By The Sea

This moving short story by Marie Penman sees a family reconnect.

IT was no exaggeration to say that the holiday had been years in the planning, after the children had worked out that in 2021, Granny would turn sixty, Mum would turn thirty and Uncle Mike would turn twenty-one.

“Three big birthdays!” Amy had yelled in delight. “We should have a huge party in 2021 to celebrate!”

Louise had smiled at her granddaughter.

She was at that age – seven – when she was fascinated by her family and the connections in it.

She had even drawn a family tree and written down all the details carefully in her best handwriting and using her favourite gel pens.

“Granny Louise, Grandad Alex, Mum (Stacey), Dad (Jamie), Uncle Mike, Auntie Zoe, then Amy and Zak.”

Amy had shown it to the family over Sunday lunch.

That was when she had decided that, in 2021, they’d have the biggest party ever, to celebrate all the special birthdays.

Her uncle Mike had laughed at her.

“Hey, bossy-boots, who put you in charge? Anyway, I might be planning a trip away with my mates for my twenty-first.

“Maybe I’ll have a girlfriend by then . . .”

The rest of the family had guffawed, as though the very idea of Mike having a girlfriend was something completely ridiculous.

Louise had smiled fondly as she’d looked around the table at her precious family.

She loved it when they all got together like this and it was even better now they had grandchildren to enjoy.

Her husband, Alex, had ruffled Amy’s hair as he looked at the family tree.

“Nice work, sweetheart, and I like the sound of a big celebration in 2021.”

Then Zoe, their younger daughter, had come up with an even better idea.

“Why don’t we have a big family holiday instead? We could book a luxury villa in Spain or Italy, with its own pool and space for the kids. It would give us something to look forward to . . .”

Amy and Zak had jumped up and down excitedly at the thought of going on holiday.

“Yes, a holiday!” Amy yelled. “Let’s have a big huge holiday together!”

For months, the family group chat had been full of recommendations for villas in Spain and Italy, ranging from reasonably priced places to enormous palaces with private tennis courts and a live-in butler.

Louise loved looking through the listings and was getting excited about the thought of being together for a fortnight. Then COVID had struck. The booking of a holiday for 2021 was put on hold, and as the weeks turned into months, it seemed unlikely that the family would get away together.

Meanwhile, life continued, with them all apart: Mike in his student accommodation, Zoe working in the city, and Stacey, Jamie and the children together fifty miles from Louise and Alex.

The regular get-togethers faded into memory and Louise had to get used to watching her grandchildren grow up via video calls.

“But Granny,” Amy said during one call, “we’ll still be able to have our big holiday next year, won’t we?”

Louise felt tears prick her eyes. She felt so sorry for her little granddaughter, but it wouldn’t be fair to

It wasn’t the holiday they had wanted, but it ended up being just as special . . .

make promises that couldn’t be kept.

“Ah, sweetheart, we’ll have to wait and see . . .”

As the seasons passed and 2020 turned into 2021, Alex suggested to Louise that they call off the holiday, rather than giving the children false hope.

It was a real low point. Amy and Zak phoned her when they heard the news.

“But Granny,” Amy cried. “What about all those lovely houses?

“Who will stay in them if nobody can go on holiday? It’s not fair!”

All Louise could do was agree – it really wasn’t fair.

She wasn’t at all bothered about not having a big celebration for her sixtieth, but she had been looking forward to seeing her family again, all in one place.

Alex tried to console her. “I know we can’t risk booking anything abroad,” he said, “but how about we book somewhere up north, maybe just for a few days, and see who can make it?” Louise thought about it. She remembered a cottage they’d rented in the Highlands years ago, when their children were small. She hugged Alex.

“That’s a lovely idea! Do you think we might be able to book the cottage by the sea again, the same one we had before?”

Bless her husband, he spent hours going through dozens of rental agencies, till he found the very place they’d stayed 20 years ago.

It was on the coast, miles from anywhere, and had a big garden with a climbing frame.

They decided on booking it for a few days in August, and posted the news on the family group chat.

But the younger members of the family weren’t quite so thrilled with the idea.

“Not exactly sunny Spain, is it?” Mike said.

“Won’t it be freezing, even in August?” Zoe asked.

“The kids were hoping for a pool . . .” Stacey said.

“I’m not sure I can get time off work in August,” Jamie added.

Louise discussed it with Alex over dinner that night.

“They’re just disappointed about missing out on a foreign holiday, love,” he said. “They’ll come round.”

But there was a distinct lack of enthusiasm for the cottage by the sea.

However, when travel restrictions were lifted, Alex and Louise went ahead and booked the cottage and decided they’d go by themselves, even if none of the family were keen.

They posted the details on the group chat and left it as an open invitation.

Mike and Stacey both had their birthdays in September, while Louise’s was at the end of August, so regardless of whether they all had a holiday, the family would be meeting up to celebrate at some point.

In July, Stacey and Jamie phoned to say they’d be able to come to the cottage after all, followed by Mike and Zoe, who were planning to drive up together.

“This is much better!” Louise said to Alex. “It’ll be nice to spend some quality time with them all again.”

Louise and Alex planned to head up to the cottage the day before the others, to get it all organised.

They were putting up a tent in the garden, which Mike had offered to sleep in with the kids, and the rest would just about squeeze in to the bedrooms.

Louise made a couple of big lasagnes and a pot of chilli, then they stopped at the supermarket on the way and bought lots of treats.

It was a long drive up to the cottage but she had fond memories of the place.

Louise was amazed that the cottage looked exactly as she’d remembered it.

Which, on closer inspection, she thought might not be a good thing.

The small stone house was far more basic than she recalled and looked like it hadn’t been decorated in the last 20 years.

Louise thought back to the villas they’d been looking at, with “all mod cons”, and quickly realised that this cottage was the very opposite of that.

No TV, no phone signal and no WiFi . . .

“Oh, dear,” she said to Alex as they had a look round. “The kids are going to be disappointed, I think.” Alex hugged her.

“Well, I think it’s great,” he said.

“A real get-away-from-itall break, where we can make the most of the outdoors and get lots of fresh air and exercise.”

Then the rain started. They ran to the car, bringing in their provisions, then lit the log burner (in August!) and a few candles before settling down to a supper of ham, cheese, olives and wine.

As the place warmed up, Louise felt more relaxed.

How would the rest of the family feel about having a holiday here rather than in a villa in the sun?

The next day, the clouds cleared away and the sky and the sea were both a mesmerising blue colour.

Louise and Alex went for a walk, then got the cottage ready for the new arrivals and pitched their old family tent in the garden.

Around about four p.m., with the sun shining and a gentle breeze blowing, they heard the cars coming along the single-track road.

Louise felt nervous. She’d made them come all this way for just a short break – what if they hated it?

As the cars pulled up and the children tumbled out and rushed into her arms, full of chatter, any worries she had disappeared.

Stacey and Jamie hugged her, and Mike and Zoe, who’d pulled up just behind them, laughed in delight as they saw the cottage, just how they’d remembered it.

Amy and Zak ran in and out the tent, thrilled, and Jamie stretched and said how good it felt to get away from work and his laptop.

The girls had brought food and drinks for a luxury picnic – smoked salmon, crusty bread, cheeses, strawberries and crisps, as well as champagne.

They decided to leave the unpacking till later and all headed down to the beach.

The water was calm and clear, a beautiful turquoise, fringed by sand that was more silver than gold, and gently warmed by the sun.

Within ten minutes, the kids were paddling, the family had blankets and a picnic laid out on the beach and they were all speaking nineteen to the dozen.

Zoe flopped back on the sand and smiled.

“You know, Mum, this is just what we all needed – a proper break away from the telly and social media and constant news updates . . . It’s perfect.”

Louise leaned over and hugged her, just as Amy and Zak came running up from the water’s edge.

“Can I fetch Granny’s present now, Mum?” Amy asked, hopping excitedly.

Stacey nodded and a few minutes later, Amy was thrusting a parcel at Louise.

“I know your birthday’s not till next week, Mum, but we thought you might like to have this now.”

All eyes were on Louise as she tore off the wrapping paper on her gift.

She exclaimed when she saw that her present was the family tree Amy had drawn all those months ago, now mounted and framed as a birthday gift.

Louise hugged her grandchildren close to her.

“I love it!” she said.

“Thank you so much!”

Amy leaned over and pointed at the family tree.

“But look, Granny – I added a new branch . . .”

And as Louise looked at the drawing, she spotted the extension to the tree, with just a question mark where the name should be, and looked at Stacey with tears in her eyes.

“Another reason for celebrating, Mum,” her daughter said.

“We’re having another baby!”

Suddenly the whole family were laughing and crying and hugging each other, as Alex popped open another bottle of champagne and Zoe took pictures.

Against all odds, Louise knew this was going to be their best ever holiday.

Because it wasn’t the location that mattered – it was who you shared it with. Which made the cottage by the sea just perfect.

The End.