by Jason Gibbs (inspiration from Dom Davis)
March 15th
Dinner time in the Saman household.
“Now girls, today is the Ides of March,” Dave looked expectantly at his girls.
“Ides Daddy, isn’t that more than one? So is tomorrow an Ide as well?” asked Grace.
“Um no Grace, it’s Latin and so it’s actually just a singular, just one.”
The girls looked at him expectantly, and then Ruth, who was starting to realise when people needed some encouragement, said, “Is it an important day Daddy?”
“Why yes Ruth, it’s the day that Julius Ceasar was assassinated!”
“Assinated? What does that mean?” asked Grace. There was a chuckle from the other side of the room, and Dave looked at his son Brian, and said, “You just concentrate on your own knitting Brian, and get that homework done.”
Then he looked at Grace and said, “It’s assassinated baby, it derives from the word assassins a band of thugs and criminals who used to smoke a lot of Hashish…” there was a cough. Dave looked at his wife Cathy, who shook her head.
“Um, yes, anyway, don’t worry about that, it means murdered. He was murdered by his friends.”
The two girls looked at him, then looked at each other. Then back at him.
“They can’t have been his friends then, can they Daddy,” said Grace, employing the relentless logic which was becoming her hallmark.
“Well no… the thing was that he was…” Dave carried on for a while, trying to explain the complexities of first century BCE Roman politics until his wife interrupted with, “And now it’s bath time little girls.”
“But Mummy,” said the twins in unison, and howls of outrage commenced the normal bedtime routine in the Saman household.
May 15th
“Now girls, today is the Ides of May!” he looked at them expectantly.
“Ides Daddy, isn’t that more than one? So is tomorrow an Ide as well?” asked Grace.
“No no, don’t you remember, we discussed this in March, it’s a Roman name.”
“What’s March Daddy?” asked Ruth.
“It’s the month before this one silly,” interrupted Brian.
“Ah actually, it was two months ago Brian, but thanks for the help,” said Dave.
“Yeah, I knew that, I was just joking,” said Brian unconvincingly. He was never good at being wrong, and at nine his parents were starting to worry it was not something they’d be able to cure him of.
“Oh Daddy, is that when that horrible Brutus was mean to his best friend?” said Ruth.
Dave was surprised, not just that Ruth had remembered the relevance, but that she’s used Brutus’ name, he wasn’t sure he’d got round to that when he’d been talking about it.
“Yes it is,” he said approvingly.
“Is it like the Nones and Kalends?” asked Grace.
Dave looked at her non-plussed.
“And all those nasty men smoked Asheesh?” she added.
“Um, yes, and…” said Dave, trying to work out which question to answer, and also remember what he’d said.
Cathy jumped in, shaking her head, “I told you about their memories… now girls, it’s bath time…” and the bedtime madness started.
July 15th
“Today girls is the Ides of July!”
“What’s that Daddy?” said Grace.
“Well, it’s the 15th of the month, and it’s what the Romans called it.”
“Oh,” said the girls in unison.
“Don’t you remember in March when I told you about Ceaser being murdered by Brutus?”
They looked at him blankly, and then Grace looked up brightly, “Was that the day we asked you about the birds Daddy?”
Dave looked a little non-plussed again, he didn’t remember that. He looked at Brian, who was sometimes able to translate his little sisters’ non sequiters, but Brian was concentrating on his latest obsession, dinosaurs.
“Bedtime sleepy heads…” came Cathy’s call.
“Nooo….”
October 15th
“Is today the Ides of October papa?” asked Brian.
Dave looked at his son, “Good spot Brian, I’m impressed.”
Brian smiled happily.
“What are Ides Daddy?” asked Ruth.
“Well… they’re how the Romans used to measure days, they didn’t use dates, they had three points in the month, Nones, Ides and Kalends which they would count back from.”
Both girls looked at him admiringly.
“Right, what was I going to tell you after dinner today?” said Dave aloud.
“Daddy, where have all the birds gone?” asked Grace, pointing outside.
Dave looked disconcerted, she’d asked this before. “What are you talking about?”
“Look outside papa,” said Brian.
Dave looked out the window at their bird table, which was usually surrounded by birds at this time of year during sunset. There wasn’t a single bird, but still that didn’t mean anything.
He stepped outside, and was surprised by the hush. There weren’t any sounds, apart from the occasional car going by. It was a little spooky.
He heard Cathy say, “Bathtime,” followed by the usual howls, and shook his head and went back inside.
Jan 13th
“Today is the Ides of January girls,” said Dave.
His girls looked tired, and thin, and they stared at him, uncomprehendingly. Since the day when the birds disappeared they’d become more and more withdrawn.
Suddenly Ruth said, “Is that like the Ides of April Daddy?”
“It is baby, it is,” he hugged her close.
“That’s the day we got out of the shelter isn’t it Daddy?” asked Grace.
Dave looked round at the underground shelter they’d been in for the last few months. Living off cans of beans and tinned water, and gradually running out of hope. He looked at his daughter’s happy face, and hoped that she would be right.
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