Chapter 2 #2
‘Say hello to Ms Lachlan, class,’ Belle said as each of the ten children chose a chair to pull out, a few of the braver kids vying for the spaces at the top of the table closest to Edina.
‘Aye, don’t be shy.’ The elderly woman beamed, her cheeks rosy with excitement. She waved her hands, encouraging the children to sit as they chorused a loud hello.
‘As I told you earlier, we’re here to write and decorate our Christmas lists for Santa.
It’s the fifth of December already so we need to make sure they have plenty of time to reach the North Pole.
Ms Lachlan was so excited when I told her what we had planned that I asked if we could come here so she could join in and write a Christmas list too,’ Belle explained.
‘Aye, I haven’t written to Santa for years!’ Edina said, grinning at the children as they sat.
Belle had had the idea of moving the lesson to the castle after their conversation a few days before.
She’d been determined to do something to brighten up the older woman’s life.
In the last week she’d seen how lonely Edina was.
While she spent some time in the village, most of her days were spent alone within these four walls.
So Belle had arranged a last-minute trip to the castle, delivering the consent forms to each of the children’s parents herself over the weekend.
She yawned and rolled her shoulders, wondering when she’d last slept for more than five hours.
‘We practised writing letters last week so you should know what to do. Can anyone tell me what we should put first?’ Belle supressed a grin when Bonnie and Lennie McGregor, the blonde, blue-eyed twins, both bounced up and down, waving their hands in the air and grinning at Edina when she put hers up too.
‘Lennie?’ Belle asked, promising herself she’d pick Bonnie next when the little girl’s smile dimmed.
‘Dear Santa Cause!’ Lennie shouted at the top of his voice.
‘That’s almost right, it’s Santa Claus, C.L.A.U.S.
’ Belle spelled out the last word slowly as she encouraged both of the parent helpers to join the children at the table.
‘Remember, you need to think carefully about what it is you’d most like for Christmas.
I’m sure you’ve all got ideas for toys, which is great.
But remember, you can add other things to your list. They don’t all have to be physical things – something you can touch or feel – you might want to ask for something you’d like to see happen in the village, at school, your home or even to someone else.
’ For a brief moment Belle’s mind was whisked back to when she was eight, when she lived in Kenya with her mam and da.
Her mam had always insisted they write to Father Christmas on the first of December, to give the letters plenty of time to arrive.
But while Belle remembered once asking for the latest Lego truck she’d seen in a magazine and for some blue princess shoes to go with her sparkly dressing-up dress, her mam had written about the children in the orphanage where she volunteered, detailing their need for medicine, writing equipment and nutritious food.
Belle frowned; she could still remember feeling guilty when she’d found out.
‘I want a sister,’ Bonnie declared, her eyes narrowing as her brother began to write slowly, taking care with the letter ‘D’, probably so he could earn extra brownie points with Belle. The twins constantly competed for her attention and keeping them both happy was a juggling act.
‘Aye, I always wanted a sister, or a brother would have been grand.’ Edina grinned and picked up a red pencil.
‘But I think it might be a bit late to ask for one now.’ The older woman had bloomed in the short time the children had been in the castle.
This morning at breakfast, after Tavish had carried her into the kitchen and Belle had made her tea and toast, Edina had looked pale and she’d glanced around the room as if she wasn’t sure if she should be there at all.
Belle wondered again exactly how many visitors Edina usually received.
How many hours she must have spent alone in the huge cavernous rooms since her husband had passed.
And why was her grandson taking so long to visit?
Belle had been here for a week now and Jack hadn’t called once.
Belle suspected Edina lived a lonely life.
Her mantelpiece was hardly filled with Christmas cards – she’d only received one, and that had come from Morag Dooley who ran the post office in Lockton.
‘Are you writing a list, Miss?’ Nessa MacLeod pushed her long blonde hair out of her face as she leaned on the table and Belle shrugged. She hadn’t written one in twenty-two years – not since her mam had died.
‘Aye.’ Belle nodded and sat in one of the empty chairs at the opposite end of the table to Edina. She stared at the piece of paper, before picking up a pencil.
Dear Santa, she wrote.
I’m sorry I haven’t written for such a long time, but I hope everything is good with you, Mrs Claus, all the elves and reindeer at the North Pole.
She looked up as Nessa nudged her arm. ‘If I ask Santa to make me Mary in our school nativity, do you think he could?’ Her blue eyes were clear and Belle swallowed.
She’d done nothing about organising the Christmas play for the school yet and time was running out.
She’d avoided Robina for most of last week, aware the headmistress would demand an update, but she hadn’t even had a chance to read Benji’s notes.
There were just so many things to do. She’d promised Kenzy she’d go for a drink with her in the pub this evening and wondered if she could get out of it before dismissing the thought.
She’d find a way to fit it all in, she always did.
‘Aye, there’s no harm in asking,’ Belle said softly. Nessa would be a good choice for Mary; she made a mental note. ‘We all know Santa may not give us everything on our Christmas list, so think carefully about what you most want,’ she advised the class.
‘You know where Santa lives?’ Nessa asked, pouting as she leaned over to read Belle’s letter.
‘Aye.’ The post office gave out an address each year and Belle knew if she posted the cards in plenty of time, Santa would also reply.
‘Don’t forget to put your name and the school’s address in the top-left corner of your letter like I showed you on Friday.
’ She raised her voice above the chattering children.
‘I’ve written it on some cards which you’ll find in the centre of the table – just copy it and that way Santa can reply. ’
‘He writes back?’ Edina glanced up from her letter.
‘Aye,’ Belle assured her. ‘Be sure to include the address though. You can put Evergreen Castle on yours if you like.’
‘What do I write next?’ Doug Wallace, one of the shyest children in Belle’s class, went scarlet as everyone turned to stare at him.
‘There’s a certain order to these things,’ Belle said.
‘Aye,’ Edina jumped in. ‘Start by telling Santa your name and age,’ she explained loudly, as Belle nodded at her to continue.
‘Tell him if you’ve been good; perhaps you could even let him know some of the nice things you’ve done.
For example’ – she tapped the red pencil against the white paper set in front of her – ‘I’ve told Santa that I’m seventy-seven.
I have a donkey called Bob who I usually visit every day, because he enjoys the company.
Recently I’ve been trying to find Bob a friend – I’m worried he gets lonely in his barn all by himself. ’ Her lips pursed.
‘I’m six,’ Lennie said loudly, shoving his sister away as she tried to read his letter. ‘Bonnie is too. We have the same birthday.’ He pulled a face. ‘I made my nana a card when she was in hospital and when she came home, she brought it with her. She told me it helped make her better.’
‘I made a card too.’ Bonnie frowned at her brother. ‘Mine had glitter on it and a picture of a princess. She told me it made her feel happy inside.’
Edina nodded seriously. ‘Then you should tell Santa about your cards. Those sound like very good deeds to me.’ The older woman went back to writing her list and Belle wondered what she might be asking for.
More visitors perhaps? She obviously adored having the children here and she was great with them.
‘You haven’t told Santa about any of the good things you’ve done,’ Nessa whispered to Belle. ‘Or told him how old you are. Did you forget?’ Her brow furrowed as she stabbed a finger at Belle’s letter.
‘Oh.’ Belle picked up her pencil again and wrote, I am thirty years old, adding the school’s address onto the top-left of the white paper. She tapped the pencil against her chin before writing.
This year I: raised over six hundred pounds so the village playground could be repaired; organised the spring and summer school fete; helped my best friend repaint her beauty salon; knitted twelve blankets for premature babies in Morridon Hospital; gave blood; adopted a penguin, mountain gorilla, donkey and a polar bear.
She paused, trying to remember if she’d forgotten anything. The list of good deeds seemed inadequate compared to all the life-saving work her da did.
‘Wow!’ Nessa gasped. ‘Santa will definitely give you a lot of presents. Now you need to tell him what you want. I asked for a pink canopy to go over my bed, like Bonnie has.’ She stabbed her pencil at her list. ‘How do you spell giraffe?’
Belle told her before turning back to her letter.
She stared at the page for a few minutes.
My Christmas list is, she wrote before looking up; Edina was scribbling something onto her paper.
The children were quiet now, a few thinking, some asking the parent helpers for ideas or assistance with spellings.
Belle watched them, feeling her insides warm.
Her life was already full enough; aside from wanting to see more of her da, there wasn’t much more she could want.
Besides, there was always that uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach she had to contend with whenever she asked for anything. Like she didn’t really deserve it.
‘You have to think of something,’ Nessa said, frowning.
‘Okay.’ Belle picked up her pencil.
1. I want the MacGavin family to find their forever home.
2. I want my best friend to find someone who makes her happy.
Belle didn’t write Kenzy’s name, aware Nessa might read her list again.
3. I want Ms Lachlan to recover from her ankle injury quickly and for her grandson to visit.
She glanced at Nessa who was still engrossed in her own letter.
4. I want Bob to find a special friend.
So far the donkey and Jinx hadn’t hit it off. Not that they’d had much of a chance – the cat had spent most of his time burrowed under Belle’s bed, refusing to come out aside from at mealtimes or for a quick dash to the litter tray. What else did she want? Belle grimaced before writing.
5. I want my da to come home for Christmas.
He’d not left Kenya for years. When Belle had been younger, just after her mam had died, he’d told her the children he worked with needed him more than she did.
He’d been right, of course. Her godmother had given her plenty of attention while she’d been growing up and Belle had adored her.
But Annie had been a doctor with a million other important pressures on her time, which meant Belle had often felt in the way.
‘There’s not much on your list,’ Nessa grumbled, leaning over Belle’s letter again. ‘You need to add something else. My mam says if you can’t get to six, you’re not trying hard enough.’ She hmphed, turning back to her letter.
Belle stared at the blank paper.
6. I want someone to…
Her pencil drifted over the page as she thought about the thing she most wanted. She wrote put me but then scribbled it out, shaking her head and putting the pencil down. She didn’t need anything. Not even that.
* * *
Keep reading here!