Millicent’s Surprise Trip to France
Miss Frenzi, the sports mistress, was in charge of the students. Briggs drove the school bus.
Arriving at the beach, all the girls rushed squealing into the sea with their floaties and whatever. In the late afternoon when Miss Frenzi had shepherded and corralled all the sunburnt girls up by the Punch and Judy tent she found that Millicent Martin was missing.
The police were called and a search began, but there was no sign of Millicent. It was assumed she may have drowned. At morning prayers, Pastor Dickie asked us to keep Millicent’s safe return in our prayers.
The good news eventually arrived via Miss Sefton at morning assembly who announced that Millicent had been found by the coastguard, cold, hungry and sunburnt floating off the French coast on her inner tube.
If my memory serves me right Millicent told us there had been a strong rip in the channel that day and that she had been lucky to have missed some really big ships. She said because of this strong rip she had missed Calais and found herself heading for a place a little further south, a place called Sangatte I think it was.
She said she waved furiously at people on a couple of really big tankers but they just waved furiously back. She said the only plus was it had been her very first visit to Sangatte. Anyways the news had come as a complete surprise as a collection had already been started by Pastor Dickie.
There had been a collective sigh of relief by the assembled girls. It was also pointed out by an observant fifth former just how lucky Millicent really was as she couldn’t even speak French. The expression was coined ‘Millie’s Luck’. Anyway enough of Millicent.
Now for a change of pace, the college gossip is Tamsin is livid with Nathan. He told Rebecca that Tamsin is not a bad looking chick. Rebecca passed this news on the Tamsin. I think it was the comparison to chickens that offended Tamsin. You see Tamsin is her own person and objects to being compared to free-range chickens. If Nathan visualizes him and Tamsin one day being a ‘unit’ he’s got another think coming.
As a rule, I don’t like slandering anyone and I was very reluctant to mention that this Nathan person just happens to be one of those creatures from the Watford Grammar School for Boys. So for starters, he and Tamsin are poles apart. I am surprised they even speak the same language. Just joking, nevertheless on second thoughts there is an element of truth in what I say.
I was looking forward to going home for the weekend. The Lacey’s being almost our neighbour were living at the old presbytery at Loch Awe and Tamsin and I were spending Saturday at her place and travelling to Inveraray Castle to spend Saturday evening and Sunday at our place.
We arrived at Loch Awe Grange and found Mr Lacey, Tamsin’s father, busying himself putting the music stand in place and arranging the music score in order for preparation for a one-hour clarinet recital he was hoping to give; a second attempt at a recital which was interrupted on our last visit because of a crisis at the Town Hall. Tamsin and I had been hoping again to play tennis for an hour.
There was a knock on the door and a number of the neighbors and the local pastor arrived. Greetings were exchanged and there was much scraping of chairs being positioned for the audience. I remember Tamsin saying the neighbors had been ‘roped’ in for this event, not my words.
Mrs Lacey left to answer another knock on the door. Heavens above I thought this is going to be a full house for Mr Lacey’s recital.
Mr Lacey then approached the audience and thanked everyone for coming and announced the composition he was about to perform was a lengthy piece called ‘Scherzo for Clarinet and Orchestra in D’ or was it D#, (it really doesn’t matter) by someone or other.
A Scherzo for all you people out there that are totally bereft of any musical knowledge whatsoever is a vigorous light or playful composition that may be the part of a larger work. It was the reference to a larger work that has me worried.
Mr Lacey blew a couple of notes to free any squeaks still hiding within his clarinet and to warm up the reed. We had an hour of this musical extravaganza to look forward to and Mr Lacey had not even got started.
As Mr Lacey put his lips to the mouthpiece of his clarinet he took in a deep breath just as Mrs Lacy returned, put her hand up and quietly beckoned. “Darling, there is a gentleman here who would like to speak to you”. In my mind I asked ‘was this again a last-minute reprieve from the executioner?’
Mr Lacy apologized and headed towards the door. Even if Mr Lacey’s recital goes for an hour I quickly calculated it was only 11am so Tamsin and I might still get a couple of tennis games on the courts before we had to leave for Inveraray.
Meanwhile, Tamsin’s mother sat next to Tamsin and me to indulge in light chitchat and asked how our college studies were going and then asked me about my parents and inquired if Colonel Carter-Brown still possesses the fox cub and how did the Best of the West Festival at the castle go.
I told her Reynard the fox had now been released off the muzzle as it had been behaving itself and to its credit and so far had not bitten one Asian or American tourist. Then Tamsin told her mother about me being made dorm monitor.
I told Mrs Lacey that the castle manageress lady told me this year’s Best of the West Festival was the best yet. Father and the auditors will be pleased.
At this point Mr Lacey returned, apologized and regretfully informed us that he has been unexpectedly called away to the Inveraray Council offices on urgent business. I looked at Tamsin and raised my eyebrows. I saw at least 2 full games being played, even a set.
Mrs Lacey was left to entertain the assembled guests and offer morning tea.
We exchanged waves with Mr Lacey as he drove out of the property, making our way to the tennis court.
It goes without saying that was a very close call indeed.
