The Past Recedes

Chapter 3

John was relieved to see the car pull into the driveway of an attractive Spanish-style ranch house on a residential street in Palm Springs. "I will get the kettle on, if I knew we had a guest I would have made biscuits", said Maria apologetically.

"No worries, ma'am. I can't really eat much sweets, my digestive system is messed up and I wear dentures", John explained.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry to hear that. I could ask you to stay for dinner, but is there anything you can't eat?", asked Maria.

"It's okay, I don't want to impose. I'm used to it, my housekeeper knows about my diet. I'm sorry, I'll just stay at a hotel", said John.

"Nonsense, I'll prepare something. Are you a vegetarian?", she asked.

"No, I don't eat processed food or sweets", he replied.

"Oh good, I can grill some fish with vegetables. And we have a spare room upstairs, you are welcome to stay", said Maria.

"Thank you, ma'am", John replied.

"Please call me Maria, and may I call you John? I don't think I'm old enough to be called ma'am", Maria chuckled.

John smiled and found he liked Mrs. Lacroix, who reminded him of his own mother. "It might be a while before I can call you by your name, we just met", he replied.

"I want to show you Pepere's study, he has got so many books", said Nika.

John followed her upstairs as Nika showed him a study all done in warm earth tones. Three quarters of the room were lined by bookshelves crammed with tomes of every sort, the big oak desk in the center topped by a typewriter and a stack of papers. "He's a college professor, those are term papers. And these are his books, Mom's will said I'm going to get her books", she said.

"I have a lot of books too, especially on art and Buddhism. I used to paint years ago during a bad time, but I concentrate on writing music now", said John.

"I'm surprised you do read, aren't high school dropouts dumb?", she asked.

"Nika, don't talk like that. Not everyone who drops out is stupid. I dropped out because school was boring and pointless, I preferred to play music and I joined the band when I was eighteen. I preferred playing guitar and writing music to sitting in study hall", said John.

"I suppose that makes sense. Weren't your parents angry?", she asked.

"No, they understood how much music meant to me. They let me drop out but I needed to get my GED, I passed it on the first try", he replied.

"Mom would never let me drop out of school, she was very conscious of our family reputation", said Nika.

John felt more disturbed than ever at her words. He'd thought that she was serious due to her mother's death, but she seemed far too serious for a child. Her words and demeanor seemed far too serious for a child. Her words and demeanor reminded him of a Victorian-era child from a Masterpiece Theater program than a modern child, far more serious than any child he'd ever encountered. "This is one of my favorites, it's the best translation of Homer", said Nika, showing him a copy of Chapman's Homer.

"I read that back in eighth grade, but it was in prose. I prefer the Odyssey over the Iliad, it's too bloody", said John.

"What's your favorite part of the Odyssey?", she asked.

"When Odysseus and his men wound up in Lotus Land and didn't want to leave. I know that feeling too well", said John ruefully.

"My favorite part is when the crew went to Tartarus to speak with Tiresias, I love the descriptions of the ghosts and of the landscapes. It was too bad Odysseus never got to see the Elysian Fields, and it would have been interesting to see Sisyphus", said Nika.