Wednesday 30 August 2017

Writing challenge

Life has intervened and the end of the month is nigh so I think my story is done for now. One to be continued at a later date maybe .......

Tuesday 22 August 2017

Writing challenge fifteen

Time passed slowly as I tried to give succour to Kerry. Her labour was progressing slowly as often happens with a first pregnancy. Scattered images kept running through my mind of Kerry doing battle as the contractions wracked her body with pain, her abdomen like a punching bag being constantly pounded. A summons to the midwife resulted in pain relief and a reassurance that her labour was progressing excellently. I still continued trying to distract Kerry with assorted reminiscences from our shared childhood like the time the spinster next door had tried to calm us when baby sitting by trying to teach us to sing an octave. Unknown to her we were feverish and about to develop rashes from the measles. Despite her pain Kerry was always a sucker for childhood memories. She had refused the roast pork dinner offered by the hospital. I also had no desire to eat. By the morning her labour was advancing more rapidly. I had been allowed to stay and was feeling nearly as exhausted as Kerry. The midwife was now with Kerry and encouraging her with breathing exercises between contractions. The ward door opened and a disheveled Philip arrived just in time to see his scrawny looking baby son delivered. As the baby cried Kerry and Philip shared a smile of pure happiness.

Monday 21 August 2017

Writing challenge fourteen

The ward that Kerry was in had four beds,one occupied by a young lady who looked like a schoolgirl. I naively wondered how such a young girl could get pregnant. The walls strangely were covered in faux wood paneling and a large picture of white water rafting which had a lustre designed to make ladies in their first trimester suffer more from morning sickness.I felt a vibration in my bag and managed to unearth my phone. Philip had received my urgent message and I passed the phone to Kerry.He was now in his apartment and had booked a fight home to arrive tomorrow morning.He was hoping to nap on the plane and come straight to the hospital after dropping his bags at their house. He was looking forward to being back in England where there was no need to spurn the constant Chinese propaganda of the state run media, but he was very grateful that they had agreed to employ him.He told Kerry how much he loved her then ended the call to finish packing. Another contraction had started so I held Kerry's hand again and tried to reassure her.

Sunday 20 August 2017

Writing challenge thirteen

As indicated earlier I was not enamoured with Kerry's husband Philip, despite his erudition. I felt Kerry had given him too much leeway. Marriage was supposed to be an equal partnership. For her to permit his work placement sponsored by the Chinese university when she was so heavily pregnant seemed like madness to me. Surely Kerry, not his career prospects should be at the forefront of his priorities. With a shrug I came to the conclusion that my own bad experience of marriage had made me less broad minded than in my younger days.Though I had to admit that Kerry's husband did not resemble Frank in any way.Unable to get a reply I left a message for Philip to phone the hospital urgently. He had promised Kerry to take leave to come home for a month when the baby was born, and had an agreement in his contract to do so. I held Kerry's hand and tried to distract her between contractions with chat about her cravings for health food in her early pregnancy and how Philip had teased her that her tiredness was psychosomatic as her diet was so super healthy.

Saturday 19 August 2017

Writing challenge twelve

We continued to chat agreeably until we reached home. Kerry went upstairs to change into loose fitting vintage chinos while I stroked a very tired Yo Yo who soon nodded off at my feet.I was shocked by the sound of a fracas upstairs.I rushed up the stairs to find Kerry clutching her abdomen. She was not prone to hypochondria so when she told me to call an ambulance, I didn't hesitate.A paramedic quickly arrived and confirmed that Kerry was indeed in labour, two weeks earlier than her due date.The paramedics checked with the hospital who advised the  medical orthodoxy required that Kerry should be transported by ambulance to hospital.So after checking her blood pressure and taking a sample of her blood,they set off. I was left to ask my friend Sharon if she could take Yo Yo while I went to the hospital. Luckily she had finished her podiatry appointment and was very happy to puppy sit. I dropped Yo Yo at her house and reached the hospital in record time. Kerry was now on the labour ward and in some distress. She asked me to contact her husband via the state department at the university in China. He was her lifeboat at a time she felt all at sea and she desperately needed to talk to him

Wednesday 9 August 2017

Writing challenge eleven

On the way home Kerry and I began to reminisce, sharing memories of our childhood which had seemed idyllic in many ways. We lived with our parents in a cottage near a field that was planted with lavender every year.. Dad was a fore runner of the current trend of working from home. His study was out of bounds to us girls, but as a result we would deliberately take every opportunity however tortuous to find a way to sneak in and hide, sometimes removing two small items from the desk as a token of our success. We would never renege on one another if questioned, profit sharing
our ill gotten gains. Dad as a self employed entrepreneur was able to work autonomously and to take time off to spend time with us.Mum would cook rotisserie chicken and our cousins would visit to play with us on the margins of the lavender field.

Tuesday 8 August 2017

Writing challenge ten

Luckily this did not peturb me as I had a tight hold of the lead.We had a quick ramble around the playground, although the stagnant water in the small pond was giving off an unpleasant odour. We then walked the short distance to Sharon's house. Sharon greeted us warmly before starting to share out her appetizing stir fry. She even produced a puppy treat to dangle in front of Yo Yo. Being a librarian, she made us laugh by her ability to refer to classic literature and to misquote well known passages during conversation. To foist a puppy visitor on her did not bother her at all. She was no ascetic and loved to chat. She and her husband Barry were planning to renovate their house so she regaled us with their home improvement plans and the astronomic increase in the train fare for her husband's daily commute. Having remembered her podiatry appointment, we helped her clear the plates and said our goodbyes.

Monday 7 August 2017

Writing challenge nine

Two hours later we were ready to leave the house, Kerry dressed in a vividly bright floral maternity smock for our outing. I grabbed the house keys from the bureau drawer before we set off, reminding Kerry we would need to disable the alarm system on our return by punching in the four digit code. Yo Yo was full of excitement at being in the great outdoors, his level of energy incompatible with Kerry's advanced state of pregnancy so I sensitively and to my mind decently offered to hold the lead as the puppy somewhat shakily at first ran in circles enjoying all the new scents and sounds. The pop of a car backfiring suddenly disturbed the peacefulness and I felt the tug of the lead as Yo Yo decided to make a break for freedom.

Sunday 6 August 2017

Writing challenge eight

Kerry called out to me and my mind came back to the present with a jolt. She was wondering if we could take Yo Yo when we went to visit Sharon for lunch. I could not remain unmoved as she pleaded her cause. Always the opportunist, she reminded me of the playground that we would pass on the way, the perfect place to take a puppy. Of course you can predict that my brains were over ruled by my heart as I said I would phone Sharon to check it was alright with her. Sharon immediately agreed and confirmed she would see us at twelve as she had a podiatrist appointment at three.

Saturday 5 August 2017

Writing challenge seven

For example on our first holiday together when I had been entranced at my first sight of bison while Frank wanted to visit the local bars, not enjoy the scenery. I just thought at that time that it was okay for our interests to differ. Friends on meeting him found him charming and likable. It was only six months into our marriage that his neglect started to become intolerable. He lost his job in the aerospace industry, began drinking in bars for long periods and would disappear for days at a time with no explanation.

Friday 4 August 2017

Writing challenge six

It was my friend Sharon, inviting us for a Chinese stir fry lunch. Kerry had looked hopeful when she heard the words stir fry so I quickly reassured her that she was invited too. As she finished her breakfast and went upstairs to get dressed, I reached for a spray cleaner to disinfect the kitchen floor, my mind wandering to think about my shiftless ex husband. Our wedding day had been so beautiful, a sunny day, a perfect setting and him looking very handsome in a traditional kilt. Of course, thinking lucidly there were already indications that our relationship was doomed.

Thursday 3 August 2017

Writing challenge five

My ex husband Frank was in prison after a search warrant had uncovered a stash of cocaine and a handgun in his new flat.  Irresponsibility had always been an issue in our marriage but I was still totally shocked when he was arrested. So at the present time Kerry and her unborn baby were the cornerstone of my existence.. At the height of summer my seasonal allergy to grass pollen was at it's worst so even after coffee I was not at my brightest, so when I felt a vibration in my pocket it took a few moments to register that it was my phone.

Wednesday 2 August 2017

Writing challenge four

Kerry's husband was a respected historian who had just embarked on a six month trip to China. He saw this as a springboard to further his career and showcase his talent to the prestigious university he was hoping would employ him. I saw his decision to travel to China during the latter stages of his wife's pregnancy as a flagrant disregard for her well being and safety, hence my offer for her to stay with me whilst he was away.

Tuesday 1 August 2017

Writing challenge three

I considered myself fairly self sufficient but the arrival of my scatty but lovable sister Kerry into my ordered routine, not to mention Yo Yo her puppy was creating a degree of chaos in my life. Of course Yo yo as a mere baby could not be considered culpable for this morning's stinky deposit. I called Kerry to suggest she needed to get up for breakfast and fifteen minutes later she appeared, pajama clad, her golden hair not brushed as yet, and the swelling of her stomach now becoming more evident with each passing week.