A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey      Amy sat with her father-in-law, Will. She was a strong looking lady. Her short dark hair was attrctively styled. She worked part-time at a hairdressers and loved the work and the time to chat with other adults of various ages and sometimes older children.     A neighbour looked after Ben when she was working. Eva had said, with six kids of her own, one more made not much difference! Ben loved going there. Three of the children were as yet, too young for school. There was another toddler like Ben and the two slightly older girls who mothered both boys - when they were allowed.     A nurse hovered near the doorway of the two-bed room in the hospital. Will was obviously in pain, but trying to hide this from Amy.     Something about the man's stance set an alarm bell chiming in the woman's mind. She prayed silently.     "Stop that!" the man suddenly spoke, 'stop talking to your God!...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     Moira next door smelt the smoke first. She hobbled outside, grabbing her stick. Martha, across the way had a phone now and she hurried to alert her.     But before she could, Jim's car drove up and he banged open the door and raced straight inside. The smoke was thick and disgusting, cloying and terrible.     Sensibly, he pulled back, calling his wife Amy to get help. Moira, shakily, pointed her in the right direction. People were gathering. Lucy ran up with an old baby blanket. "Dad," she yelled, though he was standing right there, "tie it round your face. They showed us at school. Keep low," she added and began to cry. But Jim was gone, crawling. Dimly, he heard sirens, but was focusing all his strength on  locating his father. His mum had just died. Now this.     Swiftly, he reached his dad's chair. Flames were flickering, but it was smoke that had overcome his dad. He lolled, unrespons...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     She saw now her mum was gone. Those had been her last words. Her last thoughts for Peggy..... As she left to call the doctor from a phone box, the wee girl across the road waved. Peggy had no idea the prayers her mum had prayed would lead to the child one day marrying a mighty man of God. A warrior.     1960     Elsie was sad. The stroke had robbed her of speech. She knew the end was near, but had no regrets really. Will had wanted more children at first, but not after Jim got so sick.     It had been a hard road for them both at the time. Doubts flickered like flashes of light in her mind. Was she good enough for God? Her two oldest grandchildren came in. Both had tiny balls of polystyrene decorating their pullovers. Inwardly she chuckled. In the Waiting Room there was some kind of display in a bowl surrounded by the pellets.     Her tongue felt awful in her mouth and came out a litt...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     Alice Thornton saw the small family leaving across the street. She had prayed for them for years. Her two sons, Philip and Stephen had been killed in the war. Somehow she had held on to her faith in God.     Alf, her husband had become quiet and withdrawn. He had owned the grocery store, where Will had worked. Slowly he had slipped away from her and from life. Alice had borne his death with fortitude and courage. But the pain never lessened. Reading the Psalms of God in the Bible had helped.     Others had suffered before her, especially Jesus who had died on a cruel Cross. Jesus had died for her. She knew and believed that He, Jesus, would still have gone to the Cross even if there had been only her in the world. Unlike other faiths, Jesus had RISEN from the dead!     Some hours later, Peggy knocked on the door. Sighing, she let herself straight into the front room. All the houses here were bu...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     1955     Lucy ran up the steps with her brother Johnny. They both knocked. Dad and mum were following with baby Ben.     Little Grandma opened the door, smiling so wide, her grey-white hair tied up in her usual hairnet. Her wide glasses magnified her lovely eyes. She hugged them until Johnny squirmed away and ran to the toybox.      Grandad was in the kitchen, sat at the small table. He was polishing a beautiful silver bracelet.          The little girl was stunned with wonder. Grandad said he made it for her. Silver robins were on the farthings. The coins were worth a quarter of a penny, half a halfpenny. "That sounds so funny," said Lucy, who loved robins. "Grandad, did the robins like the war?" Grandad thought back to the mud, the broken trees, the explosions - and gulped slightly.  "No, God put them somewhere safe."  Lucy thought, "then did God help ...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME   By Tessa Harvey     The years passed and the boy grew. At first he played only with Maureen and Mary, the little girls from next door. Mrs. Keefe always welcomed him warmly and he was sometimes allowed to stay over after school until nearly bedtime.      Gradually Jim made friends with other boys and they would kick balls around the long street. If there was trouble, Jim looked so young he was never thought to be a willing participant. Years later, he would laugh about that with his own daughter.     As a teen, he would go out with his mates. Now he towered over his small mother, but he always respected his parents. His mum would call after him as he went to the pictures or to dances: "Be good! Have a nice time!" Naughtily, he would yell back "Make up your mind," and laugh as the lace curtains twitched up and down the street, their owners watching, listening, smiling or frowning. And away he would whistle.   ...

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     Elsie stared up at the big man standing by the door, clearly anxious to leave, looking at the latch, shuffling his feet, hefting his black leather medical bag.     Moving back into the room a little, the doctor spoke slowly and clearly as though to deaf persons.     Will was agitated, struggling to contain his anger. He came from a good Scottish family. They owned a small glove-making factory. His wife was a veritable queen to him. They were neither stupid or dull. But a doctor had power. They did not. Will hung his head a little, weary. It had been a long day in the shop, serving, keeping tally, checking the shelves, ordering.... He felt defeat nibbling at his courage.     But Elsie, five foot two inches, glared up at the doctor. Her voice took on the lilting music of her Welsh forbears. "No, no hospital! I will nurse our son. He will not die alone in a cold strange bed." She saw her Will nod....

A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME  By Tessa Harvey     Moira was sat on her doorstep, smoking. She looked tired, her wrap-around apron wrinkled and smudged.      "Ow do, Mr. D?" she greeted him cheerily, grinding out her home-rolled cigarette and pocketing half for later. "Got trouble?" For it was obvious the man was distressed. He explained.      "You can't go round. You have bairns of your own, Mrs. Keefe, but if you hear crying or anything, tell them I'm coming back. Call out only, mind."     He turned hastily, but not before the street light betrayed his tears. Her two little girls poked their heads out around her. "Is the wee lad badly, then?" whispered the elder child.     Their mother hustled them inside, her heart aching. She could't help, though she wanted to. Mr. D had thought of that. Most diseases were contagious. They only have the one, she thought. Please God, don't let him die.     The doctor was annoyed...

 A TRUE STORY - LOST IN TIME By Tessa Harvey MANCHESTER 1927     "Come on Jim. Hurry!"  "I can't, mum, I can't." The four year old sounded scared, but his Welsh-born mother was used to obedience.     "Now! Get down now. I am not telling you again." Her tone softened. "Come on, lad. It's only church - nor school until you are five. Look, I'll come and help."           Tired, Elsie climbed the first four of the steep stairs, somewhat stiffly. Rheumatism also had claimed her, a demanding foe. She fought bitterly and long.     Her son was sweating and pale. "Nobbut a fever,  boy. Here, I'll give you a piggy back."           Awkwardly, the forty four years old sat on the worn middle strip of stair carpet just below her only child. She reached behind for the little boy's legs to pull him onto her slim back. Then her face spasmed in horror. The child literally could not move, his small lim...