THE HOLIDAY

THE KITTEN   By Tessa Harvey     A month later, virtually all the school parents, carers, grandparents, other interested family members had signed and delivered to the local council a mammoth petition. It was not ignored and the principal, Elspeth McLeod was re-instated.     Immediately she changed the curriculum to being morally centred using tenets of faith long-held by people of character and courage, instilling a Christian worldview in the students. The change in the children in every aspect of their lives was dramatic.     They were able to learn, play and just be children. Velma was much happier. Jackson was slowly changing. Velma loved helping children. Hope made a dark world bearable. THE END ------------------------------ THE WORTH OF ONE     The tall woman towered over the slim, somewhat dishevelled child. Slowly, she surveyed the girl from head to toe. "I have heard," the woman declared, ponderously, "that you ain't worth tuppence....

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     There was a loud tapping on the principal's door, then the secretary peered around the door, looking a little flustered.      "Mr. Poulson is here to see you." The secretary sounded upset. The principal smiled at her.  "Five minutes.  Just discussing ideas with Mr. Bryant."      "There was no need to try to protect me, Mrs.  McLeod. You see, I will no longer teach anything but what is morally true, just as my grandfather did." Elspeth came  round her tidy desk and patted his arm.     "Mr. Poulson is here to talk about my resignation. The board have warned me about my lack of inclusivity and for advising senior girls that unborn foetuses are actually people from conception.     "I cannot betray Jesus. But you, Jackson, perhaps you could read Mark, chapter 13 in the Bible and the first five verses of the Gospel of John. They will change your life!"     Realising h...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Mrs. McLeod rose from her chair and turned to look out of the window. "Mr. Bryant, I do not like this situation. I am a Christian. We are praying against this Misinformation and Disinformation Bill which is meant to silence the Christians. This year I was going to retire. Perhaps I should refire instead."     "I know the child you speak of. I was asked by an unscrupulous man to take her to a party. Immediately I looked into the child's eyes. I knew she was different. She backed away from me. Then I was told this child was autistic, reacting badly to loud noises and crowds.     This man, knowing I was a Christian, the father of the girl's friend wanted to cause chaos at the sports centre and to me.     "What happened?" asked Jackson, intrigued. "My husband and I prayed. The child calmed, and came with us. There was no trouble with loud noises, lots of children....etc. In fact, my own granddaughter dropped a piec...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Later they shared a meal together and became friends. Velma ventured "I hear your little boy does not like day care." "That is a huge understatement!" Daisy Phillips remarked, turning to her husband, Richard, who laughingly agreed.     "I work at the library," said Velma softly. "We have two toddler groups every week. Would he like that better?"     "Well, it's that we both work," explained Daisy, tentatively. "This is really cheeky, but Harry really likes you. Would you consider looking after him if we paid you fairly? It's a lot to ask though."          "Velma's face lit up, then fell. "Maybe Jackson would find it difficult....." "Ah so," said Kitty, their outspoken Irish friend, "would you look how happy Velma would be! A man would be an eejit not to see that, sure he would!" --------------------------------------------     After the vacation, pr...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Jackson had no ide a his lovely, obliging wife had suddenly become an unknown quantity. She no longer fitted into his perfect ordered life.     He felt lost - after all most men, even those claiming to be Christian were involved in porn - even children, though that seemed wrong to him. Suddenly he felt himself to be without a moral compass. Or had he ever even owned one? Why should he?     He had patiently explained that other men were far more involved. "I don't look every day" he had defended himself. "You can change neural pathways in the brain," Velma had countered. "What walks in the parents (and I have faults also) runs in the children. That is why we have none." He was left speechless.     Suddenly he had called out as Velma was almost out of sight  "I am not a murderer!"     To his consternation, he realised people were watching, including to his horror, a family he knew and two children....

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Velma was sitting on a rock by the shores of the beautiful lake. The rock was grey granite, pitted and fissured from wind and winter ice expanding in cracks and thawing again. Beautiful whorls of lichen coloured the rocks and tiny cups of moss grew in sheltered cracks.     The lake water was icy always, but sparkled in the welcome sunlight. Suddenly she heard a little voice calling, "Tom, Tom! Smokey, Smokey!" Surprised, she turned, and a small boy was splashing through a nearby stream, singing softly to himself, then calling again.     "Hello," Velma called gently. "Hello," the boy paused, "are you lost?" "I don't think so," she answered and suppressed a smile. "What about you?" "No, I am here on holly day, but I want my kittens to come too. So I am calling and looking for them." He turned to go.     "Wait, Please," called Velma, as the child moved beyond the lake into t...

THE KITTEN   By Tessa Harvey     A storm swept in as the children were leaving school, the rain lashing almost horizontally on a freshening cold wind. The skies were very grey.  The children going by bus were helped up the steps of the vehicles as fast as safely possible. Most were shivering as the unexpected, almost freezing rain pummelled adults and children alike.      Some of the children scurried to the line of waiting cars or 4WD's, bringing friends with them for a lift to their own homes. One small girl huddled near Jackson in the door as he waited for parents to come. "Mum's sick and dad's working," the girl Daphne explained. "What will I do, sir?"     It had been a beautiful day earlier and the child had been going to walk home. "I will call Mrs. Bryant," he replied, " but I will ask your mother first." ------------------------------------------------------ VACATION     Harry, Henry and Anna were going on vacation! It was a...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey        A week later, Jackson Bryant   studied the class from the old teacher dais. His desk was not large. To his surprise, many old textbooks were revealed when part of the platform raised carefully, revealed the past of half a century ago.     His grandfather had been principal at this same primary school.     The door was flung open, and a happy smiling face appeared. A much smaller girl was anxiously peering out behind him." G'day Smiler!" called the teacher.     Immediately the little girl relaxed. "We was taking Harry to daycare," she ventured. "Yeah! He made an awful fuss. You'd a thought we was murdering him!" Henry caught the teacher's sterner expression.     Embarrassed, they said sorry and made moves to their desks.     Annie was really happy as half an hour later, she was writing her story. The teacher had asked all the children to write about their pets. BUT, he caref...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     But there was his wife, lying in a crumpled heap at the bottom of the staircase. Dropping his briefcase, Jackson ran to his wife. Her lovely black hair was covering her face. Brushing aside her hair, he could see that her face was white under the smooth coffee-colour of her skin. Her startling jade-green eyes were closed. Gently, he felt for a pulse around her neck.     At his touch, Velma roused, her eyes flickering open, then closing.     Trying to move, she moaned in pain. "Where are you hurt, Velma?" anxiety clear in his voice. "I could phone for an ambulance. "No," Velma whispered, "please, no. Just give me a minute or two. Please Jackson," she continued, " could you stop, maybe with all the foreign gods stuff. I keep having accidents. I don't know how I tripped." The man thought 'rubbish' but held back from saying.     An hour later, their doctor, a  somewhat robicund fellow, balding on top a...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Henry had been a little excited to be learning new things. He absorbed knowledge like a thirsty sponge. He felt silly, standing with a sobbing girl on the footpath of this narrow grey street.     The house door opened straight onto the street. They stood on either side in straight rows. But the other children would come yelling and calling around the corner any moment.     Something glittered in the dry gutter. He stepped off the steep curb, bending down to grasp the small object. "Look," he showed Anna, "here you are. Stop crying." Anna looked at the beautiful glass marble, green and blue colours, swirling in a mesmerising patterm. Sniffing again, the small girl smiled, her blue eyes luminous from her tears. "Home," she whispered softly.     Their mother had finished her shift at the local chocolate factory. The children thought she smelled delicious.     Noticing the slight tension in her elder chi...

THE KITTEN   By Tessa Harvey     Jackson drove slowly into the circular driveway of his modest three bedroom home. It was of patterned dark red brick alternating with paler or darker colour shades. It was a pleasing effect he wryly thought.     Though it was slightly chilly and dusk was well-advanced, his wife was outside pruning some of her Peace roses. They glowed soft yellow and peach in the waning light of a somewhat grey day.     The students had been unusually restless, almost feverishly so as he had talked about Chaos and the offspring of darkness and night. The subject was a strong force on the curriculum.      Right now he had to face his very beautiful wife. -----------------------------------------------     Henry ran home at a very fast trot, sometimes a gallop. He wanted to see his parents. Almost there, he suddenly remembered his young sister. Leaning on a nearby fence, gasping a little out of breath, he thankfull...

THE KITTEN   By Tessa Harvey     Jackson Bryant was annoyed with himself. He had been having problems at home and should have anticipated this sort of question from the older boys. Prevaricating a little, he replied: "That is a very good question, Henry," he said carefully. "How about we discuss this after lunch?" "I'm starving," he added, smiling, "and I am sure you are too!"     The boy laughed and ran off with a clatter of feet as he swung round the classroom door the way all the boys and some of the girls did also, swinging a little on the door frame.     Jackson knew other staff would not endure this, but he believed it was better to make an effort with more serious disciplinary problems and let small children have some fun. -------------------------     Velma glanced again at the ornate wall clock, its beautifully carved dark woodwork surrounding the small dial. It had been bought from the Black Forest of Germany - a souvenir of their h...

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     "Supper's ready," sang out his dad. They were allowed to balance plates on their knees as soccer was on. The crowd were roaring. Ham and eggs were delicious! And so was the rare treat of a box of chocolates to share.     "Wow, dad, you got the promotion?!" Anne asked, eyes shining as the light was switched on. "Got ?motion dadda," echoed small Harry, who was three.     Henry looked at Anne. She was two years younger and he thought she was the best sister in the world. She loved the same phone games and fun apps he did and was a good sport.     The boy looked back at his homework and wondered about the other person they studied - Chaos.  It sounded exciting.     Next day as the class trooped out at the end of the morning to gleefully disperse for lunch, Henry lingered, trying to look as though he were gathering up pencils, folders and dropping them.     The teacher looked at him. He was...

THE KITTEN   By Tessa Harvey     There were car doors banging and the three children tumbling out of the orange car. They were happy because it was the weekend.     The parents locked the car and the children came inside with the two kittens. The kittens were given fresh water and some delicious tinned fish.     Henry, the eldest child, lay on his stomach writing in his school exercise book. The TV was on, but the boy could show he could half-listen and still do his homework.     At school they were studying about history and about the days of the week. Sunday was the sun's day Monday was Moon's day Tuesday - Henry chewed his pencil. He Googled the answer -yes, a god of war Then Woden's day and Thor's day and Freya's day, lastly Saturn's day.     Next door, Steve's carer told them: Thor was the god of everything. Imagine that!

THE KITTEN  By Tessa Harvey     Tom was a very small black kitten. He played with a grey kitten called Smokey. They lived in a big garden with lots of sun and shade.     There were butterflies to leap after, mostly white ones, but some brown.     They leapt off the springy green grass, but rarely managed to catch anything at all. Later they would snooze in the shade until their family came home.

THE HOLIDAY  By Tessa Harvey     Luke kept very still. He knew he was well-hidden, but he hadn't liked mum's newest boyfriend.     They were on holiday in Devon or Cornwall.  He couldn't remember which, but had been mesmerized by the craggy steep cliffs and hidden tiny caves. But some were excitingly bigger. He had no idea why they had come from his grim suburb in Manchester, but mum said war was coming. That had really interested him. The summer of 1938 was glorious.     The boyfriend had produced two ten-shilling notes and said "Hop it, kid!" So Luke, amazed had hopped it.     The donkey rides were great, even though his legs were getting a bit long. No-one he knew was there to mock and jeer. The ten year old boy was having the most fun he had had in his short life-time. He had even spent some of his hoard of a whole pound - think of that! - and bought a red tin bucket and spade.     The spade had a long wooden handle just th...