Chapter 18
Nine weeks was not a long time for Lucille to wind up her affairs and vacate the government premises that had been her home since arriving in the town as a bride for what seemed so long ago, but right after the departure of her in-laws she had applied herself to this task.
One of the first things she had done was get in touch with Mrs. Atkins, whose assistance and advice made the transition from the secure life of a Senior Civil Servant’s wife to ordinary citizen as smooth as possible. With her help she had been able to sell all unused linens, the leftover wedding gifts and the furniture, except for the baby’s crib, dresser, pram and her sewing-machine with its table.
She had turned over all Neville’s uniforms and accoutrements to Corporal Miguel; gave some of her everyday clothes to Miss Gladys and Iris, and sold most of her evening clothes; disposed of the bulk of her china and cutlery by sale or to a few acquaintances, retaining only a minimum for her own use, aiming at leaving their government quarters before the deadline given, if possible, and arranging for delivery of all items sold on vacating those quarters.
She had kept a lookout for a small rental house, again enlisting Mrs. Atkins’ help, and suspended for a time most of her church activities except for attendance at Sunday morning and evening services, taking Jewel with her everywhere she went. During service Jewel was quiet and well-behaved when she was not sleeping, and, afterwards, their fellow parishioners would stop to express their condolences from time to time as Lucille sat on the bench in the churchyard, as was her old habit.
The new sexton was the elderly caretaker of the school and, while he could never replace Mr. Lino in the eyes of the parishioners, was a quiet and cooperative soul, who arranged the chairs in the last row of the church one space short so she could fit the baby’s pram there and avoid obstructing the passage of congregants at communion time.
She had taken stock of her resources and believed that with her secondary education, plus some knowledge and experience of book-keeping, she might be able to get a job in the Civil Service to support herself and Jewel; but, with the whole experience with the authorities over the matter of the loss of the artefacts and Neville’s death, Lucille had become wary about a future in the employ of the colonial government.
There was an ambiguity in her mind about being associated with what she had begun to perceive as an alien entity, having serious doubts that the government’s and the country’s interests were identical, an idea present more and more in the consciousness of herself and other colonial subjects.
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One Sunday morning Matron’s sister had come over and sat next to her on the bench and, after sympathizing about Neville’s passing, had asked her how she was managing, mentioning that Mrs. Atkins had told her that she had only a short time to vacate her present quarters and enquiring whether she was making any progress in her search for suitable housing. When Lucille had confessed that so far she had not been successful, Miss Millicent had made the offer of putting her up for as long as necessary, as she had plenty of space and lived alone.
Lucille had been overwhelmed by this generous and unexpected offer from a perfect stranger and could only express hasty and grateful thanks. Miss Bertram, as most people called her, had always greeted her and Neville at the end of services, but this was the first time she had stopped and spoken; and, before leaving, she had hailed Jewel, who had received the greeting with her usual shy, close-mouthed smile.
When all arrangements had been made and she was about to leave the Police Compound, Lucille had received a letter in her father’s handwriting from the capital, expressing sympathy on his and her mother’s behalf, explaining that he was out of town at the lumber camp and had just learnt of the tragedy; and that her mother had not been able to travel by sea to attend the funeral. In the letter he had said he looked forward to her return home and offered her whatever financial help she needed.
Lucille had replied to this letter saying how overjoyed she had been to hear from him, that for the time being she would be remaining where she was but would contact him if and when there were any changes in her plan.
On the Saturday after receiving the letter she had quietly transferred her luggage and few pieces of furniture to Miss Bertram’s house, transported in the Police Department’s newly acquired vehicle, generously provided by Corporal Miguel along with two constables to assist; and after an emotional parting from Miss Gladys, Iris and Kent, she and Jewel had climbed into the cab of the vehicle and left the Police Compound for good.
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Lucille related how she found Matron’s sister to be one of the most generous human beings she had ever come across, and that only her conscience had prevented her from “taking root” in her home. She had been allotted a large, fully-furnished bedroom next door to the study, accessible through a door from that room that was kept locked, as well as from the hall. Miss Millicent, as she was invited to call her, had explained that it was her nephew’s room when he was in the country, but that he had now started medical studies in the United States and would not be spending summer holidays at home for quite some time.
In the room there had been ample space to hold her few pieces of furniture, the baby’s and her clothes; and she had offered to purchase and place a single bed in it so as to confine herself to the use of her own furniture as far as possible, to which Miss Millicent had agreed. Eventually she had created a small bedroom within the larger one and used the bathroom and only a tiny area of the large built-in closet, which had contained some of the nephew’s clothes. Only the purchase of bedding had been necessary, so she was able to put most of the funds received from the sale of her personal and household effects, along with the amount from Neville’s severance, into the government savings bank, after making a gift of cash to each of the three members of staff who had been so good to Jewel and herself.
Lucille said that whenever she offered to do any housework Miss Millicent reminded her that she was her guest, so she had had to take it on herself to anticipate such tasks as setting and clearing the table and washing the dishes in order to keep busy. Having helped her friend Virginia Holder with such tasks many times, they had come easily to her; and when Miss Millicent prepared light meals, sometimes she allowed her to work alongside her without protest.
Although reserved and quiet, Miss Millicent was very polite and conversed easily with Lucille about community concerns. Through this they were able to work together in different fund-raising and other projects, in the course of which Lucille was taught how to make all the local sweets and desserts, to decorate the church with flowers and plants from the beautiful garden on the property, etc. All the while, however, she had kept a lookout for modest housing so as not to overstay her welcome.
All heavy work such as the laundry, cleaning, cooking and shopping was carried out by a thirty-year- old Mestizo woman named Jessica Lopez, who came in Monday to Saturday from early morning and stayed until her particular tasks for the day were finished.
Mestizos are one of the country’s ethnic groups, (a mixture of Indian and Spanish), mostly from the northern districts. This lady was brought down south by her Creole lover and lived in the town with her baby son and her lover’s mother, after he had picked himself up and moved from the district, leaving her stranded there.
Together with Matron, Miss Millicent had done all the housework during their growing-up years, as her father had not believed in having servants; but when her parents had become ill, she could not manage everything by herself and take care of them as well, so she had had to employ outside help.
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When Jewel was in her seventh month, Abel had returned from his job on the surveyor’s work team, the camp having moved to another district, resuming his post as sexton and his various jobs in the community. There was enough work to go around, so he did not take bread out of anyone’s mouth and on a Saturday when he came to work cleaning Miss Millicent’s property, he and Lucille had resumed their acquaintance somewhat self-consciously.
When time had come for the midday meal they all, including the helper, ate together at the large kitchen table. Jewel was put to sit up in her pram, which was drawn up near to Lucille; and when Abel had greeted her had responded with a shy but open smile, which was unusual since Jewel tended to be pleasant but solemn with most people, saving such smiles only for her mother.
As time passed Lucille became more and more uncomfortable imposing on Miss Millicent’s generosity when she couldn’t find a small house to move into; her hostess reassuring her continually, however, that not only was she not in the way, but would be missed if she left as she was good company.
While staying there she had been afforded the opportunity to spend time in the study, which contained books, the one local newspaper and foreign ones, and periodicals and magazines of all description; and as she had only Jewel’s and her clothes to wash, apart from very light housework, she did a lot of reading whenever the baby was asleep.
One Saturday, as Abel worked on the outer edge of the property, Miss Millicent had asked casually if Lucille could see herself marrying again and settling down in the district. Not having a coy bone in her body, Lucille had replied that she liked the place to live but would have to take great care in finding a suitable partner with whom to settle down, as most men seemed to dislike her independent nature, which she wasn’t inclined to change.
The cleaning of the property, which was large, entailed several visits by Abel over a period of Saturdays, which meant their being in contact regularly. He addressed the ladies with the title “Miss” before their Christian names, thus, Miss Millicent, Miss Jessie and, eventually, Miss Lucille. He continued to be called Mr. Lino, the shortened version of his Christian name “Abelino”; and she became aware that she had subconsciously thought of him by the first syllable of that name, (using the Spanish rather than the Biblical pronunciation), although she too addressed him in public as “Mr. Lino.”
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Word had reached Lucille when Jewel was about eight months old that her father’s business was in trouble and that, being unable to get an advance from the bank, he had received a loan from Lincoln Holder. Knowing how her father prided himself on his ability to manage his business affairs, she had been distressed on his behalf. On the other hand, there had been some relief that the situation might have put a halt to the bleeding of its liquidity by amounts sent abroad to maintain her eldest brother over the years, realizing that only such a drastic situation could have relieved her father of the burden of supporting her two brothers who, without conscience, had accepted or demanded (through her mother) his financial support.
The news of the problem had come by word of mouth from those involved in the boat traffic up and down the coast; and while by this method the details were not always accurate, the gists of the stories were usually correct. In this case her father had written to say that she would probably be glad to learn that he now had her friend’s husband as a partner in the business, and that he was of great help in the daily running of the Works; and informing further that the senior Holders had turned over to him the amount they had put aside for Lincoln’s education in order for him to buy the partnership.
“God works in a mysterious way His wonders to perform,” is the popular line from a hymn quoted by Lucille in connection with this development. She felt that her father was now safe, knowing that not only was the business on a good footing, but that being accountable to a partner meant that spending of anticipated profits had to cease, making his life easier now that he could defend himself to his wife with a legitimate reason for being more careful. Mrs. Hendricks was of too practical a nature to kill the goose that was laying the golden eggs!
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Later that month Miss Millicent had surprised Lucille with the statement during a conversation that Mr. Lino wanted to marry and settle down, but was afraid of being considered presumptuous and high-minded because of the lady he favoured. This was an opportunity that Lucille could not miss, and her comment to Miss Millicent that money was not everything and that Mr. Lino did not know his own worth because of his humility, had served as the opening through which their feelings for each other had gradually found expression.
Lucille filled in the details of how matters had progressed from then on in a series of conversations between Abel and herself, often in the presence of Miss Millicent, whose opinions, although given discreetly, had contributed to their discussions.
She had eventually accepted Abel’s proposal to marry as soon as he could create living space more worthy of her, he had said, by adding an extension to his small house. He would start with the money he had saved while working at the survey camp, as he had had no expenses while there. When she had expressed a willingness to lend him the money when and if he needed more, his reply had been that he could not accept her offer but that she should not worry as he would find another way.
Miss Millicent had provided the solution by offering a loan to cover the balance needed, payable with his earnings looking after her property, to which he agreed on condition that she charged him interest and, thus, they had come to an agreement.
When Lucille questioned his refusal of her offer, yet accepting Miss Millicent’s, with his patron’s help he had been able to convince her that one was a business transaction while the other could have been seen as taking advantage of a personal relationship, a nicety which had increased her respect for him.
During her stay with Miss Millicent, Lucille said, she had treated her like a daughter and was kinder than her mother had ever been; and, further, Lucille had been greatly comforted at the discovery that it had been at Miss Millicent’s advice, after he had confided to her his growing affection for the Station Sergeant’s wife and his need to avoid breaking a commandment, that he had taken the job in the “bush” away from the town.
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Fortunately the expansion to his dwelling had not taken as long as she had feared, many hands making light work as the saying goes; and Abel had a multitude of friends whom he had helped over the years and who were happy to return the favour. Thus they were married in a small ceremony involving Mrs. Atkins and Miss Millicent as witnesses and had moved into their home by the time Jewel was fourteen months old.
Lucille reported hearing negative comments on the union coming from a few persons, her mother chief among them, but the negative comments were insignificant compared to the many good wishes from real friends. Of special delight had been receiving a letter from the Simpsons, now in their eighties, which arrived some months later from England accompanied by the gift of a Bible.
When we met face to face again there was a lot to cover, as Lucille enlarged on her life with Abel which, materially different from what she had been used to, had brought the emotional contentment she had longed for all her life.
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The house was small and cramped; there was no electricity; Abel had had to bring drinking water in buckets from Miss Millicent’s home two miles away and they had had to use well water for everything else; the windows of the house were made of wood, so they had to be kept closed during the rainy season, making the house hot and dark inside. When they were opened during the dry season they had to contend with mosquitoes, sand-flies and other insects.
Lucille had had to learn to cook and bake on a fire-hearth, which had entailed hunting, collecting and storing fire-wood. She had declared it a waste of time to list all the physical drawbacks to their way of life; but, through it all, and compensating for them, there had been the companionship of working together to improve their lives and that of the community and parish; and, most importantly, sharing the love of someone in whom she had complete trust.
Abel worked hard, leaving home for his milpa (farm) at four o’clock every weekday morning and not returning until late in the evening, when they had their big meal for the day, read by lamplight a chapter of the Bible or other material borrowed from Miss Millicent, cleaned up and went to bed by eight o’clock. Friday was baking day, when she made bread, bun, powder bun and Johnnycake to last the week; and either potato-pound, coconut crust or cassava cake for dessert on Sunday, which was a day of rest. Saturdays were spent by Abel doing the rounds of yard cleaning all day, while she did the washing and cooked dinner for Sunday.
Their meals were simple, made up of some kind of beans or peas, rice, game meat sometimes, chickens raised in the yard, corned fish on rare occasions, ground food (cocoa, sweet potato, yam, etc.), corn and vegetables and fruits grown in the yard or at the milpa.
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Gradual advances in their style of living, such as glass sash windows for the bedroom and main living area, a large kerosene-burning lantern and small one-burner Aetna (the stove taking its name from the popular brand), a can of pale blue interior paint – a gift which had spread to cover a fairly large area, brightening the inside walls, two empty galvanized drums to store rain water, etc. were cause for celebration – especially because of the sacrifices Abel had had to make to acquire them.
Abel had formally adopted Jewel, and over the years they had added three sons and one daughter to the family. Their first child together was the son born after Jewel’s second birthday, and named Alvin after her father. Then had come a daughter, Safira; Hezekiah, another son; and, lastly, Caleb, named after Rev. Simpson. Both daughters were given Lucille as their middle name, while the three boys carried Abelino as theirs. Jewel had ended up with two middle names, inviting the humorous warning not to let her go near water as the weight of her names might cause her to drown.
Mrs. Atkins had advised Lucille to take special care in training her first child, then the rest would be easier, as they would copy the pattern set; and she said the advice had been easy to follow, as Jewel had been exemplary to begin with, and any child who had Abel for a father was too blessed to be difficult. Only from her darker complexion and different features could it be noticed that she was not his biological child, as no one could detect any difference in the way he treated them all. If anything, Jewel, as the eldest, had had the edge over the rest, as Abel compensated her for the extra responsibility of assisting with caring for the younger children.
After Alvin’s birth her father had paid them a visit “to see how they were getting on,” he had said. In private he had offered to fund enlarging the house and providing greater conveniences; but, Lucille had said, she had been able to persuade him not to say anything about this to Abel, as she was quite willing to wait for any improvement until he could afford it; and her father had respected her position. Instead, he had ended up opening savings accounts for Jewel and Alvin for their education with a deposit of a hundred dollars each.
Lucille said she could not deny that their life was hard, and there were times, as happened in subsistence farming, when their produce was stingy, as she put it; but surviving had been a test of their resourcefulness, as she had learnt to put her hand to making money in different ways to help with their income.
She cheerfully related how she had gone about making bread and bun for sale after the birth of Safira. She had switched her baking day to Saturday and washed on Fridays. She started early in the morning, baking the first batch for sale and the second for home use. In between, she would deliver the first batch to Mr. Allen’s shop and buy groceries with the proceeds, returning in time to bake the second.
One Saturday, she said, she had fit months-old Safira and two-and-a-half year old Alvin into the back of the large pram, placed a small pillow between them and the flour bag of warm bread and bun, and taken the two-mile trip to town pushing the pram with Jewel, now nearly five years old, holding on to the handle. By this time Abel was well into his yard-cleaning and she was in a hurry to make the delivery to get back to do the second baking and cook dinner.
That day Mr. Allen’s shop was so full that he had asked her to wait as he was not ready for her yet. She had stood in line outside the shop wondering what to do, when Mr. Allen’s helper had brought a stool for her to rest a little. She had put Jewel to sit on the stool and turned to the people in line waiting outside the shop, when one of them asked why she didn’t sell the bread and bun to them while she waited.
Acting on the suggestion, she had asked the helper to sell her a few sheets of shop paper, someone had assisted in dividing it into smaller pieces for wrapping, and in no time the sale was on. As she could not handle the bread and the money at the same time, Jewel had been put into service to take care of her purse, receiving instructions how to give the change!
“You should have seen my little girl acting like a cashier!” she had said. “And that is her trademark; always ready to help and not afraid to attempt anything we put to her, often even volunteering.”
By the time her turn had come to enter the shop, Lucille had been sold out and ready to pick up her groceries.
In time, the business had developed to a stage where Mr. Allen’s helper came in a bicycle-cart to collect the bread and bun and she had started baking three times per week, the majority of people preferring “Creole” to “baker” bread.
Eventually, Lucille had started producing all the sweets Miss Millicent had taught her to make, selling in bulk to Mr. Allen and the Chinese shopkeeper, and was soon able to open a joint savings account at the government treasury in Abel’s and her name, as also one for each child (for their education) as they had made their appearance.
Miss Millicent had set some of the dried nuts off the coconut tree to take root, and when they were ready had made them a gift of a dozen, which Abel had planted at the back of the yard. In the meantime she had given a dozen “husked” nuts to Abel to take home every Saturday, which Lucille used in her sweet-making.
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One achievement, Abel’s particular triumph, marked their fifth anniversary, and it was what they called the “bath-house.” It was actually an extension to the width of the original kitchen addition, which had been raised above the ground to a level one step down from the main structure, and consisted of a shower slab eight inches off the extended floor. It had only outlet but no inlet plumbing, since water for bathing and the washbasin had to be carried from the kitchen faucet, fed from a small water tank given to Abel by one of his customers, which is how he described the various people using his services on Saturdays. The white basin and toilet bowl had also been gifts from another customer who had replaced his with new blue bathroom fixtures.
The government Health Inspector had supervised the construction of the septic tank and plumbing work, while Abel had provided the labour himself, along with friends, thereby having only to pay for materials.
Although not having a water and sewerage system in the district entailed a lot of makeshift work, Lucille said, she had gloried in the advantages of the new facility. It was true that they had to use water carried from the well to flush the toilet and had to take bucket showers, but it was such an improvement over what had gone before that they were overjoyed to have it.
Something that had threatened to spoil the gift which Abel had sacrificed to give to her and the children, not even using the facility himself until he had repaid Miss Millicent for the cost, was that people criticized him for hanging his hat higher than he could reach it!
It had been upsetting to hear anything said against Abel, and she had marvelled at his forbearance in neither reproaching anyone nor holding it against them for misjudging him; and had been relieved that he had answered his critics with the statement that it had been done out of love for his wife and family, and that he was willing to help anyone who cared to follow his example and do the same for theirs.
There had been other unpleasant reactions also. It had made people from his parent’s village envious that he had provided for his Creole wife what no woman in their village had ever dared to expect, causing a strong spirit of rivalry from that quarter.
Unfazed by criticism or opposition, however, Abel and Lucille had pressed forward in bringing improvements to the lives of family, friends, parish and town; and, for the present, we leave them at the forefront of community-building efforts, turning now to updates in the capital.
(Chapter 19 in next Tuesday’s Amandala.)