Ch2 The comfort of the kitchen
Louise headed to the kitchen, made a cup of tea and sat at the table . She needed to calm down before compline.
The last six months had been a bewildering, yet an oddly vivid and deep-felt period of time. Meeting Charles again had been a surprise that made an already complicated situation even more so.
Sister Evangelina came to the kitchen with a screwdriver and some fuses in her hands. Putting them away in the cupboard, she said with a tone of mild reproach: "Perhaps he will do. All that education doesn't seem to have made him entirely impractical. And Lord knows we need help after Mr. Pike leaves for a holiday."
"Sorry, what are you talking of, Sister Evangelina?" Louise asked, distracted.
"Oh, I have been training our new, temporary handyman. With Mr. Pike deserting us in July, to take his family to Hastings, we need someone else around. I tested the new boy with the fuse box. He managed astonishingly well."
"Oh, I see." It seemed to be of no interest to Louise. Seeing the rather downturned appearance of Nurse Beaton, Sister Evangelina took a cup of tea and sat by her.
"So you've been out with your friend again?" she asked, in a mild manner.
"Yes, Sister Evangelina."
"He seems a man of purpose. Do you like him?"
This question disconcerted Louise, especially coming from Sister Evangelina. Yet she was at the stage where she needed to talk. She had been talking with Sisters for six months now, of all things possible, but not about this. She had been avoiding it.
"Yes, I do like him, very much. He is a dear fellow. Our fathers were friends. They were both in the army. We met at Aden as children."
"I guess there is something to said for all those far-away corners of The Empire, "mused Sister Evangelina. "I have never been further than France. But I know some brothers of the Order of St. Joseph keep up a small hospital in Nigeria and some nurses have gone there as missionaries." It was obvious that this small talk was to give Louise a chance to change the topic if she so chose. Louise found this rare tact a touching gesture.
Sister Evangelina remained silent for a while. She coughed a little. "What are his prospects? Is there a place for you?" she asked in a non-committal manner.
"I'm afraid he thinks there is. He is going to start a business as optician in Hampstead. He has been….saying things."
"Oh. Hell's teeth."
Louise had to chuckle even if she was anguished. Sister Evangelina's vocabulary was so rich.
"Yes. Hell's teeth indeed."
After a long pause, Sister asked raising her eyebrows: "After you came home from your…..visit to Chichester, how many talks have you had with Sister Jesu Emmanuelle?"
"Three."
"Hmm." Sister Evangelina rose and patted Louise's shoulder. Louise couldn't help her tears. She grabbed Sister Evangelina's hand. Then she stood up and embraced Sister Evangelina.
Sister didn't seem perturbed by this. "There, there, my friend." It took some time for Louise to regain her composure enough to let go of Sister and sit down again.
Sister Evangelina took a deep breath. "You need to bide your time, I say. Bide your time. You will find a way. I have a feeling in my bones that you will."
She patted Louise's shoulder once more and disappeared into the corridor. Louise remained deep in thought until the bell call to compline rang. She rose to leave for the chapel.
She recalled what Sister Monica Joan has once said:
"But in chapel, we need not choose our thoughts. The words are aligned, like a rope for us to cling to."
