I am at Paddington station, it looks a fog, I am partially sighted and it is a strange environment. I find a help desk and ask the kindly man,

           ‘Where are the platforms, and which platform takes me to Newquay in Cornwall?

He points me in the right direction.

My hip is hurting, I have long covid and my muscles are simply not working. I want to sit down; I see a circular wooden bench with tiny spaces. I don’t want to sit that close to people. I caught covid on a train. Suddenly a double space opens and I sit next to an elderly gentleman. He could be safe, I thought, many times vaccinated.

He is slim and tall, wearing a corduroy mustard suit, a white shirt, yellow wool tie, shining brogues and holding a cane with a gold embossed head.

           ‘I have just said goodbye to such a dear woman friend. She is an artist you know.’

I look at him with interest in his immaculate attire.

           ‘I was the CEO of the National Trust and every time I visited a grand house, I was given a fine meal and put on weight but I lost it all caring for my wife who sadly died three years ago.’

           ‘I live in Bloomsbury to this day.’

I feel a warmth towards him, I too had cared for my husband and knew the exhaustion and pain of it.

           ‘The one thing I know,’ I say.

           ‘Now I have got this age, I know I do not know anything.’

He pats me on the knee.

           ‘My dear, that is the beginning of wisdom.’

As a parting shot, he says.

           ‘I have just completed a course on quantum physics at the London university.’

           ‘Good Lord,’ I say.

           ‘I think that is where you find god but I don’t understand it.’

           ‘Neither do they,’ he says.

He wis well over 90 years old.

And with that, he departs and I make my way to the train.

The train stops in Reading. A tall elderly man sits next to me. He is wearing a blue corduroy shirt and grey dungarees and around his neck hangs a small telescope.

He immediately starts to speak and continues to do so for the next four hours. It is like listening to an audio book but an interesting one.

We discover that we were both aged 81, we both have macular degeneration and are both proud owners of white sticks but his, folds up. He uses his telescope to see indicator boards at railway stations and airports. Ingenious.

           ‘My parents lived in sin in Vienna in 1926.’

           ‘Good heavens! That was a bit wild’ I reply.’

           ‘Yes, but once my father got his PhD, they married but my mother returned to the UK to stay with her parents, whilst my father went to America to study the influx of German immigrants from Europe from1865 onwards. These immigrants formed German enclaves in the heart of America and wanted to set up autonomous regions but the government refused to allow this especially as the First World War approached. My father wrote a book about it and recently, I thought it would be interesting to get a copy to give to my children, I found a copy on line but to my surprise when it arrived, I discovered it was written in German and covered with Nazi stamps. The Nazis had translated it and used it as propaganda.’

           ‘Fascinating.’ I say.

My new companion stops to take a breath and then continues,

           ‘I fell in love in a pub, you know. At first, this girl refused to go out with me, but eventually, she gave in.’

           ‘I enjoy being with you,’ she said,

           ‘But I will only continue to go out with you, if you stop smoking.’

           ‘I gave up smoking that day and have never smoked since.

           ‘She is Danish, so we married in Denmark. She got me to sign a nuptial agreement that I didn’t really understand at the time because it was all in Danish.

Now, years later, I realise that I had inadvertently signed all my assets to her. She has always    bought and sold our houses and now she is selling our family home and tells me she wants a divorce, so I do not know if I have the right to move into the new house she is buying.’

He sighs,

           ‘I will have to find a lawyer.’

To change the subject, I ask

           ‘What are you going to do in Newquay?

He brightens,

           ‘I am going surfing with a group of friends.’

My eyes pop out with surprise.

           ‘I have been surfing since I was eight years old and the lifeguard says that we still find the best waves.’

We draw into Newquay, I say as a joke,

           ‘People will think we are a couple!’

He says,

           ‘Well, I could do worse,’ with a twinkle in his eye.

I feel a little flattered.

We alight on to the platform.

He says,

           ‘I would like to hug you, well, actually, I would like you to hug me.’

I remain immobile and he hugs me and leaves.

I am teased about my new boyfriend and my grandson is horrified.            ‘Granny, you had a boyfriend, that was grandpa, just because he is dead does not mean you can have another one.