Page 84 of Together in Harmony
“Ah hah,” says Sheila. “I thought as much! Could tell by y’alls energy.”
“You are not horrified?” asks Harmony.
“My love,” says Sheila, patting her hand. “For nearly all your life you had no one. Not one person who was there for you. If you have now found three special people to be there for you? Well, that is just the world giving you balance. You didn’t have enough love, so now you have a surfeit. I am very pleased, to be honest.”
As the kettle whistles, I hear Lennox ask what surfeit means. Sheila makes tea.
“I have lemon and milk,” she says. “Will anyone need sugar?”
We all look at Lennox. “Yes please ma’am,” he says.
Harmony laughs. “It’s more like he’ll have a cup of sugar with a spoonful of tea, rather than the other way round.”
“Sweet tooth, eh?” says Patsy. “Well, you know what they say?”
“No?” Lennox answers politely.
“If you like to eat sweets, then you’re wild in the sheets!” she gives a lop-sided wink. Lennox, bless him, actually blushes!
“Ha, not really. Just wanted to see how you’d react.” She starts to cackle.
It seems like under Patsy’s tight curly hair is a still sharp brain. “Bring out the fruit loaf,” she calls to Sheila.
This gives me an easy conversation topic. Soon Sheila and I are deep in baking tips. “You soak your raisins in tea? I’ve never heard of that. Have you tried using applesauce in place of one egg?”
Hugo and Patsy have their heads together, working on a crossword. “Finally, someone to do crosswords with,” he is saying. “It’s a struggle with these Philistines.”
He gestures to the rest of us.
“What?” says Lennox. “We’re not the enemies of Israel.”
Everyone stops what they are doing to look at him.
“What?” he says again. “That’s a Philistine right? I was in the Mormon church for sixteen years, you know.”
“You were, dear?” says Patsy.
“Oh yeah, I’m eternally damned now.”
Patsy is fascinated.
She puts the newspaper to one side to pepper Lennox with questions. “So you were excommunicated?”
Lennox grins. “Yeah, like that is some punishment. I never want to see Utah again in my life.”
“But what about your family?”
“Eh, honestly I don’t miss them. It’s such a weird place. My brothers were happy that I split. Meant they had more
opportunity for multiple wives.”
Sheila splutters into her tea. “I beg your pardon?”
“There are not enough Mormon women and girls to go around. The whole business is sick. Boys get kicked out a lot, so there won’t be extra competition for the ladies.”
Lennox picks up Harmony’s hand and kisses it. “And that is why I am happy to balance that shit out in our family.”
I’d never thought about it like that. Sometimes the deep thoughts that go on in Lennox’s head are a surprise.
