A CHANGE IN THE OFFING?... Hope, at least (Part 57a)

I wanted to call Elle but waited to see the apartment first. Jean Paul took me to meet his wife, Marie, another French Canadian. You could faintly hear the ”French“ when Jean Paul spoke but with Marie it was pronounced. She was what I would call ”plain“. Thin with long, straight almost black hair, she looked tired. They had two sons with the oldest about to turn three and the other four months old. The older one was running around in a diaper which told me that he wasn’t toilet trained, just like my oldest. I knew how much extra work that entailed. They showed me their apartment and told me that the empty one mirrored theirs. It was of good size with two bedrooms. When Jean Paul told me the rental price I thought he was kidding. He explained that since the area was a Summer destination the Winter months made it like ghost town. The owner felt it better to rent for the minimum than to either winterize it or pay to keep the heat on. I knew immediately that it wouldn’t be any problem to make the rent. When I called Elle I told her to start packing. She wasn’t overly happy but really couldn’t say much. At least we'd all be together.

Dan and I got all twelve horses trained by Saturday and we then left for the farm. It was good to see Elle. I’d been planning on a nice ”homecoming“ but found that she had her period. Sunday morning I loaded most of the things we thought we needed into the little trailer. I say ”loaded“ but it was more like just tossing the stuff in. We said our ”good byes“ to Jeanne and then Dan reviewed the instructions for what I was to do on Monday and Tuesday and then we took off. I was so excited that I was going to be on my own that I don’t remember much of the trip itself. I remember it being late in the afternoon when we arrived. Once up the stairs (it was on the third floor) we were greeted by Jean Paul and Marie as if we were royalty. They insisted that we come right into their apartment and to have some dinner. The table was all set for us to join them. They promised to help us unload and to get our apartment set up when we finished eating. I was hungry but Elle, who was wearing a ”package“, needed a change as did our oldest. Elle, not wanting to mention her own need, tried to get out of it by pointing out our daughter’s wet diaper. Marie said it wasn’t a problem as Elle could use one of her son’s diapers and plastic pants. I tried to help her out by saying that we really needed to get our things unloaded so I could get the trailer off the street. Both Jean Paul and Marie protested mightily with Marie saying that she’d made extra food just for us. Elle, who was holding the baby gave me a look that said ”I give up“ and handed me the baby. Then she nodded for Marie to come over by where she was standing. Jean Paul’s oldest was making a bit of a fuss and he went over to him to calm him down. I saw Elle whispering to Marie and then, much to my surprise, saw her turn her backside towards Marie and point to two wet spots on her butt cheeks. Marie was somewhat shocked but nodded for Elle to follow her down the hall.

When they returned Elle was still wearing the same clothes. I’d assumed that Marie was going to give Elle some dry clothes but remembered that Marie was as thin as a rail. What Elle had was a bath towel folded over a number of times which she discreetly placed on one of the chairs around the table. Elle promptly sat down and we all joined her. It was a nice meal and really appreciated in spite of the circumstances. When we finished, as promised, both Jean Paul and Marie helped me unload the trailer. I remember being thankful that the apartment was as big as it was. I also remember wondering how we’d accumulated so much stuff.

Morning came way too soon. Jean Paul had suggested that he ride to the track with me so Marie could show Elle around and to help her get food and supplies. I remember thinking that maybe the change in location was going to be a good thing. Dan’s approach to me had changed for the better and meeting up with Jean Paul and his wife had been a blessing. For the first time in a long time I had a positive feeling. When I got back to the apartment that night I found Elle to be almost as happy as I was. Other than some minor difficulties with language translation Elle had a good time with Marie. After eating we all got together again and had an enjoyable evening. It had become increasingly clear to me that Jean Paul and I were made from the same mold.

The rest of the horses arrived Tuesday afternoon and Dan was back that night. Everything had gone well for me and Dan seemed pleased. He stayed until all of the recent arrivals had had their turn on the track. Chit had arrived with the new batch of horses and as soon as Dan left I found that he actually had a ”voice“. I found that his name was actually a shortening of his surname. I also found that he had worked with harness horses since before WW II and with Dan since Dan began racing on the Grand Circuit or for about eight years. Without Dan around he was actually a different person. He had a real good ”feel“ for horses and I was surprised that he’d never had any desire to go off on his own. I decided to try to take advantage of his experience as I moved forward.

To be continued...