from your Mum and me.” he smiled.

I hugged Dad tightly thanking him over and over.

In our absence Greg and Eva had finally moved into their own place next door. The house felt so odd without them around but there was no time to dwell on it as Christmas Day arrived before we knew it.

We had a lovely day with a traditional turkey dinner. Afterwards we all gathered around my lovely new piano to sing a few carols. Dad had a bit of a mock sulk when Mum told him he couldn’t sing.

In the evening we gathered around the tree to open the last few of our presents over drinks. I decided that this was as good a time as any to make my announcement.

“Mum, Dad…. Sam and I have some news…. I’m pregnant.” I said feeling strangely shy.

Mum gasped and clasped her hand to her heart welling up with tears, whilst Dad clapped and cheered.

A barrage of questions then followed. When had I found out? How far along was I? Truth be told I’d had my suspicions long before the wedding so had secretly visited the doctor who had confirmed my suspicions, that I was pregnant. I’d decided not to tell Sam until the first twelve weeks were safely out of the way which tied in nicely with our honeymoon. Needless to say he was absolutely thrilled.

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The New Year came and went and life carried on as normal. The only difference was now I was pregnant I had agreed after much  insistence from Dad and Sam that I would cut back on work. I only agreed because Sam was so worried that something would go wrong if I didn’t get enough rest. The bonus was it meant I got to spend a lot more time with Mum and Dad. I especially loved the quiet lunches I’d sometimes have alone with Dad.

My pregnancy was progressing well too. Sam and I would spend our evenings talking about our baby, wondering what he or she would be like and discussing names. In fact everything seemed absolutely perfect until one day we received a shock telephone call from Sam’s sister to say their Mother, Marsha had died suddenly. Poor Sam, all he could think was how his mum never had the chance to meet his child. I think the only thing that got him through was the thought of our baby. We were only just recovering from Marsha’s death when we were dealt another blow when my Aunt Leela, Eva’s Mother died too. Mum went to stay with Uncle Cameron for couple of weeks as he was struggling to cope, whilst I supported Eva as best I could. Although I didn’t say anything to anyone I secretly started to worry, it seemed we were having such a stream of bad news, what if something happened to the baby too?

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I needn’t have worried though as everything turned out just fine, well more than fine actually as I welcomed into the world not one baby, but TWO. Sam was overjoyed he could hardly speak in a sensible manner and just kept gleefully telling anyone who’d listen he was the proud father to twin boys.

Within days I’d brought our two precious bundles home. We decided to name the boys Nicholas Daniel Macey and Archie Sebastian Macey. We proudly gathered by the fire for our first official family photograph and it suddenly dawned on me that finally Sam and I were a proper family. Against all the odds we’d proved everyone wrong and were now about to start raising our own family.

Alisha

I do, I do, I do.

The afternoon before the wedding we all gathered together for a special lunch cooked by Dad, who has become a remarkable cook since his retirement.

“So where are you staying tonight Sam?” asked Mum. “It’s unlucky to see the bride before the wedding you know.”

Swallowing his forkful of food Sam replied, “We were going to stay  next door, weren’t we Greg? Their place is practically finished now, so it makes sense.

“As long as you guys don’t turn the place into a tip. I don’t want to be moving into a trashed house.” replied Eva jokingly.

We all laughed, but truth be told I felt a bit sad that Greg and Eva’s house was complete as it would mean they’d no longer be living here with us. Eva had already told me they planned to move in right after my wedding. It made sense, Cameron was getting bigger every day and would want his own room, plus naturally Greg and Eva wanted a place to call their own.

That night I felt like I hardly slept despite having an early night. We got up early the next morning to start getting ready for the wedding. Mum had done a fantastic job planning all our fashion and styling needs. As I gazed at myself in the mirror I could hardly believe I was looking at myself.

Looking down at my dress I felt every inch a princess. With Mum’s “help” I’d chosen a beautiful deep red dress, perfect for out Christmas themed wedding.

Eva looked absolutely stunning in her dark green and silver satin dress, her usually curly hair straightened and styled into an elegant bun. We stood by the Christmas tree in the sitting room posing for photographs marvelling at how great we looked.

Mum and Dad stood each side of me as we posed for a family picture. I felt the tears pricking my eyes when Dad leant across and whispered “I’m proud of you darling.”

The tasting room at the vineyard had been decorated beatuifully, adorned with decorations and Christmas trees. I really felt like I’d stepped into some magical wonderland, especially when the small choir we’d hired started singing ‘Oh Holy Night’. There by the fire stood Sam, smiling but looking very nervous and Dad walked me down the ‘aisle’ followed by my wonderful friend and bridesmaid, Eva.

“You look absolutely amazing, Leesh.” said Sam, his eyes shining.

“So do you.” I giggled back.

In the presence of all our family and friend we exchanged rings and made our vows

“My feet shall run because of you

My feet shall dance because of you

My eyes, see because of you

My mind think because of you

And I shall love because of you.”

I’m slightly embarrassed to say I did start crying whilst saying my vows, it just suddenly hit home that every single word was true and all because of Sam. Since the moment we met he’d been the centre of my universe, even during the years we had spent apart. Now here I was about to become his wife.

We were pronounced husband and wife and as we kissed the room was filled with applause. I couldn’t believe it, finally I was Mrs West, or rather Sam was now Mr Macey. We’d decided that because of the whole legacy thing with my family it would make more sense for him to take my name so the Macey name would carry on as my family had wanted it to.

The reception got into full swing, the idea of having the wedding at the vineyard was great as it meant everything took place in one location. Before we cut the cake Sam gave a speech which had me on the verge of happy tears for the millionth time that day. The whole day was like a fairytale and Sam and I were the stars of it. Despite our hard journey and the obstacles which had stood in our way we had made it, proved everyone wrong and finally were together for the rest of our lives.

Alisha x