Peter Massam - Nipper

Nipper

Peter Massam

Copyright 2022 Peter Massam.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by
any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system
without the written permission of the author except in the case of
brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Balboa Press

A Division of Hay House

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.balboapress.co.uk

UK TFN: 0800 0148647 (Toll Free inside the UK)

UK Local: (02) 0369 56325 (+44 20 3695 6325 from outside the UK)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or
links contained in this book may have changed since publication and
may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those
of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher,
and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use
of any technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical
problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The
intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help
you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use
any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional
right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are
models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-9822-8607-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9822-8609-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-9822-8608-8 (e)

Balboa Press rev. date: 07/11/2022

Contents

For Jean

It is curious how our early experiences mould our actions, reactions and expectations of what is to come.

It is curious how the first book to make a solid impression on this author as a small boy was not the unimaginably turgid first two pages of A Tale of Two Cities most unwisely thrust in his hands at the tender age of seven by his grandmother, from which he truly never recovered but was many years later from La Gloire de Mon Pre by Marcel Pagnol, written entirely in French. That book lauds the small things which parents do and what family life achieves, against the background of the sights and sounds of the French countryside which became familiar to their son. Long after the final page is turned the scent of the maquis and the sound of the perdrix linger on.

This first, small volume gives an account of how one boy, George, grows up in the safety of a spartan but loving home, and how freedoms are afforded so easily to those who have so little.

Part of that growing up is the introduction into the life equation of encounters with girls, younger and older. Haunted by the spectre of his first school bus journey to big school and the scars it left, his suppressed tears make him incandescent with pent-up rage, which he carried well into later life.

This is the story of how one boys opinion was turned and how a young mans expectations were raised and confounded in equal measure, emerging from the experience with his second most memorable book a keepsake from a third encounter of the feminine kind.

This volume forms part of a trilogy series:

Nipper

Moose Conquering Fear

Know Your Mind

They track a lifetime journey of learning experiences from childhood encounters through coming of age to conquering fear, which culminate in a new appreciation of the power of the mind in the realms of communication, pain relief and self-help healing and preservation.

Also by Peter Massam:

Customer Experience

Managing Service Level Quality across Wireless and Fixed Networks (2002)

ISBN13: 9780470848487

First Cuz Collection of Poems

Sketch Poems (2019; Audible 2020)

ISBN13: 9781701299238

Second Cuz Collection of Poems

Reflections in a Country Garden (2021)

ISBN13: 9798723096103

We spend much of our life looking for
the one we cant live without and then
have to find a way to do just that.

A la Recherche
du Paradis

Two boys settle down on the grass verge of a small village green, a nervous glance at each other confirms the butterflies being suppressed within. A lie perhaps the first subterfuge had been played on one boys mother only minutes before. Ignoring the curiosity from a bewildered but caring maternal look, George hurried out of the back door clutching the now full, plastic washing-up liquid bottle, hastily filled at the kitchen sink with cold water. Rounding the corner along the short curved path, hed spotted Andrew already installed by the roadside with his own bottle at the ready.

Thisll be fun. George said through a half-open mouth, wanting his friend to hear but no one else.

Ive saved the best place for us. Andrew exclaimed in a much louder voice.

What? Youve done this before?

Only once or twice, but never up this end of the village before. Quick, sit down next to me and hide the bottle between your knees. No one will ever know.

Happy to follow orders from an old hand made George more relaxed at first and less tense about what had seemed to be at least a mild transgression, but which now was compounded by the uneasiness of lying to a parent, turning it more into an inadvisable misdeed. The discomfort never left his eyes throughout.

Look out! Here comes one now. Andrew bellowed, causing his friend to glance backwards over their shoulders to see if any of the adjacent house windows bordering the green were open. After all, it was summer but the hour nearing lunchtime meant that most would be inside preparing food with any luck.

Leaning forward past Andrew to get a better view meant Georges head was protruding out into the road. Before he knew it, a horn blasted in his ears as a car raced past before pulling up at the Tjunction, no more than 20 metres from where they sat.

That was a close shave! George said.

Lucky for us we had our legs tucked up on the bank, otherwise it could have been a lot worse. replied his genuinely concerned friend, Ill lean back a bit so you have a clearer view next time.

No sooner had the words left Andrews lips than a second car appeared from nowhere; hearts were now thumping inside them both.

Here we go! screamed Andrew even more loudly than before.

OK, retorted George, lets give it all weve got! with just as much gusto now as his friend.

With an impulsive but instinctive squeeze of the bottles, cold water with remnants of washing-up liquid shot out at the side of the passing car. They gave it both barrels, making an audible liquid-against-metal noise that they both heard clearly. A sudden, instantaneous thought occurred to them both, tuned in to each others wavelength perfectly.

Cripes! What if the driver heard it too?

Before either had time to think, the blinding glare of red brake lights reflected on both their clothes. Not waiting for the car door to open, they leapt to their feet and ran like mad, off down the road to the nearest side lane which it would be difficult to follow in a car but on foot, for sure. So they kept running, past the new houses back gardens, along leafy paths, dry underfoot thank goodness, jumping over obstacles carelessly left by lazy fridge owners or settee sitters, who jettisoned items deprived of love or care.