Monday 18th of May, 1980
I was sitting by the window in Liptons, the coffee shop above the town centre premises that is now Boots, the chemist. I was with my best friend, Tim Stocker, quietly chatting and gazing out at the traffic. Tim was laughing because he had just witnessed the mad Major stepping out between the vehicles, directing traffic below us in the street.
It was dinnertime, Monday 18th of May, 1980 and it is easy for me to recall the time and date because other surreal events also happened that day!
While we talked, Tim noticed something falling from the sky and, for a few moments, the pair of us thought we were witnessing a flurry of snow – but it was a beautiful and sunny May day so it couldn’t have been snow.
The roofs of cars and the window ledge the other side of the glass was being covered by a thin film of grey / white flakes and Tim realised that the flakes drifting in the spring breeze were tiny filaments of ash.
We reasoned that, somewhere nearby, a dwelling or shop might be ablaze, on fire.
Then I was distracted by something else.
Across the road, walking up West Street, directly outside Smith and Smiths, I caught sight of a beautiful, blonde haired girl.
I said, “Wow Tim. Look across the road!” and pointed to the vision I had just witnessed.
Gliding up the street like some aloof Vogue model entirely oblivious to the stares of others, Tim caught sight of her just as she entered the corner of South street and disappeared through the entrance of the George Hotel doorway.
“I think I have just seen the most beautiful girl on earth!” I uttered.
How do I remember that day? Well … It was the day after the St Helen’s volcano erupted in Washington, USA, causing damage amounting to 2·5 billion dollars.
The explosion blew the whole mountain side off and sent a massive ash plume high into the stratosphere.
That was the ash that was pitching on the cars in Bridport … and, presumably, much of the planet!
A month later, I saw the girl again, in the top bar of The Greyhound Hotel, where I worked part time as a barman and I served her a double vodka.
At closing time, men were buzzing around the girl like butterflies around a buddleia bush and folk were planning to move on to the Asker’s Motel nightclub to party late into the night.
I stepped out from behind the bar to clear glasses from the tables and our eyes met and I said something like, “Are you going on to Askers … or do you fancy helping me with the washing up?”
She laughed and pondered the question for a few seconds as I turned and started walking back towards the bar area … and then I stopped, looked at her and made a gesture to throw her a tea towel …
“I could do with a hand” I said.
Jackie gave me a positive response, I threw her the tea towel and, as everyone else filed out and down the stairs, Jackie and I set about washing up the glasses and ashtrays.
That night, Jackie was happy to be invited back to my little flat and, in a most delicate and gentle moment…….. we kissed.
I remember the first few months we dated. It was very casual. We just met up at weekends or shared a Saturday night out. The arrangement worked ok for a while but then Jackie decided she didn’t want to be just a part time girlfriend and we mutually agreed to end our relationship though, subconsciously, I think we both knew we wanted something different … or something more.
At that immediate time, I just accepted the situation; didn’t think much more about it and Jackie said bye, walked out of the flat at Rope Walks and headed home. However, within several minutes, certainly within less than half an hour, I felt butterflies in the pit of my stomach and realised I could not let Jackie slip away so easily.
Panic
A panic enveloped me and, for the very first time in the entirety of my 24 years, a serious urgency to, somehow, rewind back time and, likewise, transform a future I was yet to step into, took hold of my complete psyche.
With novel and alien emotional feelings I had never experienced or ever felt before, I realised I could not let this girl exit my life.
So I ran …
I ran the mile to Jackie’s parent’s home and, in that 5 minutes, rewrote and redefined the complete course of my whole destiny.
A destiny that would bring me love story and transform the entire meaning of my life.
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