Page 87 of The Dolce Vita Divas
‘It’s what he preferred,’ I said, ‘and while you were younger, yes, that’s what we did. We had our way of doing things. We had lots of silly traditions, didn’t we? But times have changed, and it’s only right that they should. You need to make your own traditions now. I’m probably going back to Capri, or I might go somewhere snowy. Possibly Austria or the Dolomites.’
‘But why?’ Jess asked, looking even more puzzled.
‘Actually, I’ve always wanted to go skiing,’ Alex chimed in. ‘The Dolomites sounds pretty cool.’
‘Well, if Alex is coming with you, then I want to come. Violet has never seen proper snow, she’d love it,’ Jess agreed.
‘And Maud,’ Kat said.
‘No, you don’t need to come with me,’ I said.
‘I don’t understand why on earth you would want to go to Capri again. You’ve only just come back?’ Kat said.
‘Hang on. If you’re going to be away for Christmas, wouldn’t it make sense for me to stay on here for a bit? You know, there are always burglaries. Liam says his dad’s shed was broken into the other day. They took Liam’s skateboard,’ Alex said.
‘And how old is Liam? Twelve?’ Kat scoffed.
‘Thirty-one, same as me,’ Alex shouted back. ‘It’s good exercise, I’ll have you know.’
I blew the whistle again and everyone winced.
‘That’s the other big thing I wanted to talk to you about,’ I said. ‘I want the three of you to reclaim any of your old junk from the attic or the garage. I’m going to be clearing away a lot of the stuff I don’t want any more, and I thought it would be a chance for you to do it too.’
There was another stunned silence and then they all started talking at once.
Kat was first. ‘Honestly, Mum, we don’t know what’s got into you. Why can’t my old schoolbooks stay there? They aren’t costing you anything.’
Jess: ‘Yes, but you don’t mean all my dance trophies, do you? I mean, those are family heirlooms.’
Alex: ‘And you can’t get rid of that mountain bike. I’m definitely going to get it back in one piece. I’ve even been looking at some clips on YouTube. Next year I’m having a real fitness goal.’
Kat scoffed. ‘You’ll be telling us you’re going to do dry January next.’
‘Well, I might do dry February,’ Alex said. ‘I always think of January as a free trial month. Of course, I’m going to move out if you’re absolutely sure that’s what you want? After all, I did apologise about the window and the fridge.’
Yes, it most definitely was what I wanted so I didn’t engage with any of their disputes. After all, the best way to win an argument was not to have one at all. I’d realised I had been doing some ‘no no’ parenting of my own in the last few years, and it didn’t work with them any more than it had with Eric.
I thought back to Ceci, Sylvia and Lucia and smiled. Some people might like squabbling all the time to show their affection, but I wasn’t one of them.
‘I promise you I’m not throwing away any of the things you want to keep, but really I think the time has come for you to sort through it, don’t you? I’m going to hire a skip,’ I said, ‘so you can put any of your things in there if you don’t want them. I’m going to be having a clear out too.’
‘You’re not ill, are you?’ Kat said, leaning forward. ‘I mean, there’s nothing you ought to be telling us?’
‘No, nothing like that,’ I said, ‘although it is good at my age to do a bit of riddling out of the junk, otherwise you’ll have to do it when I fall off the perch.’
‘Are you sure?’ Jess asked, looking concerned. ‘I mean, perhaps you should have a word with someone. You seem a bit odd. All of a sudden. Out of the blue.’
‘I suppose I do,’ I said with a chuckle, ‘but I have thought it through. Alex, you are getting far too settled in the granny flat, and although I am more than happy to help out in an emergency, I don’t think it is good for you to be living with your mother again.’
‘I don’t mind,’ Alex mumbled, ‘and it’s probably good for there to be someone here in case you have another fall,’ he finished triumphantly.
My daughters murmured their grudging agreement at this.
I ignored them again. ‘You have a lovely flat waiting for you in the New Year. I want to clear out all the stuff we don’t need. If nothing else I will be able to put the car in the garage for the first time, not leave it out on the road, and this year I definitely want to go away for Christmas.’
‘Do we need to do this in such a rush?’ Kat said. ‘I mean, one minute you are okay?—’
‘And we just assumed we could come for Christmas,’ Jess added.
