. Charlie And Midge - Chapter 1 (Part 1)

. Charlie And Midge

A Novel

By Paul McCann

Chapter 1

(Part 1)

The Wedding   

 

Charlie and Midge were childhood sweethearts who first met where Charlie worked after school and on the weekends . The grocery store was about thirty miles from Dublin on the main Cork Road by the banks of the river Liffey beside the plains of Kildare at the bog of Allen . You could almost see the hill of Allen from the back window of the grocery store where Charlie worked and at night you could hear the Dublin to Cork trains passing by  . It was a beautiful part of Ireland where life was never in a hurry to go by . Charlie was an orphan but was given a job and an old store  room where he could live in the grocery store that was owned by Mr and Mrs Dowling . Charlie was a hard worker and was very grateful of having found work and a place to live . Over the years he had got to know most of the locals who came and went into the store and he got along with everyone . Often he would do home deliveries and other special favours for the customers . Charlie was happy with his life but always wished he could meet someone special to share his life with .

  

Midge lived near on a small farm called Powers Horse Stud where her Mother Nancy played the piano and her  Father Paddy looked after the horses around the farm .

He was from a long line of farming people who worked hard from dawn to dusk and didn't really have the time for music or TV shows . All the same Midges parents were madly in love and got on like a house on fire .

 Every Saturday once a month Midge would go into the grocery store where Charlie worked to get the monthly supplies for the farmhouse . The order never changed , and Midge had it memorised in her head . She could recite every item on the list blindfolded as if she were singing song . This always impressed Charlie who loved the sound of her voice as she rattled off all the items . Midge’s Mother had come from Navan in County Meath and she had been a great singer who often sang ijn the church hall and at some of the local folk music festivals . Nancys Father Sean
was also a fine singer who played the accordion and was often called to play at some public houses and parties all around the place , Nancy would tell Midge stories of how her father left her outside the pubs where was playing  to look after  the horse and cart out the front . That was when Nancy first got a liking for music and she ended up playing the piano . Midge never had the same passion her mother had and instead had a love for horses like her Daddy Paddy Power . Although Midge grew up in an atmosphere of music and there was always people coming and going into the farm for music sessions it never bothered Paddy at all , He loved the company and his wife was happy and so it was a happy home . As a kid Midge never wasn’t too fond of rock-and-roll as all she ever heard was traditional music and at her school they would all talk about Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry but all Midge had ever heard was the Clancy brothers and music played by ravelling people who would often drop in to play a few tunes .

As time passed she looked forward to her Saturdays visits at the grocery store where she could share her secrets with Charlie , the only person who seemed understand and respect her . Charlie also enjoyed it where Midge came to the grocery store .

On her last visit Charlie remined Midge about the very first time she came to order the supplies and he said  ,

“Remember that day when you first walked though the door to get the supplies “

 

She smiled and said ,

“Oh Charlie I felt a bit uneasy and tried to put on brave face and you said ,

“Good morning and how can I be of service to you today and I said ,

Hello my name is Midge Powers and I’m here for the monthly order for the Powers farmhouse ‘“

“Charlie laughed and said ,

‘And I said my name is Charlie , tell me what you need Miss Powers ?’

Midge laughed and replied ,

 ‘That’s right and I said to you my name is Midge and it would be grateful if you would be so kind as to take that expression off your tongue and leave out the Miss Powers . Call me by my first name , Midge “

 

The both burst out laughing and Charlie asked .

"Ha Ha ah yeah that was so funny and then you started to speak out the order one after the other  smokeless tobacco – 2  cans of the imported brand for chewing and  2 tins of snuff and I pack of pipe tobacco . They both roared out in fits of laughter and Midde said  ,

 

“I’d spent days memorising the list Charlie , 3 pounds of tea , the African brand , 2 pounds of cheese , 5 bottles of buttermilk , 8 pints of full cream and 2 bottles of orange juice . 3 dozen eggs and 4 pounds of streaky bacon .”.

Charlie shouted out ,

“And there was more I had to tell you to slow down , I could get the things quick enough to the counter “

“Oh  Charlie . Sure it’s only my first time doing this order “

“And now look at you Midge . So much has changed since then . Is the order still the same ?

Midge replied

“Yeah Charlie sure it never changes “

Charlie said ,

 

Months passed and Midge and Charlie were more than just casual friends , they had started courting under supervision . Out of the blue Charlie proposed to Midge who accepted however she needed Charlie to ask permission from her father . So on the  day Charlie went to ask Midges father for permission to marry his daughter . It was an occasion that Charlie would never forget . Mr Powers almost sensed what was on the cards and had pre-packed some fishing gears for the both of them  to spend the day at one of the  lakes fishing .

Charlie already had a well rehearsed script that he would use to ask for Midges hand in marriage . During the time they were at the lake Mr Powers kept deflected the conversation in different directions when he felt Charlie was about to maker the move to ask .  He gave Charlie a fishing rod and told him to take a chair and sit by  the lake with him to stall and add more anguish to Charlie who was already a nervous wreck  . Charlie had only done some light hobby fishing in his time and wasn’t adept with a rod  at all .

So there he sat beside Mr Powers , It was early one crisp autumn morning . Charlie had his fishing rod and a fold up chair and on the ground were some other items including  container of fishing bait , a flask of hot soup and some sandwiches .

It was very misty that morning and even though the fog was thick Charlie was still able to see the look on Mr Powers face , like a cat holding a mouse by its tail and enjoying the experience .

“Sure it can’t get any better that this Charlie . “

Said Mr Powers .

Charlie looked nervously at Midges father and replied .

“There’s something about this lake all right  ,When I first arrived here this morning and sat down . I thought about doing a  sketch or a line drawing of where we are. “

“I didn’t know you were an artist Charlie “

Mr Powers said and Charlie replied .’

 

“Well actually I’m not but I was just thinking if I was an artist I would do a sketch . It’s like if I was a fisherman I might even be able to catch a fish here in  the lake but I’m not “

 

A novek by Paul McCann

Charlie and Midge

End Of Part 1 

 

Link to part 2

https://www.abctales.com/story/mcscraic/charlie-and-midge-chapter-1-part-2

 

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