Lavender Girl

by Paula Hickford

  ‘Morning girls,’ she said, smiling broadly as they approached.

  ‘Morning Liz,’ replied Monica. ‘Are you sure it’s OK to come so early?’

  ‘Of course, I’ve been up since six o’clock.’

  ‘You see,’ said Tammy triumphantly. ‘I could have come at six thirty.’

  ‘Have you got time for a cuppa before work?’

  ‘Best not,’ ‘I’d like to get into work early. I need to find a decorator who can start next week if possible. I thought I’d get the local paper on the way in and look at the ads. I want to make some calls to get prices before my boss arrives.’

  ‘Okay,’ said Liz. ‘Maybe tomorrow?’

  ‘Thanks again for this,’ said Monica as she was leaving. I really appreciate it’

  Tammy came in and put her bag and coat on a chair in the kitchen.

  ‘You’re well prepared,’ said Liz, eyeing her colourful wellies.

  ‘I’ve bought my tools too,’ said Tammy, holding them up.

  ‘So I see,’ Liz replied. ‘Sasha isn’t coming until tomorrow so I thought that today you and I could clear a path to the shed so we can get out the shears and maybe the strimmer so we can tackle the lawn.’ Liz put her secateurs in her jacket pocket.

  She asked Tammy if she wanted anything to eat or drink before they got started. ‘No thanks,’ said Tammy, who was very keen to use her gardening gloves.

  Liz put on her jacket and gloves and they went outside. Together they trampled a path to the shed, pushing down the weeds and grasses with their boots as they went. Some of the plants sprang back up as soon as their feet had moved on but others stayed horizontal, resembling the wake behind a speedboat.

  The plants were wet and dark patches had formed on their jeans by the time they reached the shed. Liz was relieved. She didn’t say anything but she couldn’t help thinking about Jim lying dead on the grass. She pushed the memory from her thoughts as she took out the secateurs. The ivy was so thick in places that it had almost entirely obscured the windows. Now she was up close she could see that in other places it had found a way inside the shed itself. The door no longer fitted properly and was lopsided and the resulting gap had meant that the ivy had easy access to the inside.

  She cut the stems blocking the door first. Tammy pulled the long strands as Liz cut through them and before long there was a pile of ivy mounting up next to the shed. A few more snips and there was enough room to manoeuvre the door open and let the light in. Tammy was in like a shot. Apart from the ivy it was just as Jim had left it. Liz let Tammy explore while she cut the ivy away from the windows so there would be a little more light inside. Once this was done she wedged open the door with a plant pot and walked inside.

  She caught her breath. The workbench was neat and tidy apart from a clock which Jim had been repairing when he died, the box of tiny screwdrivers left open on the shelf and the insides of the clock scattered around the casing on the bench. It reminded Liz of an autopsy or an operation. She shuddered. There was nothing else out of place. The cabinets and drawers were neatly closed and the drills and sanders hung on hooks above the bench as they always had.

  At the far end of the shed the lawn mower was still against the wooden slatted wall alongside the strimmer. Jim also had a hedge trimmer and various rakes and shovels hanging along the same wall. He was meticulous about his tools and always put them back in the same place. Liz looked around for an extension lead. She thought that the hedge trimmer might be useful in tackling the lawn.

  As she reached to open the cupboard she spotted a small wasp nest no bigger than a tennis ball which looked as though it had been there for a few years. Parts of it had flaked onto the linoleum floor but most of the delicate structure was still in place.

  She pointed it out to Tammy who was keen to have it to take into school. Once they were absolutely sure that it was no longer inhabited. Liz carefully removed it without breaking much more of it and put it into a flower pot for Tammy to take home.

  Liz looked around the shed.

  ‘What do you think?’ she said to Tammy.

  ‘It’s Okay as a work shop,’ said Tammy, ‘but I think it would make a great summer house. You could paint it pale blue or yellow, like the ones by the seaside,’ she added. ‘I don’t like grey.’

  ‘Me neither,’ said Liz, before proceeding to cut away all the ivy that had made its way inside the shed. Together they took all the tools they needed outside and lay them on the patio, the extension lead, the strimmer, the hedge cutter, and a couple of pairs of shears.

  Tammy was getting hot already and took off her coat. Liz did the same before going back into the house to get some garden sacks to put the waste in. Before long they had one sack full of ivy. It was a satisfying feeling, being busy and making progress no matter how small. Liz plugged the extension lead into the socket in the shed before trying out the hedge trimmer. It worked at the higher level but she couldn’t angle it low enough to get as near to the bottom as she would have liked. The strimmer looked more promising.

  However, she was nervous of using it in case she managed to catch any wildlife that was lurking in the undergrowth with the plastic blade. Tammy had no such scruples and was happy to whizz through.

  ‘Hang on young lady,’ said Liz. ‘You’re a bit nearer to the ground than I am. You will have to wear goggles in case something shoots up and hits you in the eye.’ She went back into the shed and returned with a pair of plastic goggles that resembled a snorkelling mask. ‘These will keep you safe,’ she said, as she slipped them over Tammy’s head.

  It took a few goes but they soon worked out the best method of hacking back the weeds. Tammy strimmed and Liz followed behind with the garden shears and secateurs to cut down any fatter stems that resisted the strimmer.

  Every so often they would both stop what they were doing and pick up the cuttings and put them into sacks. Before long they had two more sacks full and the lawn was starting to look flatter. Still nothing like a lawn, more brown and straw coloured than green, but definitely flatter.

  Tammy really enjoyed using the strimmer and was eager to find new areas to attack. Liz had to keep a sharp eye on her and once or twice had to restrain her from going too near the flower beds in case she decapitated something Liz wanted to keep.

  It was hard work and at about ten thirty they decided to stop for a break. Liz went off to make a cup of tea while Tammy searched the garden for signs of life. She was very keen to find a frog. Liz came out with a tray and set it down on the garden table. She hadn’t bothered covering the furniture again. Instead she had set the chairs at an angle with the tops resting on the table to make sure any water would run off.

  She pulled two of them back so they could sit down. Tammy sipped a Coke and nibbled on a biscuit while Liz drank her tea and they both admired their handiwork.

  ‘Monica will be amazed,’ said Tammy eventually. ‘Perhaps you should take a photograph,’ she said to Liz, ‘before and after.’

  ‘That’s a great idea,’ said Liz and she went inside to get the camera.

  When she came outside again Tammy was walking around the perimeter of the grass area and looking at the plants. She leant over to smell a few before stopping in front of a bush. She made a fist around one of the branches and, pulling her hand up towards the tip, brushed the leaves against her palm as she did so before cupping her hand over her nose and mouth and breathing in.

  ‘Rosemary,’ she said eventually. ‘Mum had this in a pot in our garden.’

  ‘Would you like to take some home with you?’ said Liz. ‘There are several clumps in the garden. We can find one of the smaller ones and dig it up.’

  ‘Maybe,’ said Tammy.

  ‘Well, you don’t have to decide now,’ said Liz. ‘We have loads of time. Right let’s take this photograph.’

  ‘Hang on,’ said Tammy. ‘I need to get ready,’ and she rushed over and put her gloves and goggles back on although these now nestled on the front of her forehead so as not to obscu
re her face. Finally she held the strimmer in one hand and a pair of shears in the other. She looked like a garden warrior.

  ‘Ready,’ she shouted, as Liz clicked the camera.

  ‘That’s a good one,’ she said to Tammy, looking at the photograph. ‘Here, come and see.’ Tammy threw down the strimmer and shears and rushed over to Liz. It was a great picture. Tammy was very photogenic and was smiling broadly.

  ‘It looks as though you’re doing all the work,’ said Liz.

  ‘The camera never lies,’ said Tammy. Liz laughed. ‘I’m sorry,’ said Tammy.

  ‘Sorry for what?’ asked Liz.

  ‘For throwing rubbish in your garden and calling you a witch,’ she said.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ said Liz, ‘I probably looked like a witch at the time but thank you anyway. Now, back to work.’

  They continued cutting and strimming the lawn throughout the day, only stopping for lunch and ice cream later in the afternoon. By the time they finished they had seven sacks of garden waste and a very uneven, prickly looking mass which was beginning to resemble a lawn.

  ‘I think I’ll run the mower over it a few times,’ said Liz, ‘try to get it as low as possible.

  When Tammy took off the goggles she had the imprint of the outside of them in a line around her head as though she had been wearing a mask. Liz grabbed the camera for another photograph.

  ‘When can we get started on the plants?’ Tammy asked.

  ‘I should think in a few days’ time. I have a plan of sorts. The first priority is to sort out the lawn, at least when it’s back to ground level we can see what’s here. Then we will need to weed the flower beds. There will be lots of unwanted bits ‘n’ bobs amongst the plants we want to keep. I’ll have to get some advice from the garden centre. Hopefully we can then take out the dead plants and replace them with new bee friendly plants, and finally paint the shed and the fences.’

  ‘In bright colours,’ added Tammy.

  ‘Definitely not grey,’ said Liz. ‘I thought that we could also have a few days out. Perhaps you and Sasha would like to go to the pictures or skating at the weekend. Do you think Monica would like that?’

  ‘Monica would love that,’ said Tammy.

  ‘Don’t forget your project either,’ reminded Liz. ‘You need to get cracking.’

  ‘I will,’ Monica said. ‘I could go out with my friends, too. I am almost eleven you know.’

  ‘How could I forget,’ said Liz.

  When Monica came home at six o’clock she was amazed at the progress made in the garden. With the middle now cleared the flower beds were revealed. The edges still required a lot of work and the beds were full of weeds but it already looked much better.

  ‘You have worked hard,’ she said. ‘Perhaps I can come and help at the weekend too. We’ll soon have it back in shape.’

  ‘That would be great,’ said Liz. They all stood on the patio and looked out towards the shed.

  ‘Tammy suggested that I turn the shed into a summerhouse. What do you think?’

  ‘I think it would be fantastic, if you can bear to do it. Are you ready for that?’

  ‘I am,’ said Liz, surprising herself. ‘Did you manage to find a decorator yet?’

  ‘No. A man called Wojtek gave me a verbal quote for painting the walls, ceiling and woodwork, but it was seven hundred and fifty pounds and he specified cash. I thought that was a bit steep. It’s just a bedroom, not the ruddy Sistine Chapel. I’ll have to make a few more calls or wait a bit longer until I can afford it.’

  When Monica and Tammy had left Liz went outside and sat in the garden. With the lawn cleared it was possible to see the precise spot where Jim had died. She began to recall details.

  It was a very bright day. They had cleaned the windows and Jim had noticed that one of the clocks on the windowsill had stopped working. Jim had collected clocks at one time and although he had sold most of them he liked this particular clock so he kept it. He had bought it at auction. Apparently it had a very good movement. He knew a lot about clocks.

  He tapped the glass a couple of times before inserting the key to wind it. It flatly refused to tick so Jim opened the door at the back to inspect it.

  ‘Probably the spring,’ he said with authority. ‘I’ll take it down to the shed.’ He had been in the shed for an hour or so when she called him for some lunch.

  ‘Coming, luv,’ he shouted back. He had been walking down the path towards the house when he suddenly stopped in his tracks, his face wracked with pain and fear as he gripped his chest. It was almost in slow motion as he fell to the ground.

  She couldn’t get to him in time, it was too late, but it would have always been too late. The autopsy revealed he had a massive coronary and there was nothing she or anyone could have done. He’d often said that when his time came he preferred a heart attack to a long drawn out illness but it was much too soon.

  What was she doing? Renovating the garden was not going to be enough. It would be like putting a plaster on a gaping wound. It really required something major. Something completely different. A garden to make new memories in.

  ‘I am responsible for my happiness,’ she said to herself. She was exhausted. She knew that she would sleep well despite Adam and Georgina’s impending visit.

  Chapter 10

  Tammy was already up, dressed and at Liz’s door by seven o’clock. Liz woke early but her back ached terribly and she’d had a hot bath and a painkiller before Tammy arrived.

  ‘Breakfast?’ she asked, as Tammy walked through the door.

  ‘Toast please,’ said Tammy.

  ‘Yes, madam,’ said Liz with a curtsey. ‘Come and sit down.’

  ‘I have thought of a plan,’ said Tammy. ‘What if we make lots of small pots of bee friendly plants and give them to all the neighbours to plant in their gardens or window boxes. That would be helping the bees.’

  ‘Great in theory,’ said Liz, ‘but you would need an awful lot of plants.’

  ‘I have thought about that too,’ said Tammy. ‘I wondered if we could look in Jim’s book to see if there is something we could take cuttings from now.’

  ‘You could cross reference with your bee friendly plant list,’ said Liz. ‘Let’s have some breakfast and then we’ll take a look.’

  After breakfast Tammy brought the book into the kitchen and put it on the table. She followed the list down with her fingers, mumbling the plant names until eventually, ‘Lavender,’ she said. ‘Take cuttings in spring before it comes into flower. This is it,’ she said. ‘There is loads of Lavender in the garden.’

  ‘Was,’ said Liz pointedly. ‘We’ll have to see what’s still out there. I’m not sure how much of it has survived.’

  ‘Can we look today?’ said Tammy.

  ‘Sure,’ said Liz. ‘You have the list of grid references so you know where it should be so you can go on the hunt. You will also need some potting compost and lots of small pots. I don’t think I have any.’

  ‘I’ll buy some with my pocket money,’ said Tammy. ‘I’ve been saving up. Can we go to the garden centre?’

  ‘We’ll go at the weekend,’ Liz replied. ‘My granddaughter, Sasha, is coming today and I’m sure she’d like to help you. Let’s get on a bit more with the garden and I’ll take you both out somewhere tomorrow. How does that sound?’

  ‘Great.’ said Tammy, and she settled down to eat her toast. ‘Can we go bowling? I’d like to get some practice in before Molly’s party.’

  ‘Bowling it is,’ said Liz. While Tammy was eating Liz put on a little make up.

  ‘You look nice,’ said Tammy as Liz came downstairs.

  ‘Thanks, I want to look my best when Adam and Sasha arrive. Before they get here I would like your advice,’ said Liz. ‘I’m thinking of changing the garden.’

  ‘You’re not going to get rid of all the plants are you?’ said Tammy.

  ‘Definitely not,’ said Liz. ‘In fact, I’m thinking of adding more, perhaps something exotic. Palms maybe? Come ou
tside with me and I’ll explain.’ Liz opened the back door and they both went outside and stood on the patio. ‘I’m thinking of getting rid of the lawn, or at least some of it, and maybe adding a pond or water feature and maybe a larger summer house there. She pointed to the shed. ‘I could get someone in to do the landscaping work. What do you think?’

  ‘Brilliant,’ said Tammy. ‘It would be like a park.’

  ‘A very small park,’ added Liz.

  Tammy spent some time looking around the garden for Lavender. She found it in several places, big bushes of lavender surrounded by weeds. The plants had grown thin and straggly in their efforts to get to the light.

  ‘Found loads,’ she shouted through the back door. Liz was busy cleaning the house.

  ‘Better look up how to take cuttings,’ she called to Tammy. ‘If it doesn’t tell you in Jim’s book we’ll look it up on the computer.’

  Tammy was busy with the book when the doorbell rang. Liz looked through the curtains at the front to see Adam, Georgina and Sasha on the doorstep. Adam was holding Sasha’s suitcase. It was huge. As well as the suitcase Sasha had a backpack. Tammy appeared behind Liz to get a good look at her would be companion before Liz opened the door.

  ‘Hiya,’ Liz said to Adam and Georgina as she opened the door. Georgina came forward first to plant an air kiss either side of Liz’s face. Liz wasn’t quite sure how to react. This was as close to affection as she was ever likely to get from Georgina. Adam gave her a hug and Sasha just said, ‘Hello grandma,’ in a very sulky voice. Liz gave her a kiss on the cheek.

  ‘Hi sweetie. Come in, come in, it’s lovely to see you. This is Tammy,’ she said to Georgina and Sasha as Adam had already met her.

  ‘Hello,’ said Georgina, and offered her hand. Tammy shook it vigorously and said ‘Hi’ to Sasha.

  ‘Hello,’ said Sasha quietly. Adam looked at his daughter. This was so unlike her he suspected she was up to something.

  ‘What can I get you all?’ said Liz, leading the way into the kitchen.