Gossip with Anne and Susanne
GOSSIPING: The writer with Anne and Susanne
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THEATRE: "Ah Henry, let's have the birthday party, why not?"
said the irrepressible Elaine after her kiss to me full of bacon, butter
and lipstick. "Of course, why not ?" said the two sisters, almost in
unison.
"Would two bottles of wine do?" I said smiling my birthday best. "A
little gin would do no harm." Said Anne, the elder sister. "Okay, gin
and wine it will be. Any food ?" I rejoined. "Oh, no, food is on the
house !" That was Susanne, the younger sister, who was petting her
favourite cat.
So that was settled. I went into my room, took out my hanky and wiped
the bacon, butter and lipstick out of my lips and cheeks and settled
down to check on the state of my bank balance. There was a little over
45 pounds, ten of which had to go as lodging fees. I had 35 pounds left.
Ten would be sufficient for a couple of bottles of wine and a small
bottle of gin.
Twenty five pounds would suffice till I got back to London and drew
my last weekly allowance. I came out, happy and ready for the day's
program. The 'girls' were almost on their way to the lecture hall.
"Wait, wait for the birthday boy.!" I shouted and joined them in a quick
trot.
The birthday party was not bad either. Anne and Susanne had prepared
a special dinner of some typical 'Stratford' dishes. The girls partook
of a little wine. The two sisters and I did justice to the gin, mixed
with lemon. We chatted late into the night.
Anne and Susanne, the two sisters from Stratford were 'authorities'
on Shakespeare in a way. That means they knew not only all about
Shakespeare as a boy and young man in this backwoods village, but also
about all the goings on in the present day Shakespeare country for the
past 40 years or so.
They had housed many paying guests in their home over the years and
some of them had become celebrities on the stage and screen in later
years. They knew all the gossip and tit bits about the private lives of
almost all the 'Shakespeare personalities' so to say.
They knew who had begun their romances in Shakespeare country, which
romances survived and which ones failed. Anne, the elder sister, was
almost a repository of such information.
They had seen practically all the Shakespeare fare in Stratford from
their very childhood and Anne could deliver very knowledgeable
information about the actors, actresses, directors and other such
celebrities that had graced Stratford-upon-Avon with their presence over
the years.
I was almost tempted to ask them how they had managed to remain
spinsters in spite of so many visitors in their very home, but decorum
and sanity prevailed - in spite of the gin!
Hay roofing
Our stay in Shakespeare country was coming to an end. The last two
days were spent visiting the many Shakespeare sites such as his home,
Anne Hathaway's home, and lastly, the Bard's grave. Most homes here were
still thatched with a kind of hay roofing - except that the thickness of
the thatching was much more than in our homes in our villages.
The overall look was also much neater. The Shakespeare home consists
of a small upper storey and the living area downstairs. The first thing
that meets your eye as you climb the rather narrow flight of steps, is
the cradle that had held baby William Shakespeare.
The upper area has a couple of poster beds and other wooden
furniture. The floor is also set with thick wooden planks. The whole
structure reminded me of an old Walawwa of our own past. Anne Hathaway's
home is not too far away from the Bard's home, but I cannot remember
many details of it.
What surprised us most was the site of Shakespeare's grave. We
expected it to be a well guarded very elaborate structure. It was, in
fact a very simple stone pillar under a canopy of trees that marked the
place the great Bard had been laid to rest.
The place evoked no wonder or fear in the onlooker's mind. Instead it
made one at peace with nature and this great man of the earth. The
brief, humorous verse cut into the pillar itself is a master stroke
either composed by the Bard himself or someone else who knew him well:
Good Friend for Jesus For Beare
To Digg the Dust Encloased Heare
Bleste Be Y Man Y Spares The Stones,
And Curst Be He Y Moves My Bones
What one expects in a hallowed place like this would be some epitaph
of great weight and wonderment. It appears that the great Bard was
laughing at death itself and that he wanted to identify himself not as
nobleman but as a commoner of his times.
Deep reverence
Looking at his tomb I felt a deep reverence in my heart for this man
of the earth. I marvelled, as many millions on this earth do, about this
unique man.
How did a simple boy from these backwoods, without even the benefit
of a 'proper' education, become the most venerated, the most versatile,
the most prolific man of letters that our world has ever known ? From
where did he find the enthralling language, metaphor and rhyme of his
poems and his plays ? How did this simple man's head cull such endearing
and enduring figures of speech ? Such mastery of language ? Surely, it
is one of the miracles of the world - perhaps the only one - this
unfathomable man called William Shakespeare.
And so, my sojourn in this hallowed land was coming to an end. I
believe all of us, meaning our little group of four women and one man
who had come 'in search' of one of the greatest men this earth has
produced, were feeling a kind of 'content-sadness' at this parting which
I could express well enough only in my own language - with the phrase 'Pahan
- Sanvega'.
I would be getting back to London, tomorrow. And then, back home - my
God, Home ! I forgot to add here that my friend, Ranee Weerasingham from
our High Commission in London, also joined us in Stratford half way
through our stay and also shared the upper dormitory with the girls. She
became very friendly with the girls and once, even dressed them in saree
for one of our functions - perhaps the farewell function.
Fortunately I have a picture of the event with Maria, Ranee, Agnes
and Gugumus in Indian attire. I am not sure where Elaine was when we
took the picture. Perhaps she held the camera!
We were seated in the coach that was taking us back to our lodging. I
was imagining my flight that would take me back home. Avon is a
beautiful place, especially in the summer.
But to me my own little land was even more beautiful. In a day or two
I will be seeing from above, the beloved coconut palms swaying in the
wind. I will be seeing the lush green woodlands. I will be seeing the
bubbling shores of my country, as we dive to land.
As a mist covered my sight at the thought of home, I felt a soft
pressure on my hand. It was my friend Agnes Khol. She is seated next to
me. I see her through the mist in my eyes.
"I am going home too, tomorrow", says she. "Isn't it a wonderful
thing ?" I see that she is blowing her nose into a tiny little hanky
frilled with delicate lace. "We too make such beautiful lace in our
country." I tell her. If ever I come to Germany I will bring a whole
roll of it for you."
Agnes stops blowing her nose, smiles enchantingly, puts her hand
across my shoulder and leans softly on me. "I am trying out a bit of
home comfort." She says mischievously and hastens to add.
"But only up to the lodgings. Don't you get any foolish ideas.!"
"It's a long time since I have shed my foolishness." I tell her feeling
the comfort of the fullness of her shoulder...
The very next day we bid goodbye to the two sisters and headed our
ways. I came back to London, to my room at Fitzroy square [which the
Harrows thankfully kept for me] and made preparations to get back home.
I visited the British Council and the British Drama League to say
goodbye, collected my last allowance, made a few purchases and packed my
bags. During the nine months I had collected all kinds of little
souvenirs, curios and little gifts, items for home and presents for my
friends etc. So there was no last minute 'rush'.
I bought a few cute miniatures of a London double-decker, a couple of
vintage cars which are collectors' items that most visitors to London
purchase. There are really cute little things which were sold at one
pound each at that time. I still have one or two such items in my
collection. Some, I am afraid, have been lost or pilfered.
My head was so full of getting back home, I hardly remember even
getting into the Heathrow Airport. Somehow, I remember a small incident
at customs clearance. I had not verified my passport [No.55555] and had
not noticed that my visa for U.K. had expired by just a few days - I had
been allowed a visa for three months.
My visit to Stratford had stretched my stay for a couple of days
beyond that. The customs man - a nasty old bald head - pointed out that
I had 'overstayed' my visa and that I had committed a punishable
offence.
I was flabbergasted. I told him that I was leaving London right now
and that, as far as I was aware, had committed no offence. When he
started becoming even more nasty I cooled down - I did not want any
problem like not being able to catch that flight - and told him as
sweetly as possible that I may have committed a mistake unwittingly,
that I had come here on a British Council program for overseas students
etc. etc.
The word 'British Council' spelled magic. He cooled down visibly. If
I was good enough for the British Council, surely, I was good enough for
him. He promptly stamped my passport allowing exit and let me go after
politely reprimanding me that I should be more careful with 'procedure'.
I promised I would and proceeded towards the sweet airplane that was
going to bring me back home!
Thought of the week
I wish to record my humble congratulations to all the athletes taking
part in the SAF Games being held here right now. I congratulate them
once again for not getting goose pimples over the domestic situation
here, and running away like some of the cricketers did - which in any
case was a thorough wash out ! And thanks to the all knowing Cricket
Council for arranging matches in Colombo during this month of rain!
That is beside the point. When I see the hard work, dedication and
the sheer grit of the SAF participants - win or lose - my heart weeps
with joy. That young world is marvellous and that is how it should be.
I am certain that many more youngsters and children watching these
events will make up their minds to follow the example of those wonderful
young men and women who bring so much joy to their respective countries.
I was also dismayed to read a report in the news papers that a
potential Gold Winner had been so brutally maimed by SIX other young men
for reasons not known to us so far.
In fact there cannot be any reason for such cowardly conduct that can
be condoned under any circumstances. This only throws up a particularly
nasty and vicious trend in our country - that of utter cruelty and
vengeance which should not be allowed to escalate.
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