An Old Friend: Part 1

Lisa sighed as she drew back the curtains. It was 6:30 a.m. The dreary, overcast sky proved that it was going to be another damp, rainy day. It seemed to be like that quite a lot, here in a little suburb just north of London. Especially in early May. She had been a bit depressed lately, and the gloomy weather was not helping matters. At 28, she was living on her own in a small house which had been her parents', and she was still single.

Perhaps it was her own fault. She was a fairly quiet, conservative girl who didn't go out much. She wasn't the type to party til dawn, especially in her college years when she attended Oxford University. She was more of the serious, studious type whose philosophy was "work before pleasure." It seemed to be all work and no pleasure most of the time. It had paid off in the end, though. She graduated in the top 5 of her class, with a baccalaureate degree in earth systems science. She had her share of friends, most of whom she only saw during classes, lunch breaks, or study sessions. Now she wished she had kept in touch with them. She made up the bed, threw on her robe, and went downstairs for breakfast.

She made herself a cup of tea along with some toast with strawberry jam. She sipped her tea and thought to herself, 'what should I do today?' She spied a bunch of photographs lying on a table in the foyer. She had been meaning to organize them into an album for weeks. She made up her mind that she was going to do that as soon as she finished breakfast. She put the dishes in the sink, and went upstairs to change out of her nightgown.

Minutes later she came back downstairs, passing the foyer table. She instantly remembered and whirled around, heading back towards the table. She had found a small photo album in a closet, and sat down on the couch with the album and the pictures in her hand. There were about 20 of them, and they were quite a few years old. Some were from her college graduation in 1968. She smiled as she remembered that happy day. In one picture, she was standing next to her parents, both with proud smiles on their faces. In another, she was standing next to her 89-year-old grandmother, who was not very well, but would never miss her only granddaughter's graduation. Lisa smiled at the picture of her and her grandmother, who was a short little woman of 4' 9'' and held onto a cane. She became sad for a moment, recalling that her grandmother had passed away two years ago. Her smile returned when she picked up the next picture. It was of her and her friends, most of who graduated with her. She instantly remembered their names...there's Nigel Jamison, Elizabeth McDonnell, Tricia Hardy, William James, and........Michael Palin.

She did a double-take when she saw him standing on the right side of her. She had all but forgotten about him. He was dressed in a black suit and tie instead of a graduation robe, for he had graduated a few years earlier. He was about three years older than her, but she had met him when she was a first-year student. She was very apprehensive, and the university seemed so big compared to the small high school she had attended. He volunteered to show her around the place so it wouldn't seem so frightening. He was a very nice young man and really seemed to care for her. She was very comfortable with him and was able to make an easy transition to university life.

She met with him many times throughout that first year, whether it was for lunch or to help her study. He was a history major, but he cared for her so much that he helped her study no matter what the subject was. Come spring however, he graduated and she attended his graduation ceremony. She wouldn't have missed it for anything; it was the first time she had really been in love with someone. She was afraid she'd never see him again, and told him so after the ceremony.

"Don't worry, I'll ring you up from time to time," he softly assured her. "And I'd never miss your graduation ceremony."

"You mean it?" she asked.

"Certainly," he replied. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. You are a wonderful girl, and I'm glad I got to know you."

He gave her a kiss on the cheek and a big hug. She felt all warm and wonderful in his arms. Somehow, down deep she knew he wouldn't forget her. He kept his promise, and rang her up every so often. A few years later, she noticed he was on television in a show called "Do Not Adjust Your Set." She watched it faithfully, for it was like visiting with him all over again (and it was a funny show as well).

A year later, in 1968, when it was her special day, he kept his word and attended her graduation ceremony. She'd never forget that day. She hadn't heard from him in a while and was afraid he had forgotten. When she saw him approaching, dressed up in a black suit and tie, a feeling of relief washed over her and she ran into his arms.

"I was afraid you'd almost forgotten," she almost whispered.

"My dear, you have nothing to worry about," he answered as he patted down her hair. "I'd never forget about someone as important to me as you."

She was ecstatic, and enjoyed herself the rest of the day. Afterwards, they went dancing and had a wonderful time. He gave her his phone number so they would always keep in touch. However, both of them found themselves very busy that year. He was writing for television, and she had gotten a new job as a librarian not too far from where she lived. She tried to ring him up a few times, but would never catch him home. She knew he was busy and didn't blame him. But she began to grow afraid that he had begun to forget about her.

One fateful day about a year later, she had gone shopping at the local supermarket. She was approaching the end of the frozen food aisle, when a young man nearly hit into her from around a blind corner.

"Oh!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, my! I'm terribly sorry about that, Miss," the young man said, flustered. She looked up into his apologetic eyes. It was none other than Michael.

"Lisa!" he said, breathlessly. "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!"

She giggled a bit. "That's quite all right, Michael. Goodness, long time, no see. I tried to ring you up a few times, but I haven't been able to get a hold of you."

"Yeah, I know," he said apologetically. "I'm sorry about that. I've been quite busy, writing for television and all. I take it you've been pretty busy yourself."

"Yes," she said quietly. "I, um, got a new job."

"That's great news," he smiled. "Doing what?"

"Well, I'm a librarian. It's not as exciting as writing for television, but it's got everything I've ever wanted, peace, quiet, books..."

"Ah, and where would we be without books," he laughed nervously. "I mean, that's a terrific job and you deserve it. Congratulations."

They checked out and he followed her to her car. He was actually glad he had run into her again. He didn't mean it to look like he had forgotten about her, but he became very busy as he was working on a new television show with some friends.

"So, what kind of programs are you writing for now?" she asked, to keep up the conversation.

"More comedy, as I'm sure you'd imagine," he answered. "A group of us - my old friend Terry Jones from university and some other chaps like Eric Idle from 'Do Not Adjust Your Set', and John Cleese and Graham Chapman who worked with David Frost - oh, and a Yank named Terry Gilliam, we're all working on a new comedy program."

"That sounds wonderful," she replied. "Sketch comedy?"

"Yes, that's about it. We've started holding writing sessions at Terry Jones' house. We haven't come up with a name for the program yet. Right now we're just hoping that the BBC will give us a respectable time-slot."

"Well, it sounds quite promising. Do give me a ring when it's going to air on the telly."

"I definitely will, Lisa. I'd better get going. I'll be in touch with you, I promise," he smiled.

She waved goodbye to him as she entered her car. She drove back home, humming all the way. He had picked up her spirits after she was sure he'd forgotten all about her.

"What a lovely day," Michael thought to himself as he drove away from the supermarket. He was glad to have seen her again. He didn't want her to think he had been dead all this time. He was going to be late for another writing session, so he stepped on the gas a bit more. He wasn't about to tell the others about his old friend, not just yet, anyway. They'd probably tease him, and although it was good-natured mostly, he didn't want it to interfere with their comedy writing.

That was the last they'd spoken to each other. Michael hadn't gotten around to phoning Lisa to tell her about their new program premiering on October 5th, and she didn't watch much television anyway, so she unfortunately missed out on seeing it. Soon after, she found herself taking care of her sick grandmother, who eventually passed away from a stroke in July 1972. Lisa once had the house to herself again. Though she liked being alone, sometimes it made her sick. She would get very lonely at times.

She sighed as she put the rest of the photos in the album. "Oh Michael," she thought. "How I miss you."

Just then, the phone rang.