Valerie! Why are you taking so long?! Ive been waiting and waiting! Come and sit! Anna, Valerie Mathewss neighbour, shifted on the garden bench, making herself comfortable.
And why wouldnt you? What an evening it was! Why stay indoors? Only the telly and Whiskers the cat for companyutter boredom! Whereas outside, spring was in full swing. Though it was only April, it felt like May had already settled in. Even the cherry tree, the one Annas late husband Stephen planted by the window, had awakened and was now blossoming with white petals. The bench beneath italso Stephens handiworklooked as good as new after Anna gave it a fresh coat of paint last week. It was ready for their usual evening chats. Once the neighbours gathered, the talk would flow: about children, maladies, life and love.
What else do women discuss? And even though theyd known each other for ages, there was always something new to mention, providing another reason to natter. Children would grow, ills would accumulate, and love well, love was never abundant. More often than not, it was in short supply. And so each woman hoped for an honest revelation now and then, drinking in every word about what its like to be cherished. Youd listen, and somehow the world would feel lighter. Even if your own heart felt like a desert, if someones love remained, then it hadnt disappeared from this earth. It still glimmered, giving warmth, giving life.
Anna Alexandraknown as Annie to everyone in the squarehad known her neighbour Valerie for as long as she could remember. Over half a century together, living door to door, raising their families. As little girls, their mothers never bothered locking the doorswhy bother, when they dashed back and forth to each others homes all day long? If you werent in your own kitchen, youd be found playing games in the neighbours.
As six-year-olds, Annies grandmother came to visit and told the girls the most important thing in life was to catch the bird of happiness by the tail and keep it closethen all would be well. Life would run smoothly, and those around you would be content.
The girls didnt grasp much about life, but the idea that everyone could be happy stuck fast. Who wouldnt want their parents to stop arguing over silly things and just get along? So they decided to look for that magical bird.
Annie insisted she knew just where it lived: in the house next door, with that peculiar, gruff-voiced man. Hed sometimes bring out his colourful, loud parrota huge, majestic bird, the like of which the girls had never seen, not even at London Zoo when theyd gone with their families.
So the girls made grand preparations.
They found Annies old rabbit hutch on the balconysurely suitable for the bird? You couldnt hold a bird by the tail all the time, not when youd want to buy an ice-cream the very day you became happy.
They packed bread and biscuitswho could say what the bird fancied? Valerie added a sweet, figuring everyone likes a treat. Itd be dreadful if the bird didnt like their bread.
There was no rush. Matters of happiness require care. Annies granny promised to take her away for the summer, and both families were preparing to holiday at the seasidea few hours drive in a borrowed old car, all crowding in together to save on petrol. It was always an adventure: beach, rented cottage, wide garden with swings, and the salty tang of the sea right at your doorstep.
Annie looked forward to itbut she also pitied her friend. Valerie had no grandmothers at allhow was that even possible for a child? Who else would spoil you behind Mums back, or tell you a proper bedtime story, or crochet sunhats with colourful ribbons?
Annie reasoned, if they caught the bird of happiness, perhaps Valerie would get a grandmother too. Maybe even one from Annas own village, so they wouldnt have to be apart in summer. It was worth the effortfor a friend!
The day before their trip to the seaside, the girls called out that they were off to play, closed the front door delicately so it didnt slam, stifled their giggles, and made their way downstairs.
Their own courtyard, the neighbouring onethen the dreary block of flats where the magical bird lived.
But the yard was deserted and silent. The heat kept everyone indoors.
The girls exchanged worried looks. How were they supposed to find the bird now? Valerie began to pout, on the verge of tears, but Annie refused to mope. If they gave up, all hopes of ice-cream and matching summer dresses would be lostnot to mention a grandmother for her dearest friend!
And anyway, if the bird were nice, wouldnt it be waiting in the tree out front? But it wasnt.
So, Annie took charge, grabbed Valeries hand, and led her to the front entrance of the block. No point standing aboutperhaps they could simply ask where the bird lived.
Door after door they knocked, some didnt answer, some scolded for messing about.
Still they pressed on, knocking down the hallway.
Where does the bird of happiness live?
Adults! How could such a simple question send them into a fluster? Someone even threatened to smack them, and the girls quickly fled that green doorno bird of happiness lives with such bitter people, Annie declared.
At last, one flat opened to a boysomewhat older, who just shrugged: Come in, then!
There was no bird here, but the flat was a treasure: strange masks on the walls, giant seashells echoing the sound of distant waves, and a stunning model ship, with sails and tiny sailors.
Dad and I built herHMS Anna, the boy said.
My names Annie! she beamed.
Oh, really? Thats my mums name too.
Where is she?
Mums at work. Shell be home soon. Are you meant to be out on your own?
Suddenly, the girls remembered it was long past lunchtime and their mums would be worried. Val cried, Come on! and Annie, grabbing her friends hand, dashed for the door, leaving the cage behind.
Wait! called the boy, catching them before they disappeared. Here!
He held out peacock feathers so beautiful that the girls were speechless.
What are these?
Peacock feathers! Mum brings them homeshe works at the zoo. Theyre yours if you like.
Reverently, the girls accepted this magical gift and rushed off.
What awaited them at home was a storm! Tearful mothers scoured the estate, calling. Fathers puffed nervously by the doors, waiting for the constable, whod instructed everyone not to move.
Vals mother, seeing the girls, collapsed in relief right in the middle of the playground.
Theyre safe
There were tears, hugs, a bit of a telling-off and even the threat of a spankingbut little time for proper punishment.
A few days later, as the girls sat side by side on the swings in the seaside cottages garden, they whispered:
You know, Val, we dont need a bird of happiness.
Why not?
Granny said true happiness is when youre loved.
So?
Well, if our mums didnt love us, would they have wept and worried so when we were lost? And would they have been scared of losing us for good?
No
Exactly. Were happy already.
Maybe
I know we are!
What about our parents arguing?
Well, have they quarreled these two days?
No.
So they can manage it if they wish. No bird will change thatdo you see?
I do.
That summer remains their fondest childhood memory.
Anna Alexandra would always be grateful for someone with whom she could share such memories. Sometimes, if she forgot, Valerie rememberedalways the more serene, more grounded; Annie was quicksilver, always rushing, but Valerie would sit, reflect, and recall every detail as if it happened only yesterday.
It was years later, when Annie met her future husband, that she was stunned to enter his home and spot the model shipthere, in the same place, untouched.
HMS Anna she breathed, suddenly that little girl again.
And at her wedding, she tucked the peacock feather shed kept all those years into her favourite book, and later showed it to her husband. Remember?
She laughed as he struggled to recall such distant days.
Happiness lasted nearly thirty years: filled with worries, the first steps of a daughter, then a son, and even a brush with illness, through which Stephen never let go of Annies hand. Then, one day, time simply stopped; Annie forgot to breathe, her very life departing with Stephen. Valerie, standing by her side, didnt falter but brought her round and cradled her, whispering, Hold on, Annie, you have your children still
And Annie revived; there was still happiness to be hadnot the same, perhaps, half of what shed known, but what Stephen left her. The children were grown, but to lose both parents at once would be unbearable. As Granny used to say, As long as someone stands between a child and the sky, that childs not an orphanstill a lucky child.
So it was that Annie flourished, visiting her children and grandchildren, her suitcase packed with gifts, or waiting eagerly for the next family holiday. Once again, the house would fill with laughter and bustling feet, the grandchildren crowding onto her bed for bedtime storieseven the eldest granddaughter, now nearly grown, would linger and sigh with wonder at tales she secretly knew by heart.
Peace would return, joy as light as a feather. Maybe not as vivid as the peacock feather given to her by her childhood friend, but precious nonetheless.
Not everyone is so fortunate; some can wait a lifetime and never coax happiness down from the sky. Valerie and Annie were luckier than most. They might not have caught the magical bird, but they didnt miss their happiness, and even as girls, somehow understood what it truly meant.
Valerie too built her share of happiness. With her own husband, children never came, though they loved each other dearly. Neighbours would gossip about their husbands, but Valerie kept her peaceshe had no complaints, only gratitude.
Living in harmony, Annie once thought such devotion was a myth. But one look at Valerie and her husband proved otherwise.
Valeries family life wasnt free from trouble, of course. Her husband Anthony had a mass of relativesseven aunts aloneand his two sisters seemed determined to make Valeries life difficult. But her mother-in-law, Mary, was a wonderful woman, always kind, who accepted Valerie and tried to shield her from any unkindness.
When Mary sold her house and moved closer to the young couple, the daughters objected, but Mary said she did not want to be a burden and bought a small flat nearby. She knew the plans Anthony and Valerie had, and never told a soul.
Mary had suffered herselfher husband had left her with three children, which took its toll, but in time she found her equilibrium, and Valerie helped her adjust to her new life. It was Mary who helped Anthony and Valerie adopt a son, Paul, and welcomed him with all her heart.
Despite family suspicion, Mary silenced complaints. If she regarded the boy as her own, the rest gradually accepted him.
So, life went on. Valerie with her husband and son, Annie with hers.
Their families grew, their friendship never faded. The doors between their homes were always openthough they made sure not to repeat the bird-hunting adventure with their own children!
Stephens passing left a void, and before long, Anthony too was gonesuddenly taken by a blood clot, despite years working in hospitals.
It was Annies turn to lift Valerie from grief, reminding her how much her son and Mary needed her. What would Anthony say, if he could see you now? Annie asked, He loved you so much! Dont squander his love.
Whether it was these words or her own sense of duty, Valerie stood tall again. Paul became an officer, family visited often. His wife, Sarah, and her son from a previous relationship were welcomed as family, and Valerie made sure he never felt different.
Sarah called Valerie Mum, and the grandchildren were treated equally, no matter their blood.
Val, when are we heading to the cottage? Its gotten so warm! said Annie, craning her neck to spot blossom on the cherry tree.
This weekend, after I finish with the windows, Valerie replied.
Its nearly Easter, isnt it? Time for a proper clean then. Are yours coming?
For a couple of days. Pauls eldest is looking at universities in London, so theyll stop by. The little ones might stay for a bit. And you?
Not till summerschool isnt out yet, so a while to wait.
Its always slow when youre waiting for something lovely. Time drags on, but when the moment comes, it flits by, gone in a breath, and you have to wait again. But you know, Annie, Id give anything for that single moment. However brief, it lasts a lifetime, its happiness like beads on a string. Theres never much of it, unless you cant see what youve been given.
Too true! Do you remember when we went looking for the bird of happiness?
I do! Valerie laughed, arms folded over her generous chest. I couldnt sit properly for a weekMum was so cross, Dad thought Id remember the lesson! You were no better, bouncing around beside me!
I remember! But, Valdont you think we actually did catch that bird, without knowing it? Otherwise, how could we have had all thisfamilies, marriages, wonderful children, grandchildren? Tell me, arent we lucky?
Youre right. And I think we owe our bird of happiness a thank youmay it still flutter its wings and flick its tail, bringing happiness to those we loveWe are. And not just luckywise, too, for recognising it.
Their laughter drifted among the falling petals, mingling with the scent of green grass and old memories. The sun dipped behind Annies cherry tree, scattering shadows on the worn benchStephens benchwhere stories always began, always circled back, and never quite ended.
For a while, the friends sat quietly, content in the hush only lifelong companions know, hearts tangled with gratitude, gazing at the flowers blooming overhead. Somewhere on the breeze, a bird sangneither rare nor splendid, just a common blackbird greeting the duskand Annie closed her eyes, smiling.
Listen, Val, she whispered. Every evening, I think of Grannys words. Perhaps the bird of happiness never had one tail to catchmaybe it lives in every moment we dont let slip away.
Valerie nodded, leaning her head on Annies shoulder, the way she had as a girl beneath different trees, in distant summers.
And as twilight softened the world to silver, it seemed to them both that happiness had settled quietly beside them at last, never needing to be hunted or caged. It had always been there, perched gently in the spaces between sorrow and laughter, in memories shared and evening benches painted anew, waiting patiently for hearts wise enough to notice.
The shadows lengthened; someones grandchild called from an open window, and somewhere far off a postmans whistle faded.
Together, Annie and Valerie rose, arms linked, ready to go inleaving the bird of happiness undisturbed for another day, certain it would return, as it always had.
