Wise Woman Homage

by Elaine Gugin Maddex

  They were up in good time and decided breakfast out on the restaurant terrace would be lovely. Their server, Megan, was a delight and Tessy took to her immediately. Apparently, it was her first week as a waitress and she was feeling a little insecure. Tessy did all she could to reassure her that she would do well.

  As they enjoyed their breakfast, Tessy looked around – her heart filled with gratitude. She pulled in a deep breath and contently released it. Marshall smiled at her, “You seem much more relaxed, dear. It’s very good to see. So, no nightmares last night?”

  “No, thankfully. And aye, love, I’m feeling much better in no small part, thanks to ye!”

  “Me? What did I do?” Marshall exclaimed, wide eyed.

  Tessy laughed, “For granting me this opportunity to be here, in my homeland, now, with ye.”

  “Oh, my pleasure, my lady. The glow that enraptures you, at this moment, is all the thanks I need.”

  Tessy laughed and placed her hand on his.

  They were about ready to leave when Tessy noticed a distinguished couple standing at the entrance to the terrace. The woman scanned over what tables were available and chose the one that best overlooked the grounds. She proceeded to the table with an air about her. Then she stopped and waited for her husband to catch up and pull out her chair. Once seated, the young Megan rushed over with menus and carafe of fresh coffee. The man thanked her while the woman looked off into the distance and held up her cup. Megan gave them a few minutes to peruse the menu and returned. The man was prompt and polite with his order, his wife, on the other hand, recited a lengthy list of precise instructions making the girl repeat them before dismissing her. Tessy’s stomach tightened a little. That woman exuded a negative energy that Tessy could feel in her bones. She muttered a quick protection spell and her stomach relaxed. She hoped poor Megan would not get the brunt of it. Tessy did not mean to stare or interfere but, she was drawn to look at the woman. Tessy was sure she recognised her.

  “Ah!” she said aloud. She was the same disgruntled lady at the airport that was taken into security. Tessy put her hand over her mouth to hide a sudden grin. Marshall caught her.

  “What’s so amusing, sweetheart?”

  Tessy quietly shared her assumption with Marshall, who ever so nonchalantly, turned to look over his shoulder.

  “I think you’re right! I’m positive that’s her.”

  Tessy felt a little guilty, but she suggested they stay and have one more cup of coffee. She wanted to see how things played out. She was concerned for Megan. She was so inexperienced and so new to her job.

  It didn’t take long before there was a long list of complaints from the woman. Her toast was cold with too much butter, the eggs were over cooked, the bacon was under cooked and so on and so forth. The woman had the poor girl running non-stop. Megan was doing her best to please her most difficult customer, but it seemed impossible! The woman eventually became belligerent. She screamed at the girl, now close to tears, to go and get the manager.

  That was it! Tessy had witnessed enough. She jumped up and strode over to the table. She arrived at the same time as the manager and stood back long enough for the manger to ask what the problem was. When the woman proceeded to accuse Megan of a string of incompetencies, Tessy could hold her tongue no longer.

  “Madame,” she said, as she turned away from the negative complainer and addressed the manager directly. “I have been watching this, this… person... badger, abuse and bully this dear, sweet girl from the minute they arrived. Megan has gone out of her way and done everything in her power to politely and efficiently serve this tyrant. From what I’ve seen… it cannot be done!”

  The manager raised her eyebrows and turned to the complaining customer, giving her a chance to rebut.

  The woman, obviously not used to being challenged, stumbled and stammered with her words. She made a few feeble excuses before throwing her napkin on her plate and stomping out of the restaurant. She left her husband to deal with the whole unpleasant situation. An apology was made and the bill was paid including a hefty gratuity. Then the man, obviously ashamed and humbled, made his way across the terrace, down the hall and into the busy lobby.

  The manager smiled and thanked Tessy for her account of the situation and insisted their breakfast was on the house. Megan dropped a few tears and then wrapped her arms around Tessy, giving her a big hug.

  “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t come forward. Thank you so much! I’d probably be out of a job. I have a little girl and we are living with my folks right now. I really need to work so I can get us a place of our own.”

  “Now, now dear. Dry those pretty eyes. It will all work out, you’ll see. No one has the right to treat another like that. Ye just remember, ye did nothing wrong. Ye’re a fine hard worker and before ye know it ye and your wee one will be out on your own doin’ just fine.”

  Megan gave Tessy another hug and took her address promising to let Tessy know how she and her little girl were doing. After she left, Marshall looked over and Tessy and chuckled.

  “And what do ye find so amusing, Dr. Tayse?”

  “I was just thinking. Did that battle-axe remind you of anyone in particular?

  Tessy laughed. She knew exactly whom Marshall was referring to. Her long-time nemesis back in Ladyslipper, Mrs. Chamberlain.

  “Aye, I was having that same thought. I guess there are disagreeable people all over the world.”

  They spent the rest of the morning meandering in and around the hotel. Tessy wrote out some postcards she found in the gift shop and mailed them off to Canada. Chances were Tessy and Marshall would arrive home before the cards.

  Just before noon they returned to their room to dress for the main event. Tessy had her hat designed to match a dress she had purchased shortly after receiving the tickets to the Derby. It was a loose fitting, airy and delicate bohemian style in a soft sage with short cape sleeves. The hat was a rich cream with the same soft sage accents and natural ostrich plumes. Her purse and shoes were cream. The shoes sported wedge heels so she would not sink into the grass while wandering the Curragh grounds. She accessorized the ensemble with an array of mismatched bracelets including the emerald one Marshall had bought for her birthday along with the emerald earrings he had given her last Christmas. She was a striking vision.

  Marshall looked equally as dashing in his pinstriped grey suit with a double-breasted satin vest under it. His main concern was whether he’d be too warm with the vest.

  “Oh, but Marshall, ye look so dapper! The vest just gives it that little extra something. Ye can always take your jacket off if ye get too warm, love.”

  “Oh, all right. I guess it won’t hurt.” Marshall complied.

  The stylish couple strolled through the hotel lobby turning heads as they went. Soon they were at the grounds. This was it. The Irish Derby!

  The atmosphere was almost overwhelming. The crowd was more impressive than the day before. Everyone was dressed to the nines. Hundreds and hundreds of ladies paraded by with hats that ranged from fanciful to preposterous. Each was unique and piled high with feathers, flowers and various flora with the odd bit of fauna here and there.

  They befriended two other couples who were standing close by and enjoyed a drink with them. Marshall obtained a few helpful hints on the horses competing that day and joined the men at the betting wickets. He was feeling quite confident when he returned to Tessy.

  “Well, darling. Be prepared to be wowed! These are winning tickets, for sure.”

  “Aye,” Tessy smiled and raised her eyebrows, “I’m sure they are, love.”

  The first few races proved to be quite a learning curve for Marshall; however, in the end, he was up a few Euro. It was late afternoon and the main Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby race was about to get underway. Marshall played it safe on this one and went with the all-time favourite, so he was feeling confident and a bit too smug!

  “This one is a piece of cake,” he grinned. Tessy just chuckle
d and held his hand.

  “And they’re off!” The announcer shouted. The tension in the air was thick. Everyone was standing, stretching to see. Some folks held their breath while others cheered at the top of their lungs. It was, by far, the most thrilling event Tessy had ever attended. She looked up at Marshall to see the excitement on his face and a twinkle beyond what she had ever previously witnessed. She laughed at the sight.

  The horses were coming around the last bend, three were in the running, two neck and neck. The commentator was yelling over the crowd. Everyone was strained and stretched as far as they could to see the finish line. Marshall’s pick and another horse were neck and neck. Tessy laughed as Marshall cheered and whooped. It was close, but in the end, it was the day’s favourite who made it over the finish line by a nose. Marshall yelped an exhilarating “Yes!” He picked up Tessy and swung her around. She laughed at his boyish exuberance.

  “I won!” he shouted as he kissed her squarely on the lips.

  “Aye, that ye did, love,” she said as he put her down.

  “I’m going to go collect my fortune,” he grinned and then headed of towards the wickets.

  As soon as Marshall returned, they rushed to get a table for supper before most the crowd dispersed. They ordered appetizers and chatted about their day.

  “Honey, I’m just about Derby’d out. How ‘bout you?”

  “Aye. It’s been a pretty full couple of days. What did ye have in mind, love?”

  “Well, since tomorrow is Family Day at the Derby and we don’t have any with us, why don’t we do a little sightseeing in the area instead?”

  “That sounds like a lovely idea. I think we have done the Derby in grand style.”

  They clinked glasses to clinch the deal…. tomorrow… sightseeing it is!

  6

  Meanwhile…

  ...back in Ladyslipper, Saskatchewan life was turning to the anticipation of summer holidays. It was the end of June. There were vacations to be organized and summer camps to be picked. Lazy days at the beach were highly anticipated.

  Penny Tucker and her friend, Susan, were sitting at Penny’s breakfast nook going over the summer camp schedule to enroll their daughters, Emma and Becky, both eight. Emma, Penny’s daughter was now one of Tessy’s cherished granddaughters and when Becky was just a toddler she had adopted Tessy as her surrogate grandmother. Tessy introduced the two wee girls a year ago and they have been inseparable ever since.

  Suddenly, Penny’s oldest daughter, Sarah, came bounding in the door. She had just been down to Sage Haggerty’s natural healing centre, The Healing Sage, to see her best friend, Cherokee.

  “Well, that old biddy, Mrs. Chamberlain is at it again!” she exclaimed. “Oh, sorry! I didn’t realize we had company. Hi Susan.”

  “Hi! Oh dear! What’s she done now?” Susan chuckled.

  “Well, you know Sage has asked Cherokee and I to work part time at the shop now that she’s so busy.”

  Both Susan and Penny nodded their heads.

  “So, I went in this morning to see how Cherokee was doing when Mrs. Chamberlain came in and started ragging on us about turning into witches!”

  Susan started to laugh, “Well, that sounds about right. Boy, she just can’t leave it alone, can she?”

  Penny shook her head, “You’d think, by now, she’d give it up. Well, honey, you know what she’s like, just let it roll off. What did Sage say to her?”

  “Sage had stepped out for a few minutes so it was just Cherokee and I.”

  “Oh, honey. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. Cherokee did a pretty good job of handling it. But I’m not sure I should tell you just how.”

  “Why? What did she say?” Penny asked, knowing she shouldn’t.

  She loved Sarah’s best friend, Cherokee, like a daughter, but Penny knew Cherokee was not afraid to speak her mind.

  Sarah mischievously chuckled, “She said, ‘Well, I’d much rather be a witch than a …itch!’ “Sarah just smiled at her Mom not really needing to completely finish the sentence.

  Penny and Susan tried to hold back their laughter and failed miserably.

  After Sarah left the room, Susan looked at Penny and smiled, “Well, you must admit, it isn’t anything the rest of us haven’t thought one time or another.”

  Penny nodded and giggled.

  ***

  Dotty and Bert were keeping life at Ashling Manor running smoothly. Little Emma and Becky were over often to help Dotty with the gardens and, especially, to help her bake cookies. They also enjoyed helping Bert with the dogs, Duke and Darby, and the cats, Merlin and Cordelia. Yes, there was always something to do at Ashling Manor, but it still didn’t feel quite right without Tessy. The two little girls were out in the yard inspecting what was presently coming up in the rock garden they had constructed with Tessy last summer.

  “Oh look! There’s my ladybug rock I painted last year. Wow, you can hardly see it under all those new plants,” Emma reported with concern as she knelt down to slightly move it into a more visible location.

  “Cool. It was so much fun building this garden with Tessy. I sure miss her. Dotty’s really nice and everything, but she’s just not Tessy,” Becky reminisced.

  “Yah, I miss her, too. But she’s coming back, ya know?” Emma reassured her best friend as she took her hand.

  “Yah, I know.” And with that, hand in hand, they ran over to play with Duke and Darby.

  Cherokee’s shift had ended and as she was leaving The Healing Sage, Tommy, Sage’s boyfriend, entered. They exchanged greetings as they passed in the entryway. Sage met Tommy at the door and gave him a hug. “Hi! What are you doing here?” she smiled up at him.

  “Just passing by and thought I’d pop in to confirm our date for this evening. And, of course, to see how your day was,” he added as he kissed her.

  “Yes, of course, our date is still on,” she smiled and nudged up against him. Suddenly her demeanour changed, as she added, “And, as for my day, it included Mrs. Chamberlain. What does that tell ya?”

  “Eeeeyew!” Tommy, sympathetically, scrunched up his face.

  “Exactly! I know Tessy says we should not wish evil thoughts on anyone, but sometimes it’s almost impossible not to.”

  “Don’t let her get to you, babe. She’s just not worth it. Hopefully, our date tonight will cheer you up.”

  “I know. I’m trying! What are we doing tonight, anyway?”

  “Oh, you’ll see. I’ve planned a little surprise.”

  “Ooooh… I love surprises!”

  Tommy grinned mischievously, “I know. See you at 6:45 p.m. sharp.” He kissed her again and walked out the door.

  ***

  Jim Tucker walked into the foyer of their lovely, two story, home and tossed his jacket on the hall bench. “Hello… anybody home?” he hollered. Silence. “Hello,” he called a little louder.

  “Oh, hi honey. I’m out on the deck,” Penny yelled back.

  Jim poked his head out the sliding screen doors, “Hi, Hon, I’m getting a beer. Do you want anything?”

  “Thanks. That sounds good. I’ll have one too. I’ll have a bit of Clamato juice in mine, please.” She said as she got up to meet him in the kitchen. “How was your day?” she asked as she kissed him squarely on the lips.

  “Not bad. However, Mrs. Chamberlain was in. You know?”

  “Oh, not you too!”

  Jim chuckled, “What do you mean?” Penny told him about the girls encounter with her. After a good chuckle, Jim mused, “Boy, she really is something, isn’t she?”

  They retuned out to the deck to relax and enjoy their drinks.

  Jim looked around the yard. “It’s pretty quiet around here. Where is everyone?”

  “Emma and Becky are over at Ashling Manor, as usual. Matt is down at the park playing baseball and Sarah met Cherokee after work to help her pick out a new outfit. They should all be home soon. I picked up some ground beef today. I thought the kids might like barbecued hamburgers for
supper and I made a potato salad to go with it. How’s that sound?”

  “Great!” Jim heartily agreed. “It’s so hard to believe that a year ago we were packing and getting ready to move to Ladyslipper. I remember our first meal we cooked out here on the deck. It was chicken thighs, wasn’t it?” Jim gave Penny his best smug look.

  “Whoa! I’m impressed! You usually can’t even remember what you had for breakfast.” Penny teased.

  “Hey!” Jim playfully scowled.

  “Oh, sorry, honey,” Penny giggled, leaned over and kissed him.

  ***

  Tommy knocked on the back door to Sage’s upstairs apartment at 6:42 pm. Sage opened it and kissed him. He took her hand and proudly escorted her down the stairs to his recently purchased second-hand truck. He opened the door for her and helped her in. He took a long look at her before he closed the door. She was so beautiful. He felt like the luckiest guy on earth.

  “What?” Sage gave him a puzzled look.

  “Nothing, “he smiled and closed the door.

  “Where are we going?” she asked. “I didn’t know what to wear.”

  “You look great! And, you’ll see,” he grinned.

  They headed out of town towards Ladyslipper Lake. Sage gave him a puzzled look when they drove right past it. A few moments later they pulled into the parking lot of the Inner Peace Bistro. Sage gave Tommy a wide-eyed stare.

  “Oh, Tommy! This is lovely, but you can’t afford this!”

  “You let me worry about that. Come on,” he motioned with his head as they got out and walked up the pathway and into the majestic log chalet.

  Cherokee’s Aunt Dawn, greeted them at the reservation desk. “Sage! Tommy! How wonderful to see you. I have your table ready. Please come in.”

  “Thanks, Dawn. Great to see you, too. It’s so beautiful here.”

  “Thank you. Come, let’s get you seated.”

  Soon they were seated at a quiet table. Sage leaned over the table and whispered, “Tommy, are you sure about this?”

  “Will you stop. Yes, I’m very sure. Besides, you cook for me all the time,” he smiled and took her hand.