Sunday 17 July 2016

Young boys in Paradise


I am remembering the dream-like tranquility of long school holidays in rural Surrey - ancient mills and stagnant pools, the green surfaces of which would occasionally be punctured by a sleepy fish making a languid lunge at an imagined morsel, the ripples limited to two concentric circles by the algae.

The hum of a bumblebee - just like Granchester Meadows.

There was one spot which I used to visit in the Summer whenever I could, because it was exactly like the Disney illustrations of Peter Pan, when the kids were flown to the islands and teamed-up with the ticking crocodile when evading Hook.

This area should really have been a swamp, but in fact was a glade in a wood which had many limpid, shallow pools interspersed amongst tufty, dry islands of about six or seven feet across - close enough to be able to jump from one to the other over the water.

It had exactly the same atmosphere of peace as the much larger 'Silent Pool' of Newlands Corner about 20 miles away, but in miniature.

I took a friend there to share the calm and stillness with him, and we sat on one island in silent reverie, just taking in the beauty of the place.

Then everything changed when we noticed two girls of about our age, calmy walking past us through the wood. In an instant, I knew what I had to do.

"I am going to expose myself to those girls!" I blurted, and stood to my feet as I prepapred to hop from one island to the other to reach them.

Fortunately, my friend talked me out of my hasty plan, and I remember the slightly shocked, slightly worried look on his face as he understood that I was serious.

I sat back down on the mossy bank and peace temporarily returned.

That snake has got alot to answer for.

28 comments:

  1. What!! Good that you were talked out of it, or we would not be enjoying your posts now ! Maybe

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, you would be glued to them to see what other revelations I came up with. This one was supposed to make you laugh.

      Delete
  2. "I am going to expose myself to those girls!"

    Is that what you really said? Verbatim? I can imagine the mesmerizing atmosphere, but that syntax from a what--14 year old?

    It's that kind of hot summer day here, today. If I didn't have a road trip to accomplish this afternoon, I'd take a nap. Fortunately the week begins tomorrow.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, that was not the way I put it that day, but the meaning was the same. Actually, I don't think I remember how I phrased it, but I think the words 'cock' and 'show' came into it somewhere.

      Delete
    2. Back then it was probably "show you my winky."

      Delete
  3. Oh ..... That was you, was it ?!!!! XXXX

    ReplyDelete
  4. Here's me reading this lovely, tranquil post about the countryside and thinking 'how beautiful Tom is writing today', and then sex rears its ugly head (well nearly) - if I had been one of those girls you may well have got more than you bargained for! (I could have hit you with my handbag!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    2. SOMETHING nearly reared its ugly head, that's for sure. Haha.

      Delete
    3. You carried a handbag aged 13, Weave? A HANDBAG????????

      Delete
    4. Funny...btw where is your alcohol, story?

      Delete
  5. Clearly your hormones were making you temporarily insane! Hopefully you grew out of those kinds of impulses shortly thereafter....you HAVE grown out of them, haven't you, Tom? :D

    ReplyDelete
  6. The one eyed monster reared its head. Not enough cold showers and bromide at that school of yours.

    ReplyDelete
  7. My twin brother had the same sort of inspiration on a lovely summer day when one of my friends and I were swimming in the creek on the family farm.
    We caught him later and tied him to a tree facing the road, then pulled his pants down around his ankles and left him. Grandfather found him two hours later when he went to find out why all the vehicles were honking as they passed.
    Why yes, it was my idea to help him expose himself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's stone cold. Lol.

      Delete
    2. Tough love? I hope these were the days before viagra.

      Delete
  8. Oh god , id hate to be a buxom blonde in your pub at closing time

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Actually, I have to be home in time for The Archers, so you would never find me in the pub at closing time.

      Delete
  9. Tom, Young Boys in Paradise is a swell title. Thank you for this light hearted post. (More shooting going on over here claimed the afternoon news cycle.)

    I prefer your story.

    Best wishes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I heard. I don't like the way this Summer is going in your country. You would have thought that the Civil Rights issues would be well in hand by now, but obviously not.

      Delete
  10. As I read I thought: 'Wow, Tom should write more of it that way, he's good - might become a new 'Miss Read'." But I'm glad I found the 'old you' a little bit further down, popping up, or almost.. - so I changed my mind: D.H.Lawrence maybe? (Just found out that Vladimir Nabokov lived in Berlin for a while)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you are making a comparison between me and Nabokov, then I am flattered! Lolita was a brilliant book which would be impossible to write in today's climate. It should be on the school curriculum. Some things just need to be observed.

      Delete