curiosity:
“Isn’t it something of a shock to you to find that you—well, that Doctor Tamberly has taken on the guardianship of two children? I think you’re accepting the situation marvellously.”
“But Errol always does take his own line, quite irrespective of me or anyone else,” Mrs. Tamberly said. “Of course I’m devoted to him,” she added in a tone of monumental indifference, “but I never attempt to influence him. It’s useless. It was the same with his father,” she added as an afterthought, and Hope felt that Errol’s father was someone Mrs. Tamberly had known slightly years ago but almost forgotten.
“How philosophical of you,” Hope said, smiling at her in the mirror.
“But it’s so much better, don’t you know?” Mrs. Tamberly smiled perfunctorily in return. “You never get anything by making a fuss, whereas you can get nearly everything by going about it quietly.”
‘She’s not often as frank as that, I’ll bet,’ thought Hope, amused and impressed. ‘That’s a candid statement of her recipe for success. I think it works, too, with her. Like one of those nice dogs who gradually edge you off the sofa, without making any to-do about it!’
By the time she and Mrs. Tamberly came downstairs again, the twins were sitting on the rug in front of the fire, bombarding Dr. Tamberly with questions, and again Hope was struck by the fact that he appeared to have their approval.
“And shall we come here every holidays, just as though it were home?” Bridget was enquiring.
“I think so. Unless you have an invitation to go somewhere else of which I approve.”
“Oh, I see. If you approved, we shouldn’t go?” That was Tony, getting the situation quite clear.
“If I disapproved, you wouldn’t go,” agreed Dr. Tamberly, but he smiled.
“And what would happen if you got married?” Bridget wanted to know, providing for all eventualities.
“Well, I hadn’t really considered that serious contingency,”‘ Dr. Tamberly admitted gravely. “We should have to do what is, I believe, called ‘reviewing the situation’ then.” And he got up from his chair as Hope and his mother came over to the fire.
The children too scrambled to their feet, and Bridget said, “We’ve got the loveliest rooms, Hope.”
“And Doctor Tamberly says there’s a stream at the end of the garden with fish in it,” supplemented Tony.
“Don’t you think perhaps it had better be ‘Uncle Errol’ rather than ‘Doctor Tamberly’?” suggested Mrs. Tamberly agreeably. Whereas Hope gave him a small malicious grin, and, somewhat to her surprise, he flushed slightly again.
After that they had tea and Mrs. Tamberly, rather amazingly, directed the conversation into pleasant, trivial channels, so that no one had any opportunity for even mentioning the momentous and disturbing changes which had taken place.
‘Not that I should discuss them in front of the children, of course,’ thought Hope. ‘But it’s extra-ordinary how she can make essentials seem like details, and details like essentials. If she doesn’t like a thing she just ignores it. I wonder if she expects us to do the same.’
Once or twice, as the conversation flowed amiably round her, Hope wondered if she had imagined the disclosure about the lost money. No one seemed to be agitated or excited or worried. The children, insensibly influenced by the calm, matter-of-fact atmosphere which Mrs. Tamberly created around her, behaved as they might if they had really been in their own home. They had accepted the change, and, for the moment at any rate, were perfectly contented with the arrangements made. Mrs. Tamberly herself not only gave the impression of being entirely remote from crisis, but somehow gave one the feeling that crisis simply did not exist except in one’s fevered imagination.
Only when she looked at Errol Tamberly did Hope remember every word of their conversation so clearly that she knew imagination had nothing to do with it.
“Isn’t it something of a shock to you to find that you—well, that Doctor Tamberly has taken on the guardianship of two children? I think you’re accepting the situation marvellously.”
“But Errol always does take his own line, quite irrespective of me or anyone else,” Mrs. Tamberly said. “Of course I’m devoted to him,” she added in a tone of monumental indifference, “but I never attempt to influence him. It’s useless. It was the same with his father,” she added as an afterthought, and Hope felt that Errol’s father was someone Mrs. Tamberly had known slightly years ago but almost forgotten.
“How philosophical of you,” Hope said, smiling at her in the mirror.
“But it’s so much better, don’t you know?” Mrs. Tamberly smiled perfunctorily in return. “You never get anything by making a fuss, whereas you can get nearly everything by going about it quietly.”
‘She’s not often as frank as that, I’ll bet,’ thought Hope, amused and impressed. ‘That’s a candid statement of her recipe for success. I think it works, too, with her. Like one of those nice dogs who gradually edge you off the sofa, without making any to-do about it!’
By the time she and Mrs. Tamberly came downstairs again, the twins were sitting on the rug in front of the fire, bombarding Dr. Tamberly with questions, and again Hope was struck by the fact that he appeared to have their approval.
“And shall we come here every holidays, just as though it were home?” Bridget was enquiring.
“I think so. Unless you have an invitation to go somewhere else of which I approve.”
“Oh, I see. If you approved, we shouldn’t go?” That was Tony, getting the situation quite clear.
“If I disapproved, you wouldn’t go,” agreed Dr. Tamberly, but he smiled.
“And what would happen if you got married?” Bridget wanted to know, providing for all eventualities.
“Well, I hadn’t really considered that serious contingency,”‘ Dr. Tamberly admitted gravely. “We should have to do what is, I believe, called ‘reviewing the situation’ then.” And he got up from his chair as Hope and his mother came over to the fire.
The children too scrambled to their feet, and Bridget said, “We’ve got the loveliest rooms, Hope.”
“And Doctor Tamberly says there’s a stream at the end of the garden with fish in it,” supplemented Tony.
“Don’t you think perhaps it had better be ‘Uncle Errol’ rather than ‘Doctor Tamberly’?” suggested Mrs. Tamberly agreeably. Whereas Hope gave him a small malicious grin, and, somewhat to her surprise, he flushed slightly again.
After that they had tea and Mrs. Tamberly, rather amazingly, directed the conversation into pleasant, trivial channels, so that no one had any opportunity for even mentioning the momentous and disturbing changes which had taken place.
‘Not that I should discuss them in front of the children, of course,’ thought Hope. ‘But it’s extra-ordinary how she can make essentials seem like details, and details like essentials. If she doesn’t like a thing she just ignores it. I wonder if she expects us to do the same.’
Once or twice, as the conversation flowed amiably round her, Hope wondered if she had imagined the disclosure about the lost money. No one seemed to be agitated or excited or worried. The children, insensibly influenced by the calm, matter-of-fact atmosphere which Mrs. Tamberly created around her, behaved as they might if they had really been in their own home. They had accepted the change, and, for the moment at any rate, were perfectly contented with the arrangements made. Mrs. Tamberly herself not only gave the impression of being entirely remote from crisis, but somehow gave one the feeling that crisis simply did not exist except in one’s fevered imagination.
Only when she looked at Errol Tamberly did Hope remember every word of their conversation so clearly that she knew imagination had nothing to do with it.
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