Margaret Ellis sits on a bench in the garden of the St. Mary’s Care Home, tears streaming down her cheeks. It is her 80th birthday, yet neither her son James nor her daughter Poppy have arrived to wish her well.
Her neighbour in the ward, Eleanor Whitaker, does stop by with a card and a small parcel, and the care assistant Lucy offers her a crisp apple as a birthday treat. The home is respectable, but the staff overall seem indifferent. Everyone knows that families bring their elderly relatives here to spend their remaining years, often because they have become a burden at home. James says he is taking Margaret there so she can rest and recover, but in truth he wants her out of the way of his wife, Claire.
The flat in Manchester had always been Margarets. After James persuades her to sign a deed, he promises she will keep living there as she always has. In practice, the whole family moves into the flat at once, and a war erupts with Claire. Claire is constantly dissatisfied, never cooks properly, leaves the bathroom filthy, and so on. James initially defends her but soon stops, even joining in the shouting. Margaret notices the couple whispering whenever she enters a room, only to fall silent the moment she steps inside.
One morning James brings up the idea that Margaret should rest and get better. She looks him straight in the eye and asks bitterly, So youre sending me to a nursing home, son? He flushes, stammers, and says, No, mum, its just a care home. Youll stay a month and then well bring you back home. He signs the paperwork, drives her away, and hurries off, promising to return soon. He only turns up once more, bearing two apples and two oranges, asking how she is, and then disappears again.
Now Margaret has been living there for two years.
When a month passes and James still has not visited, she dials the home phone. Strangers answer: James has sold the flat, and no one knows where he is now. Margaret spends a couple of nights weeping, already knowing she will never be taken home again, that there is no point in shedding more tears. The hardest part is remembering that she once drove a wedge between her daughter and herself for the sake of her sons happiness.
Margaret grew up in a small village in Yorkshire. She married her schoolmate Peter Hughes, and they lived in a modest farmhouse. Life was simple, and they never went hungry. One day a city friend visits their parents and boasts about the good life in London high wages and immediate housing. Peter becomes eager, Lets go, lets go, lets go! They sell everything and move to the capital. The promise of a flat and a new sofa is fulfilled, and they buy an old Vauxhall Viva. Its in that car that Peter later has a crash.
Two days after the accident, Peter dies in the hospital. After his funeral, Margaret is left alone with two children in her arms. To keep them fed and clothed, she spends her evenings scrubbing stairwells in the block. She hopes the children will grow up and help, but that never happens.
James falls into trouble, and Margaret has to borrow money to keep him out of prison, spending the next two years repaying the debts. Her daughter Poppy marries, has a baby, and everything seems fine for a while. Then James falls ill repeatedly, and Margaret quits her job to care for him, shuttling between hospitals. Doctors cant pin down his ailment until they discover a rare disease treated only at a specialist institute in Oxford, where the waiting list is long. While Poppy rides to appointments, her husband leaves her, though he leaves the flat behind. In a hospital ward, Margaret meets a widower, Tom, whose daughter suffers from the same condition. They grow fond of each other and start living together. Five years later Tom becomes ill and needs money for an operation. Margaret has some savings and intends to give the money to James as a deposit for a new flat.
When Poppy asks for the money, Margaret refuses, feeling it would be cruel to spend it on a stranger when her own son needs it. Poppy is deeply hurt and tells Margaret, Youre no longer my mother. If I ever need you, dont come to me. They do not speak for twenty years.
Poppy eventually recovers, and she and her husband take their children to live by the sea. If Margaret could turn back time, she would act differently, but the past cannot be changed.
Margaret slowly rises from the bench and shuffles back toward the care home. Suddenly she hears, Mum! Her heart leaps. She turns slowly. It is her daughter, Poppy, stumbling, almost falling, but Margaret catches her.
Finally Ive found you, Poppy whispers. James wouldnt give me the address, but I threatened him in court, saying the flat sale was illegal. He fell silent after that
They walk into the lounge and sit on the sofa. Poppy says, Im sorry, Mum, for not speaking to you for so long. I was angry, then I kept putting things off, embarrassed. A week ago I dreamed of you walking through a forest, crying. I got up, my heart felt heavy. I told my husband everything, and he told me to come back and make peace. I came, but there were strangers here who knew nothing.
She continues, I spent a long time looking for Jamess address, finally found it, and thats why Im here. Pack your things, were going. Do you know the house? A big one on the seaside. My husband told me if youre unwell, I must bring you to us.
Margaret leans into her daughter, tears of joy streaming down her face.
May you honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long on the earth the Lord, your God, gives you.
