Review, Revision, Edit and Update
One area of writing that I've had little practice in is writing children's stories. I have, in this episode, had an opportunity to write children's dialogue. Not being around many children over the last 40 or so years, I've had to rely on memory and TV child characters.
Far Away and Close to Home
Joanie Richardson and her husband, Andrew Richardson, started their little family later than most. Their careers had come first, children would not necessarily be part of their life plans. However, after one night daring to be without protection, Joanie became pregnant with Ben. Four years later and planned this time, Abigail was born. Two children was enough for them both. Two years later, her husband was offered a transfer on the mainland across the country. Lucrative and a career move upwards, he wanted to take it. Joanie wished to remain in Hartley with her career, a well paying job as Head Librarian at the local library and close to her mother. She wanted her children to know their grandmother. Hours and days of discussion did not bring them to any compromise. Ultimately, Andrew took the job, which his son, Ben labelled ‘the far away job’. He came home often. With the coming of the Covid19 pandemic, and being very far away, he would have no trips home for a while. Maybe a long while. Video chats became regular with his little family. Both parents were working from their separate and distant homes. The time difference between east and west allowed Andrew to entertain the children for two hours each of Joanie’s on-site work days.
Today, was Joanie’s day off. Being away from the computer was always welcomed. When she saw Ben focussed on some game on his computer without stop, she decided that it was time to say something. “End it, Ben. You need to be doing something else….please, go out in the yard to play, read one of the graphic novels I brought home for you from the library.” His mother, exasperated at no response, took a deep breath to calm herself. “What else do you like to do?”
After a few minutes, his eyes still on the screen, thumbs clicking away like mad, shoulders moving up and down with each game play he said “Mom, I miss my friends and I’m bored. This is what I like to do.”
His mother sighed. “Ben, you used to like building things. You and your father built that birdhouse that’s hanging from the eaves. There’s the little doll house the both of you built for Abby’s last birthday. And the little stool you built for your grandmother? She loves it so much she sewed a special cushion to put on it so she would have a foot stool for her reading chair.”
“Yeah, and dad’s gone to his far away job and Grandma got married. My friends are all stuck at home with their parents. You’re alway’s working for the library or taking care of Abby.” Normally shy with strangers, young Ben was not always a nice polite boy with his mother. Especially when it came to calling an end to his games.
Joanie decided to play her ‘for your Grandma’ card. “Well, come outside with Abby and me. Remember your Grandma telling us that she worked with her up at the Beaufort mansion. Well, she's moving into Grandma’s house today. You'll be able to tell her all about meeting this new neighbour.”
Ben suddenly put his game aside on the floor and sat up straight. “She's the one with the motorcycle!? Grandma told me all about it and about her. We saw her at Grandma's wedding, didn't we? Do you think she’ll be bringing her motorcycle here?” Ben absently stepped over his game barely missing the snaking cords threatening to trip him. “Should I go comb my hair?”
“You’re hair looks just fine, Ben. Just tuck in your shirt.” Joanie was almost laughing at her son’s transformation, but she managed to keep a straight face. Calling out to her daughter, Joanie started towards the door. “Abby, are you ready?”
“Yes, mom. Can I bring Molly with me? She doesn’t like to be alone.” Abby clutched her soft doll to her in a child’s firm statement of determination. “Do you think the new lady will like my doll?”
~~~~~
Brigitte did, in fact, ride her motorcycle to her new home. When Ben was asked to greet Brigitte, he suddenly got shy, never taking his eyes off of her motorcycle. Abby thrust her Molly at her mother who caught it just as the doll was about to land face down in the dirt. Not a shy bone in her body, she ran over to Brigitte. The children's mother had met Brigitte when her mother and the butler married. Her instinct was that she would be a good neighbour. So far, it seemed, Joanie’s instinct was right.
“In the little world in which children have their existence, whosoever brings
them up, there is nothing so finely perceived and so finely felt as injustice.”
~ Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
No comments:
Post a Comment