Chapter 25

Joe with my help had put the tree up earlier in December and the sitting room and the Kitchen had been made to look festive with various Christmas decorations. As soon as it was decorated we had put all the baby's presents under the tree. We knew that this Christmas all these activities would pass her by but we enjoyed ourselves buying and displaying them. We were not alone, for Joe, Isa, Margaret and Moira all added to the pile.

On Christmas Eve the five adults and the four teenagers that were us went out to dinner and then to a pantomime. Isa had asked one of the younger girls from work to baby sit. As the babysitter came from a large and well spread out family she was used to dealing with children, even very small ones. We enjoyed the meal and much to my surprise I really enjoyed the panto. I had forgotten how much fun they could be it had been so long since I had attended one.

When we returned home we all set about adding our presents to each other under the tree. We all admonished each other that they were not to be opened until we arose in the morning. Katy and I made our way upstairs and we flopped into bed. Neither of us was much interested in sex that night as we had been very busy during the day helping Isa make sure that the house was clean and tidy for Christmas.

After we got up and all the Christmas presents had been opened I wondered why we had bothered. Between our presents to each other and the mountain of stuff that had been given to Sinead, the whole sitting room was awash with wrapping paper. By eleven in the morning we had to have a major cleanup operation before going off to get ready for dinner. As usual, Joe and Isa had booked us into the restaurant and we arrived there about one pm. Once again Isa was the designated driver and I thought to myself that Joe must be quite enjoying not having to take his turn.

The Christmas dinner was splendid and Joe had ordered a bottle of quite expensive sparkling wine. I think the excuse was that we should celebrate the baby's first Christmas even if we were doing so in her absence from the proceedings. We were permitted a glass of the champagne and even Isa had a token sip. We arrived home about three in the afternoon in time to take in the Queen's speech. This was a tradition that both Joe and Isa had observed before their marriage and which they kept to now. I was quite pleased, because as a serving officer in Her Majesty's Forces it had been a must in the officer's mess in my previous existence.

On Boxing Day DI and Jenny's parents along with Charlie and Bobby's parents were invited along with MacLeans and Moira and Jim were invited to our place for a mid afternoon get together, finishing with dinner. After dinner it was felt that the festivities would go on and coffee and biscuits were planned before everyone started to leave. It looked as if this, along with our New year get together at their place was going to be an ongoing tradition which would carry on at least as long as we were still at school and possibly through our college years.

One thing was certain, both Isa and Joe had now a fairly well established circle of friends. The Macleans and Moira formed the inner circle of close friends which then spiralled out to include the others in a slightly more casual way. This was a big change for Isa who had spent many years in self chosen isolation. In the case of Joe it was a return to the kind of life which had had before his wife died. I felt good that their marriage was panning out in much the way that my otherworldly guides had foreseen.

As I thought of this it occurred to me that I had not been visited by them for some time and I began to wonder if they had decided to leave me alone to get on with the life they had bequeathed to me. I had mixed emotions about that. Part of me was glad at the thought that I would be free of any other obligations being placed upon me, but there was also a part of me that felt that their guidance gave me opportunities to help others in a time of need. I saw this as a way of paying them back for the gift of life they had given to me.

I concluded there was no use worry about this either way. It was a case of whatever would be would be. Isa had noticed that I had not mixed with the others for some time. She came over to where I was sitting looking at me with some concern.

"Are you ok Peter? She enquired. "You don't often seem lost in thought when you are surrounded by your friends."

"I'm fine," I told her with a smile. "I think it might be the time of year but I got to wondering about why all this had happened to me and if my guardian angels, whatever or whoever they may be, have decided to leave me in peace or will they place further obligations on me."

"There is no way of telling." Isa responded, but it is not something you are facing by yourself. At least you can always discuss their demands with me and you know that if it is needed I will help you all I can." Then she smiled down at me before saying, "After all I regard myself as being in their debt too so I feel some obligation to help with any demands they might make of you."

"It's nice to know I have some back up," I said with a grin. "Seriously though, I would not be so comfortable about this if there was no one I could talk to. I also feel kind of bad that Katy is in the dark about who and what I really am."

"I don't think I would break that to her right now. Wait a few years and see how things pan out." Isa told me. "It would not be a good thing if too many people knew and somebody let something slip. If your spiritual visitors contact you again maybe they will give you some advice when they feel the time is right to let anybody else in on your secret."

"I hope you are right," I told her. "Right now, however, I think we should start mixing with our guests."

We had a nice time with the Walkers on New Year's Eve and once again it felt good to be bringing in the New Year with friends. This time the MacLeans had been included in the guest list, as had Moira and Jim. The closeness of some of the families on the swim team was being confirmed by these invitations. I felt that probably somebody like Bill would offer to host the New Year Party. His house was much larger than the Walkers place and the increasing guest list was putting a bit of a strain on it.

Back home and getting ready for the new term at school had us seriously thinking about our standard grades. These were the first steps to gaining University qualifications and there would be a great deal of studying to be done between now and when the exams began in May. I had the advantage of having been through this once before.

Because of the increasing past rate since the previous time I sat these exams people keep saying the standards are dropping and the exams are getting easier.

As one who is going through it again it does not feel like that to me. There are a lot more kids staying on at school now than since the time I last sat these exams so the pass rate is bound to rise

Another factor until recent times anyway, a lot of young people increasingly felt that getting good grades was the key that opened up better jobs and the way to a better standard of living than their parents enjoyed. This meant they were prepared to work harder to get the opportunities a university education would open or them. Even in the shrinking job market of today and the rocketing prices of such an education a great many still wanted to achieve a university place.

Both Katy and I and most of our friends would number ourselves within that group. So the nearer we got to sitting these exams the more we would feel the pressure. This was not as great for me as for my friends because if had behind me the experience of sitting a great many exams and felt I had worked out a technique for doing well in them but even then it still involved doing the work which would enable you to benefit from your past experience. One of the things I kept asking myself about my present situation was how much I benefited from having all my Brain power and experience in a new young body. I also wondered if I had gained anything from the intelligence of its former owner. These were questions to which I might never find an answer.

The difference between this time and the last time I underwent this experience lay in the fact that the first time around I had all the angst that most teenagers went through as their bodies developed and changed and demanded they come to terms with the gradual change from childhood and had to face up to the problems of adult life. Though my body was still going through these changes, I did not have the mental anguish that most teenagers go through. I had a mature mind which helped me to control the urges and anxieties of the teenage years.