Amandababble Week Three
“To feel their chubby little hands inside mine as we waddled at a snails pace back to the car…”
It’s funny how little things can cause a sob to form in my throat, more and more so recently. (Yes, I know, I am without a doubt menopausal and if it weren’t for evening primrose oil, I’d have been sectioned a while ago.) Yesterday as I returned my trolley to the row outside Tesco, a young mum was standing by one of those ghastly automated rides that gobble up coins faster than The Major at an all you can eat buffet. She had one arm slung across her stomach and the other, propped on it, held her fag out, on which she puffed nonchalantly. Her little boy was being jogged back and forth, while his head lolled and distorted fairground music filled the air.
At that precise moment, I would have given anything in the world to be standing by the side of that machine, while my boys sat grinning and singing along. I remember hating the event, wishing the train/tractor/car would go quicker so I could get on. I even lied that I had no change or that it was broken. But now, as my boys wade through the treacle of teenage-hood, how I would love to see that small thing that made them so happy! To feel their chubby little hands inside mine as we waddled at a snails pace back to the car, which was covered in stickers, handprints and discarded snacks. I wanted to say to her, enjoy him because you will blink and he will be changed and you will long for this day, or like me, just one minute of this day.
Sentimentality was soon re-calibrated when I struggled through the door with a thousand carrier bags and a dozen boxes. (No-one was available to help me as there was football on the TV – der!) Although son number 2 did look up, briefly and say, ‘got any crisps?’ Bless. I bit my tongue as we are in the middle of GCSE’s and I am not doing or saying anything to upset or cause friction. This however, will not always be the case. I am saving up a long mental list of all the things they are doing/have done that require rebuke and after June 14th, I shall help the boys understand the error of their ways through the medium of screaming and shouting at them. I’ll let you know how THAT goes. Earplugs will be delivered to the whole of Larkhill, or better still, I could coincide my rant with the Royal Artillery firing those really big guns that make my teeth rattle and no one would hear a thing – I’ll work on it.
My short story Something Quite Beautiful has received wonderful 5* reviews and I am over the moon! Thank you everyone that has written such kind words, it means more than I can say.
The army have scuppered two of my plans this week, I was unable to make a concert on Thursday to see the incredible Project Zulu which you can learn more about here http://www.projectzulu.org and I had tickets to see Billy Ocean, but as my other half was stuck somewhere, talking about how to get stuff back from a hot, dusty place, that was not going to happen. Ggggrrrrrrr….
The Major and I have been invited to film premier on Monday night! I know right, wow! There are three things worrying me about it, one, I have nothing to wear, two, I think I might feel really out of place and three, I have nothing to wear! So I shall give you the low down, if I don’t get chucked out for wearing Primark, and generally lowering the tone!
And I know I shouldn’t say this but I’m LOVING the novel I am writing, I get lost in it every day. My heroine Pru, falls in love for the first time at 66 and her adventure and strength are inspirational.
…and finally, a little note to send love and luck to anyone who is facing a challenge this week. I have a friend who is going for surgery and another who is nursing a broken heart – to all women I say, we can find strength in the sisterhood, support each other, help each other because singularly we are amazing, but together we are INCREDIBLE! X
©Amanda Prowse – all enquiries PFD ajhughes@pfd.co.uk. +44 (0)20 7344 1084
