I hadn\u2019t seen him for a long time, over a month, considering that we only live a few minutes apart. I had no reason to see him, of course, my impression being that he was fit and well and busy. He had no reason to see me, either, I imagine. I wondered for how long he would be able to stick it. After all, we were due to see \u2018Don Giovanni\u2019 in another month\u2019s time. He had invited me for that two or three months ago.<\/p>\n
One morning as I returned from the dentist, I found a letter which had been delivered by hand. I recognized the writing and was curious what he would have to say. It turned out to be a tale of lament and woe written on a scruffy piece of paper. He wrote he had refrained from making a \u2018fair copy\u2019, because, he said, \u2018this muddle is the true me\u2019. I was highly amused and went about sorting him out :<\/p>\n
1\u00b0 He accused me of having withdrawn my affection from him.<\/p>\n
2\u00b0 He told me I had \u2018almost brutally\u2019 returned a \u2018modest and harmless token of his
\naffection\u2019, referring to the previously mentioned silver chain and heart. He must have
\nhad second thoughts about \u2018affection\u2019 on its own, for he had added in a scribble \u2018and
\ngratitude\u2019.<\/p>\n
3\u00b0 He stated we had seen \u2018practically nothing of each other\u2019.<\/p>\n
4\u00b0 He said he couldn\u2019t guarantee to keep his relationship with me \u2018strictly free from all
\nemotional overtones\u2019, such had been, so he wrote, my stipulation. For this reason he
\nhad kept away from me \u2018with unaccustomed exertion of will-power\u2019.
\nI laughed aloud reading this and thought I would have to congratulate him on his
\nefforts.<\/p>\n
5\u00b0 He expressed hope of \u2018gradually mastering his feelings\u2019 and made a harsh remark
\nabout people who had told him, a widower, \u2018ad nauseam\u2019 that Time was a great healer.
\nHe didn\u2019t seem to like this saying very much, especially not with respect to his
\n\u2018emotions\u2019 concerning me. However, passing on to the next and culminating point of his
\nletter…<\/p>\n
6\u00b0 … he had \u2018reluctantly decided\u2019 to cancel his evening at the opera with me. The exact
\nreason he gave was the following :
\n\u2018… I could not sit next to you … without certain feelings and emotions welling up inside
\nme and no doubt over-spilling\u2019.
\nThe eloquence of the imagery used in this sentence sent me into fits of laughter and I
\ndecided I wanted to see him.<\/p>\n
He pretended to be reluctant when I telephoned to invite him for a cup of tea. He was only accusing himself, not me at all, he protested. I was glad he saw things the right way and said \u2018excellent\u2019. Eventually, cutting a long story short, I asked, did he want to see me or not ? He seized the opportunity, thus forcing me to give up any idea of listening to music, and agreed to be there after lunch.<\/p>\n
He came and to put him at ease I kissed him lightly. Then I gave him my latest little essay to read while I was making tea in the kitchen. I also had an apple-pie left over from the previous day which he seemed to enjoy with a good appetite, probably not having had any lunch.<\/p>\n
Why had I asked him to read this particular piece of writing, he wondered first of all. It was about my recent conversation with Johnie and his wife. No doubt I assumed, so he said, that he was hurt. He certainly wasn\u2019t, he said, but was interested by my idea of \u2018being hurt\u2019. I answered, this was not the case really. There was something else. He singled out the term \u2018sexual attraction\u2019, calling it \u2018quite good, clear and suitable\u2019. I should have known he would go for that and not the question on the next page. We talked about sex quite a lot. I don\u2019t know why he insisted on calling it \u2018emotions\u2019. Where does he keep his emotions, anyway? He thought, he said, one\u2019s heart was the place for that… I referred to the \u2018over-spilling\u2019 part of his letter. The penny dropped pretty quickly and he pretended to be shocked, about my imagination, I expect, but pleased really, with himself no doubt, because he sat down again, a broad grin on his face. I evoked the idea of him being married to me. What would he think to that ? \u2018Dreadful thought!\u2019 he said spontaneously, arms crossed over his chest and looking disgusted.<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t take this as a personal insult and pursued the idea of the grapes that hang too high for the fox. How alluring, how mouth-watering! There may have been, however, a very slight chance that the fox\u2019s final conclusion concerning their quality was pretty near the mark. Of course, he will never find out, not by trying them, anyway. New Friend didn\u2019t like that prospect …<\/p>\n
I told him next what sort of books children between eleven and fourteen years of age prefer to read. I had drawn my information from a newspaper article which suggested that \u2018sex\u2019 was the one subject of interest. Having read one of these books myself, I was able to go into detail. New Friend was totally surprized, profoundly shocked and utterly disgusted. He thought I had a tough job on my hands with two teenage daughters. How will you manage? he asked, I expect you will. You normally seem to. I thought to myself \u2018by setting an example\u2019. However, this idea was far from his mind …<\/p>\n
He went a bit over the top when he said bye-bye. I realized I wouldn\u2019t have to kiss him anymore. I don\u2019t want him to \u2018over-spill\u2019 for my sake.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I hadn\u2019t seen him for a long time, over a month, considering that we only live a few minutes apart. I had no reason to see him, of course, my impression being that he was fit and well and busy. He had no reason to see me, either, I imagine. I wondered for how long […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reading-aloud-2"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t