a date and time which, Abbie realised, was actually tomorrow as he was in town that day. He asked her to call his secretary to confirm if this was suitable for her, and ended the letter with condolences on her loss.
Abbie didn’t give it much more thought, other than to wonder if it was to return a few of Peter’s personal effects from his office. She quickly dialled the number and spoke to the secretary, explaining who she was and that Mr Stokes was welcome to visit. In cheery tones, the secretary told her that under such circumstances this was usual company practice and it was nothing to worry about.
So you have a lot of employees die? Abbie wanted to say to the cheery women on the end of the phone, but she didn’t.
It was agreed Mr Stokes and a colleague would visit her tomorrow at 1 p.m., with the cheery secretary informing her that the meeting would take 10 -15 minutes only.
At least it’ll be short and sweet! She thought.
Abbie’s immediate thought on putting the phone down was that she’d agreed to a meeting in the middle of the day, so when could she run, before or after?
Before and she would run the risk of being a bit spaced out, whereas after, she possibly might feel too upset. Bugger, decisions, decisions! Abbie’s mind was still not in the best place to cope with such things, she realised, and even simple demands seemed beyond her.
Eventually, after mulling it over for a long time, Abbie decided that she would run after the visit, as she might need to get out of the house after the discussion, depending on what they wanted to see her about, of course. But now her whole being and psyche ached to exercise; she desperately wanted to feel the adrenaline and that surge of energy that made her realise she was still alive, but she knew it would have to wait till tomorrow.
…………………………………………………………………
Later that evening Abbie powered up her PC, and it seemed an age before the machine came to life. She wasn’t sure what exactly she wanted to look up, so she entered ‘grief’ into the search engine but then realised that wasn’t it. ‘Out of body experience’ seemed more logical, after all that was what seemed to have happened to her.
To her surprise over a million sites came up. She selected some and began reading and, as the evening wore on, glimpsed an insight and some sort of understanding as to what had happened to her. Some sites offered information on ‘how to’; others were people’s testimonies of their experiences, whilst some scientific references indicated that out of body experiences – or O.B.E. - was directly due to a build-up of C02 in the brain. One particular piece seemed to imply that this in itself caused the sensation of movement and of the light.
Abbie read thoughtfully and eagerly, but didn’t allow herself to be gullible and taken in by mumbo jumbo. Ever-objective Abbie, she thought.
After an hour or so Abbie’s brain had had enough and her eyes were sore from staring intently at the screen. She felt too tired to take any more in, so she sat down on the sofa and flicked on the TV, but then realised she wasn’t interested in watching anything, it would take too much mental effort.
The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts: it was Kate. They chatted for a while, Abbie being given the latest gossip and information about the school, and she felt glad about being included. Kate agreed to visit her after the meeting with Peter’s employer; she had offered to be there for it if need be, but Abbie reassured her that she’d be fine.
Knowing she had to leave herself time to fit in her run after the meeting, Abbie invited Kate for tea, saying she’d put something together and promising not to poison her. They both laughed.
‘I’ll be the judge of that” was Kate’s reply.
Again, Abbie was restless that night and did not sleep too
Abbie didn’t give it much more thought, other than to wonder if it was to return a few of Peter’s personal effects from his office. She quickly dialled the number and spoke to the secretary, explaining who she was and that Mr Stokes was welcome to visit. In cheery tones, the secretary told her that under such circumstances this was usual company practice and it was nothing to worry about.
So you have a lot of employees die? Abbie wanted to say to the cheery women on the end of the phone, but she didn’t.
It was agreed Mr Stokes and a colleague would visit her tomorrow at 1 p.m., with the cheery secretary informing her that the meeting would take 10 -15 minutes only.
At least it’ll be short and sweet! She thought.
Abbie’s immediate thought on putting the phone down was that she’d agreed to a meeting in the middle of the day, so when could she run, before or after?
Before and she would run the risk of being a bit spaced out, whereas after, she possibly might feel too upset. Bugger, decisions, decisions! Abbie’s mind was still not in the best place to cope with such things, she realised, and even simple demands seemed beyond her.
Eventually, after mulling it over for a long time, Abbie decided that she would run after the visit, as she might need to get out of the house after the discussion, depending on what they wanted to see her about, of course. But now her whole being and psyche ached to exercise; she desperately wanted to feel the adrenaline and that surge of energy that made her realise she was still alive, but she knew it would have to wait till tomorrow.
…………………………………………………………………
Later that evening Abbie powered up her PC, and it seemed an age before the machine came to life. She wasn’t sure what exactly she wanted to look up, so she entered ‘grief’ into the search engine but then realised that wasn’t it. ‘Out of body experience’ seemed more logical, after all that was what seemed to have happened to her.
To her surprise over a million sites came up. She selected some and began reading and, as the evening wore on, glimpsed an insight and some sort of understanding as to what had happened to her. Some sites offered information on ‘how to’; others were people’s testimonies of their experiences, whilst some scientific references indicated that out of body experiences – or O.B.E. - was directly due to a build-up of C02 in the brain. One particular piece seemed to imply that this in itself caused the sensation of movement and of the light.
Abbie read thoughtfully and eagerly, but didn’t allow herself to be gullible and taken in by mumbo jumbo. Ever-objective Abbie, she thought.
After an hour or so Abbie’s brain had had enough and her eyes were sore from staring intently at the screen. She felt too tired to take any more in, so she sat down on the sofa and flicked on the TV, but then realised she wasn’t interested in watching anything, it would take too much mental effort.
The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts: it was Kate. They chatted for a while, Abbie being given the latest gossip and information about the school, and she felt glad about being included. Kate agreed to visit her after the meeting with Peter’s employer; she had offered to be there for it if need be, but Abbie reassured her that she’d be fine.
Knowing she had to leave herself time to fit in her run after the meeting, Abbie invited Kate for tea, saying she’d put something together and promising not to poison her. They both laughed.
‘I’ll be the judge of that” was Kate’s reply.
Again, Abbie was restless that night and did not sleep too
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