“YOU JUST CAN’T. It’s too much for you. I wouldn’t want to take it on and I’m half your age, Dad. Please think about it.” Joe slowly lifted his gaze and looked at his son with what he hoped was a face that gave nothing away.
“Okay. I’ll think about it but I’m not making any promises. I’ve lived in this house for nearly 50 years and I’m not like you youngsters who move every two years when you change your job!” Alan chuckled.
“Thanks Dad. It’s a long time since anyone called me a youngster. I’ll be looking at retirement myself soon. And when I do, I can tell you that I’ll be looking at taking things a bit easier, not trying to prove that I’m not getting older.”
“I am not trying to prove anything!” retorted Joe with more than a suggestion of annoyance in his voice. Joe mused over the conversation with his eldest child – approaching retirement or not, he was still Joe’s child and Joe began to wonder at what point in the relationship with your offspring do they decide that they know better than you. Was there really a point at which they silently (or not) became the more authoritative voice in any discussion between the two of you?
The Maples had been the only house that Joe and his wife Anna had ever owned. They bought it when they married and it was originally a three-bedroomed house with an unusually large garden.
Denne historien er fra December 2020-utgaven av Let's Talk.
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Denne historien er fra December 2020-utgaven av Let's Talk.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
STOP ME AND BUY ONE: Nigel's on the way with his 1981 Bedford
It’s something we all recall with delight. “Mum, it’s the ice cream man!” Let’s Talk’s motoring man David Clayton meets someone happy to be the owner of a Bedford ice cream van. Bring on the Strawberry Mivvis, choc ices and 99s ...
Beautiful Hill: Normandy Origin For A Name Meaning
Let’s Talk’s surnames expert Derek Palgrave, from Suffolk, researches three more of our readers’ names, the first of which probably stems from the geographical presence of a beautiful hill.
Words of wisdom about a hobby so many of us love
Let’s Talk’s gardening expert Charlotte Philcox has been trawling through some books to find words of wisdom from so many people about gardening and farming. Here she shares just a few.
Vicki remains so positive despite missing her panto
For actress Vicki Michelle, Christmas usually means performing in panto. But, due the coronavirus pandemic, this year will be different. Vicki speaks to Rachel Banham about her plans for the festive season, her outlook on life and her fond memories of filming in East Anglia.
Two centuries on Thomas would be DELIGHTED WITH HIS SUCCESS
He was a man without sight but with such vision. Derek James remembers Thomas Tawell who died 200 years ago.
TURNING 50
Here at Let’s Talk we recognise that our magazine is targeted at those aged 50 and older. So we hope we are always fair to our readers and to the older generation in general. But it seems many believe other media and businesses do not treat older people in the best way.
THE CHASE COULD BE ON FOR a Norfolk home for Bradley Walsh
He is one of the most popular celebrities on television at the moment. He’s a comedian, singer, actor, personality and probably the best quiz show host doing the rounds. David Clayton looks back to when Bradley Walsh came to Cromer.
The calendar is rolling around to the WINTER SOLSTICE
Claire Manion, of Norfolk-based Broadsky Astrology, looks at how we have always honoured the winter solstice, our shortest day.
PEACE, GOODWILL AND PROSPERITY must surely follow
In view of such uncertainty hanging over the rest of this year – and possibly well beyond – it was hard to come up with a suitable offering for December in his usual style, says Keith Skipper. So, he has decided to settle for a festive story set in 1951, that he wrote some time ago.
Friends
Readers of our short stories don’t have to have long memories to recall work by Anne Maxwell, who had a previous short story entry published in the summer.
