Chapter 29 #2
Helena thought about all the people she watched day in and day out at the café, going about their lives, depending on the moments of interaction they had with their friends for their sanity.
‘Humans are not meant to be alone. We are social creatures. The only cure for loneliness is connection with other people. And it doesn’t take much.
You just need to have one or two friends, people who you can count on, or call up and chat to if you are having a bad day. ’
‘I agree. There was no way for me to do that. If only there had been some kind of playgroup in the village. Somewhere to meet people. There was just the pub, which was only open in the evenings, and I couldn’t afford a babysitter anyway. And now even that has closed down…’
Helena pictured the Crooked Hook as it had been, with its inviting fairy-tale glow at the windows, a beacon of welcome on a dark night. ‘Imagine what a village like this would have been like in the old days.’
‘A completely different story. Everyone would have known each other for a start.’ Nathalie got up and rummaged through a stuffed to bursting cupboard. ‘I’m having a chocolate craving. I’m sure I’ve got some in here somewhere…’
An avalanche of snacks slid onto the worktop.
Nathalie swore as she scooped it all up and chucked it back in, slamming the door shut before it could escape again.
She turned, triumphant, with a bar of Galaxy in hand.
‘You know there used to be a post office and a village shop?’ she said, offering Helena a slab.
‘That would be so handy wouldn’t it, especially if you don’t drive.’
‘Why is chocolate so good?’ Nathalie groaned with pleasure as she helped herself to another piece. ‘The church would have been a massive community gathering place too. And the village hall – it used to have barn dances apparently.’
‘Now there’s only a church service here once a month, according to Margery.’
Nathalie nodded, helping herself to more. ‘Or less. No one really goes anyway.’
‘It’s such a shame. There is no sense of community anymore.’
‘And it’s not just here. It’s the same in all the local villages.’
Helena took another sip of her wine. ‘Working at the café has shown me the importance of having a place to go and be with people. You can sit in the shop for an hour or so, people watching. There’s an old lady who Ahmed always gives a free cup of tea to every day, knowing she can’t afford to pay for it herself.
She comes in for the company. And there are so many others like her.
People want to get themselves out of the house, to have a bit of conversation.
I know what it feels like to not have that.
I almost went completely mad without it. ’
‘If only there was a café in the village…’ Nathalie sighed. ‘Now that would be the dream.’
‘Wouldn’t it? It’s the elderly feeling lonely that really breaks my heart. Seeing the difference in Margery now from when I first got to know her in the summer, she is so much happier it is incomparable.’
‘I always thought she was a bit strange, if I’m honest… talking to herself as she did. I’m ashamed to admit it. I should have made an effort with her, I used to see her all the time out with the dogs.’
Helena felt a wash of shame course through her. To think she had done exactly that too. ‘Well, we are all guilty of that.’
‘But look at her now!’ Nathalie smiled. ‘She was the life and soul of the party at Christmas.’
A picture flashed into Helena’s mind of Margery dancing around the Christmas tree with Johnny, throwing her head back with laughter. ‘Having Johnny around has done her the world of good.’
‘He’s fab, isn’t he?’ Helena tried to detect whether there was anything more to this statement than met the eye, but Nathalie’s eyes gave away nothing. ‘And having you…’ Nathalie added.
Helena paused, mulling all this over in her mind. ‘There’s got to be something we can do. I feel so strongly about it. There has to be some kind of a solution.’
‘I guess you could contact Help the Elderly, do some home visits… host a monthly tea party or something?’ Nathalie suggested.
Helena nodded. ‘Mmmm. It’s a good idea. But I want to do more. I want to create a space that draws everyone together, like Coffee Stop.’
‘How about the village hall?’ Nathalie suggested. ‘It’s always seemed like such a massive waste of space to me.’
Helena pictured the big hall in the heart of the village, an empty space crying out to be used. In all the years she had been there she couldn’t think of a single occasion where it had even been open.
‘Oh my god. That is such a good idea. Why haven’t I thought of it myself?’ Suddenly Helena felt awash with adrenaline. ‘Do you think I could start a business? A community café?’
‘I don’t see why not. You’ve certainly got the experience.’
‘How would I even go about it?’
‘I guess you’d have to contact someone at the council? There must be others who’ve had the same idea. We can do some research.’
Enthused with their brainwave, Nathalie grabbed her laptop and they started Googling.
Similar projects appeared to be springing up all over the country.
It seemed that Helena wasn’t the only person keen to tackle the so-called ‘loneliness epidemic.’ Filled with inspiration, they brainstormed ideas, scribbling notes as they talked: regular playgroups for parents, community tea parties, volunteer-led shuttles between local villages, quiz nights, supper clubs, arts and crafts events, cooking classes, IT lessons for those who wished to be more computer literate, a Christmas fair.
The possibilities were endless. A thrumming energy coursed through Helena: that unique feeling that came with the seedling of an idea, a sense of possibility.
Perhaps she had finally found something she could do to help improve the world in some small way.
She felt filled with a sense of purpose, and more than that, a sense of hope.