SHORT STORY: I WAS JUST PLAYING WITH YOU THEN

I WAS JUST PLAYING WITH YOU

Ah, here he comes, the cartoons must be over. He's got his tennis racquet with him - hope the neighbours don't complain. They've been pretty good so far. He's got a lot of energy this one. Not a reader like his brother. My God, he's like his grandfather. Ossie loved his sport too and he even looks a lot like him ... jet black hair, medium height ... he's not going to be tall and a bit bandy, green / brown eyes, can't sit still for long. His grandfather adores him. He can probably see it too. Reminds him of his Welsh background he always bangs on about. Yep, he's not going down to the beach, he's going to be hitting up against the wall to the entrance of the flats.

"Hi Nan, I'm just going to have a bit of a hit up against the wall here. Is that OK?"

Check Nan out, hey, she's got her knitting again, sitting in the old rocker. Wonder who's going to score this jumper? Must be my turn soon. My last one has just about had it and Greg and Fred both have new ones. They are so warm. Wonder where Pop is? He must be having his afternoon sleep. Reckon he didn't sleep too well last night. I heard him screaming again in the middle of the night and Nan had to get up and go calm him down. Probably dreaming about France and the explosion that took two of his mates and left him deaf in one ear. It's good he has been able to go back to work again recently after his six months in the rehabilitation hospital. Mum says he suffers from bad nerves. Who would have thought he had played cricket for NSW schoolboys and first grade rugby for Manly. Who would have thought he had almost made it to the Olympics for swimming and would have done so had he not got the flu and was beaten in to second place by a club mate he beat regularly every week? He is a wreck now, and can hardly get up out of his chair and walk to the bathroom. It must be tough, war. Mum remembers the look on his face when Uncle Fred announced he had enlisted in 1939 to go and fight the Japanese. His face had turned a funny shade of grey apparently.

"Good shot, Honey! Don't know how you managed to get that volley back. Oh Oh!"

Damn it, too hard, it's going over Pittwater Road, I'll have to tackle the traffic.

"You be careful going over the road. Look both ways before you run. There's lots of traffic here at this hour."

"Yes, Nan."

"You found it?

"Yep, it was in the gutter on the other side. Might have a break, it's getting a bit hot now, wouldn't mind a drink, Nan."

Stay there, you sit down and I will go and get you one. Lemonade?"

"Yep, that'd be really good."

"There you go Darl!  Drink up. You know what ? I was just playing out there with you."

"Excuse me, Nan, what did you say?"  My God, Nan's losing it ...

"You know, Honey, as you get older and your body can't do what it used to do, your mind and spirit remain forever young. In my heart, with a little bit of imagination, I was playing out there with you, going shot for shot."

"Really Nan?"

"Really!"