Chapter 11— Fifteen Years Gone

2005

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Chapter 11

Do you remember William? Oh of course you do!

It had been fifteen years since William became a married man and you know by now that has two beautiful wives! It would greatly interest you to know that he now has ten children, and a house full of relatives!

The William .A. Johnson family turned out to be a strange and crazy neighbour to the others on Mermaid street. Every home, street, farm, market and hospital knew of the strange Johnson family.

Amelia had three boys and two girls, while Olivia had two boys and three girls! The two women got along just fine, in their own way. They occasionally had their differences but they had a soft spot for each other.

When Amelia lost her Mother, her Father came to live with her in the mansion. Amelia's father and William's mother came to be known as Grandpa and Grandma. They never had anything to do in the house, they continued to grow old in their peaceful environment, surrounded by the people they loved. The two old folks were best of friends, and the most lazy in the house. All day long they would tell stories about the past to each other, laughing their hearts out and play games, they were living the life!

... Remember Viola? She turned out well. She became a hair stylist, she had her own hair Salon. Although she had forgiven her brother, Viola still frowned at him, she hated the way her brother's life turned out to be, but she decided never to leave him. 'He would go crazy for sure', she would always remind herself. Viola still hoped for better days ahead, she was still waiting for her Mr Right, she wasn't getting any younger.

And then there's Uncle Millie, Olivia's stepbrother. Whenever it was demanded of him why he bears a female's name, 'Ask my parents' he would reply snappily. He was allowed to live in the mansion on Olivia's appeal. His only work around the house was to say funny things to people and make them laugh, there were also things he would say to them, that would encourage them to throw things at him, his mouth was larger than his head when it comes to joking, mocking and laughter.

Who could forget Monica? Well she's Aunt Monica now. Surprisingly and unexplainably, she became a one stern-looking woman, a harsh one with a crooked voice. No one dared stare at her left arm, for it was shorter than the other. Age dealt with each person differently.

She worked on her little farm everyday, except on Sundays. She usually supplied the house with fresh food. The stubborn kids loved to make poor Aunt Monica angry and she loved to haunt them, she was given the name The Monster, by the kids. Aunt Monica was William's favourite sibling.

I mustn't forget about Uncle Junior, he was the only sibling to Amelia. He spent time with the Johnsons only on weekends because of his job. He had the money and the looks but he was the most selfish man they had ever known. Uncle Junior's flaw was laughter. He just laughed! Most times, for no reason. He had a peaceful, smiley face, but he was no peaceful man at all. He loved to talk. His sister was glad that he was only at her house on weekends.

William became a wise and strict middle-aged man as the years unfolded. Sitting on a swing-chair at the back of the house with Amelia, was always a time he enjoyed the most. They just sat there, laughing, talking, holding hands, looking into each other's eyes. They seemed satisfied!