I am James Williams. I thought that I was happily married in my poorly paying, self sufficiency in rural Dorset. That was until Rob came to stay. He changed everything.
ELAINE
Before Rob came my wife, Elaine, worked in an Accounting firm in London. She got the 06 30 hours train and got back to our house a few hours later.
My wife was then 40 and I was 45. I owned the "Great Garden Maintenance" firm. My staff of 4 (and me) therefore work outdoors a lot.
HOW WE MET
Elaine and I met when I worked on her father's garden. We hit it off straight away. We dated for 3 years, even while she was away at Uni. After she got her first class degree we married.
ROB
Elaine kept in touch with her University friends. Most are professional upper middle class people. But one had made it big.
Rob Prentice had invented some electronic internet thing. His patent lawyer organised a bidding and he was set for life.
But then tragedy struck. Rob's wife, Rosie, died unexpectedly. At the funeral Elaine said to Rob "If I can ever help, just contact me."
ROB INVITES HIMSELF
So it was no surprise when Rob messaged Elaine to ask if he could stay with her and me. He had a business meeting nearby.
I suggested that Rob could use our spare room, rather than stay in a hotel. He was only going to stay with us for a week.
He arrived on 20 Mar 2020 on the 17 00 hours train. As Elaine wouldn't arrive home until late I met him at the local station. He got out of the First Class section of the train.
I AM DIFFERENT FROM ROB
I wondered if he and I would get on together. After all, Rob was rich, University educated and mixed with the upper echelons of Surrey society. He was a financial whizz kid. Newspapers and TV journalists sought his views on Budget Days.
My parents were poor. Even getting my City and Guilds had been difficult. My company made only small profits. No one cared what I thought about the budget or anything else, except perhaps for horticultural matters.
A SIMILARITY
When we got to my house I offered Rob a drink. We both had a beer.
I asked Rob if he had anything he wanted to do, while he was here.
He said "Go to see Old Harry Rocks" and then walk to Swanage. If ever I had the time I would walk all 260 miles of the South West footpath."
So we had a similarity. A love of being in nature. And drinking beer.
COVID
An event in an obscure part of China was going to affect Rob, Elaine and me.
Even when Covid hit Italy in Feb of 2020 none of us thought that it would happen here.
But of course "ignorance is bliss".
COVID TAKES HOLD
I was wrong about our island being a protection against Covid.
It was only 3 days after Rob came that the British Prime Minister said in a nationwide live broadcast "thousands of you are going to die."
I discovered a new word "Lockdown". This single word signified "the most draconian measures taken against the liberty of citizens since the Second World war."
All life was new and (to be honest) a bit exciting.
COVID LAWS