I'd just moved into the area so everything was new . . . nice to meet you, I'm Jeff Owen. I lived over . . . sorry, my wife and I lived in Toronto. I'm originally from the UK. Wiltshire. I've always wanted to be a solicitor. Sorry again, while I'm living here I suppose I'd better speak like you all do, 'lawyer'. We lived uptown in one of your high rise apartments. For a high-flier with money and a good head for business it's the perfect place to be. But for someone like me who's lived where there's plenty of open spaces and nature, it's crowded. So after a long, shall we say discussion, we decided to go back to where people are more homely. We purchased a house on a few acres out in Vancouver. It's nothing spectacular, just a three bedroom detached. A nice garden, back and front, with a few trees and a two car garage. The neighbours are pleasant and talk to you, not down at you. We hear the odd cat that should have gone into show business, but apart from that it's quiet. Mary, my wife, likes to cook, so whenever you pass the house you get all the delicious smells from a restaurant to a bakery. I'm biased, but I think she would give a few chefs a run for their money. Now don't get me wrong, we aren't poor, but we aren't rich either. Upper, middle, or low class is just another way to categorise people. People can be rich or poor and still be good. It seems the richer you get the more snobbish you become. Myself, I'm just working class and proud of it.
I often go out to explore the neighbourhood when I'm not at the office, so I had wandered a little off the beaten track where I live. I'd seen a park with some wooded area, so I had to explore. As I came closer, there was this old brick building that looked like it hadn't been worked on for awhile. As I was walking past it there were a couple of kids playing to the side near some trees, and two kids that looked like they had the world on their shoulders. As I walked past them the young girl asked if I had the time. I looked at my watch which said 1:30. After giving her the time, she said thank you and then spoke to the boy who was sitting on a patch of grass.
"Now why is a nice polite little girl sitting here and not playing with the others?" I said. Just as she was going to answer a woman came over to the railings where I and the kids were. She spoke to the two kids asking if they were okay.
"I'm Jeff Owen, my wife and I have just moved here, I saw the park and had to take a look," I said introducing myself.
"I'm Kathy, Kathy Walters. These little angels are Alan and Tracy. Seeing them with a stranger I was just checking that you are one of the good guys."
"Your son and daughter are a credit to you."
"I'm sorry, I should have explained, this is the local orphanage. These are two of six children that I have living here."
The reply caught me off guard. I mean to say it wasn't the answer I'd expected. "I'd better be off, I would like to see the park before I have to go and demolish some of my wife's cooking," I said laughing. "It was very nice to meet you all."
The little boy looked up and smiled. "Thank you, Sir," he said with a forced smile.
"It was nice to meet you both, Alan??"
"Yes, Sir. It was nice to meet you too." The little girl gave a smile and went back to talking to her brother.
The lady also smiled and I left. I passed the house again going home, but it was quiet. The smell from the kitchen was mouth-watering as I approached home. Mary had cooked lasagne, the best you could ever wish to taste. I told Mary about the park and said we would go later, if she had no work to finish. I should have said my wife's a teacher, a private teacher. She has fourteen students that she regularly teaches, spending about 2 hours per pupil. Some are local, some out of town. Today she was local, so her travelling was light. After we'd eaten, we went for a leisurely walk to the park. I told Mary about the orphanage, but she seemed occupied. "You okay?" I asked.
"I'm fine, dear." We walked around the park until we found a bench we could sit on.
"I've been thinking about giving up teaching. I get tired of travelling such long distances. Some days I spend more time on the road than doing my job."
Mary didn't need to work, but being an independent woman - well you know what I mean.
"But what would you do? You don't need to work, but would you be okay spending all your time as a housewife? For as much as I would love you to be home all day, I'm not sure you could do that." She changed the subject. After we talked for awhile it was time to make our way home. I was glad to see Mary did not have to work this coming weekend. I was hoping to go out for dinner, then the cinema.
Friday I rang the office to see if I was needed. No, came the reply, so I went to lunch, then drove back to the park. I parked as close to the entrance as I could, then got out of the car. As I got to the orphanage the two munchkins were sitting in the same spot as before. "What do we have here, are they now buying statues to decorate the house? Ah! Wait a minute, statues don't move? Oh no, it's Alan and Tracy!"
Tracy looked up and said "Hello." Alan stayed with his head down.
After spending a good hour exploring I went to go back to the car. As I passed the orphanage Alan and Tracy were talking to Mrs. Walters.
"We meet again." I said.
"Hello, Mr. Owen? I was just telling Alan that we may have found a teacher for him."
A little confused I asked, "Teacher?"
"I'm sorry, yes. Alan needs a special teacher. He's blind."
As soon as she spoke the words, Alan was up and running, shouting, "Why did you tell him?" Tracy went running after her brother.
Mrs. Walters was caught by surprise, "Alan," she shouted.
"I never realised that he was blind." I replied.
"I'm afraid so. They've been here for the past three years. Couples come to adopt and they'd take Tracy, but because Alan is blind he gets overlooked. I haven't the heart to split them up. They are brother and sister, after all, so I'm trying to get them housed together. They're at the maximum age couples will adopt. Well, Tracy is. Alan's nine, Tracy's ten."
Mrs. Walters excused herself and went looking for the pair. I couldn't help myself and followed. Alan and his sister were at the bottom of the garden sitting under what looked like an old oak tree. It would be a good guess to say he heard me walking towards him. Just as he was going to run again I spoke to him.
"Slow down, little fella, you could get hurt running off like that. So you're blind, eh? Well that puts you one up on me." His face turned towards me as if I was crazy. "That means your hearing is better than mine, and probably you can smell better than me or anyone else. And I don't care if you're blind or not."
"You don't!!"
"Nope. Would you still be Alan if you could see??" He nodded. "Hello, Alan, nice to meet you."
With disbelief written all over his face he spoke. "People walk past me when they know I can't see. They ignore me. They even talk to my sister, but not me." Crying, he said, "Why not me??" The last three words broke my heart. He cried for awhile, then hugged his sister as hard as he could.
"Here's the deal." He turned around, his eyes still moist. "If I see you I'll talk to you. You smell me you talk to me." I said as I put my hand on his shoulder, "Deal?" He was a little apprehensive, but did give a slight smile, then gave a nod of his head to agree. "I don't smell this bad all the time," I said laughing. "I'm sorry, I have to go, but remember you have to say "Hi." His sister answered yes. I'm not sure he knew what to do. This seemed a new concept, so yes, I suppose he was confused, or was it he just didn't want to get his hopes up.
That night at home I couldn't help but remember a song that always made me sad when I heard it. Nobody's Child. The words to the song are damning, but that gave me an idea. Music store were my last thoughts as I drifted off to sleep.
The following day during breakfast I told Mary about young Alan. She was as moved as I was. Being a weekend, we went to do some window shopping. I do the windows, Mary does the shopping. We had lunch inside Metrotown, then went to stock up the freezer. During the drive home we talked more about young Alan and his sister.
Sunday turned out to be a gorgeous day so we spent the day gardening, swimming, and a lot of relaxing. Just before dinner the weather turned and the heavens opened.
Monday, Mike from the office called. The mayoress had been in contact and would only speak with me about our firm representing her. The mayor reportedly had being seen kissing and flaunting with other females on a regular basis. The newspapers were having a field day. I don't mean to be rude, but she nearly talked me to sleep. I gave up trying to get in on the conversation after about 5 minutes.
I had lunch about 1.00 p.m., then drove home. The traffic was awful to say the least. It took an hour to get home. After dinner I told Mary I was taking a walk to the park. As I rounded the corner there sitting in their usual spot were Tracy and Alan. I walked up to the house trying to keep as quiet as possible. As I got closer to the house I saw Alan's head shoot up. "Nearly got you," I said. That got me a big smile. "I'm going to have to get you some ear plugs, then you can't hear me coming." That got me a giggle. I think Tracy looked a little relieved, seeing her brother smile.
"Mr. Owen, you really don't care if I can't see?"
"Now why would that bother me?" Was that relief?? Who knows? "Now, if you started to walk up and down the street on your hands I think I might be a little worried." That got them both giggling. "I was upset when you heard me coming." He didn't know how to take my last remark till I quickly spoke, "Got You!!" As quick as you can blink he was by my side, holding as tight as he could.
Mrs. Walters came over to say hello.
"Nice to see you again, Mr. Owen. I see Alan finally moved."
"You mean he's been sitting there waiting for me to come? Awww, you cheat," I said tickling his ribs. That earned me another giggle. "So, this nine year-old thinks he can outsmart me, does he?? Next time I'm going to wear slippers and those ear plugs are going to be headphones. Now if this fine lady here will shake my hand I think that would make my day." I got my handshake and a little hug to go along with it.
"Oh, boy! My days will never be the same again," I said, giving a big smile. After they were bundled off inside, I asked Mrs. Walters about Alan's eyesight. "Kathy, you say he's blind, was he born that way? Is it hereditary?"
"Alan lost his sight about five years ago. Alan's family were very close to their kin as a family, but not close in distance. From what I've read, they were on their way to see an uncle in Toronto when their father lost control of his car. It was on a lot of the news channels about the crash. Apparently, the car went through the barrier and rolled down the embankment. Tracy must have been thrown out as they hit the barrier. Alan wasn't so lucky. They found him at the rear of the car with two broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, and of course unable to see. He also had a few cuts and bruises, but they healed quickly. Just after they got him away from the vehicle the car burst into flames. He was one lucky boy. After being in the hospital for about two months, Tracy and Alan were placed in foster care. Tracy seemed to be well adjusted, considering, but Alan was a closed book. His carers tried to get him to open up without any success. He would either be cooped up in his room or with his sister Tracy. They were both returned to state care, then they were brought here. That was just over three years ago."
"But his eyesight?"
"Well, tests were done when he had his accident. It seems the problem is with the nerves at the back of his eyes. If there was any money to spare I'd try to get the treatment for him. But with an additional five kids I have to watch how the money is spent. He would need to see an ophthalmologist, but children's services say they won't cover costs for anything that's not a medical emergency or a necessity. I really wish I could afford to help him, but my hands are tied."
"You mentioned a teacher for Alan?"
"Yes. Right now he's in school with the other kids, but he needs a teacher that can attend to his needs. I interviewed a teacher this morning. She was abrupt and didn't have the patience a childlike Alan needs. So now the search starts again. It took us three months to find the last one." Just then all the kids came running out to meet Alan and Tracy's new friend. After some hello's, who I was questions, and goodbyes, I still seemed to be unscathed.
"Okay, you guys, I've got to go, but I'll be back I promise." After a few "Aww's" they said bye, with a hug of course, and I was gone.