by D. J. Holmes
* * *
In the stillness of her room, Julia begins talking to herself. “I’ve been reading for so long that my stomach is growling, maybe I should go down stairs and get something to eat.”
As soon as she walks into the kitchen, she sees Daniel. “Hello, Daniel. How is everything going for you?”
“Everything is great, Julia. How is your reading coming along?”
“It’s wonderful. But I need to ask you a question.”
“Ok.”
“Daniel, do you know anything about, King Henry VIII?”
“Yes, what would you like to know?”
“I always hear Tudor Dynasty attached to, King Henry VIII. What is a Tudor Dynasty?”
“Dynasty means that the rulers of a country usually are from generations of the same family. For instance, father to son, father to son, etc. As for Tudor, that was Henry’s last name. So it is called the Tudor Dynasty
“His last name was Tudor?”
“Yes. And when Henry’s father, Henry VII, died, he passed the responsibility of King of England on to his son, Henry VIII.”
“Remember Julia that King Henry, is at least thirty years older than, Katherine. From the moment he met her, he began to feel alive again. A love for life, and an excitement to live his life once again, returned. He felt that he had lost everything after the death of his third wife, Jane Seymour.”
“What attracted Henry to Katherine was her enthusiasm, vivaciousness, her kindness, and her zest for life. She was always running, dancing or laughing. He loved her energy, her beautiful smile, and infectious laugh. Memories of his lost youth plagued him. He was bored with his mundane life, and longed to return to his adventurous past. Because of this longing, Henry was mesmerized every moment he watched Katherine, returning to his youth through her.”
“As his age advanced, his progressively extreme sedentary life-style and voracious eating habits provided him with a rotund belly bringing his weight to around 21 stone (which is about 136 kilograms or 300 pounds).”
“Thank you, Daniel. It all makes sense now.”