Ultimate Justice (33 page)

“And this is just the current ones,” reflected Dave, “not counting the electronic stuff which is as common as paper these days. Let's go and pay for this, then we'll go down to the river and hire a punt.”

“Yay. Great!” Abby's face was a picture of delight. She had only been in a punt once before. Having Bandi around meant this routine journey into Oxford to visit the orthodontist had turned into a rare outing. Under normal circumstances, her dad would almost certainly have driven straight home again from the hospital.

***

The punting turned out to be great fun. At one stage, while they were changing places, Bandi had nearly fallen out, but Abby had grabbed his belt and yanked him back. They both collapsed in the wildly rocking punt on top of one another roaring with laughter as Dave struggled to maintain his balance.

***

When they eventually got home there was only time for a quick meal before they had to leave for the Persham Middle School hall. Abby's mum had worked hard cooking something that they really needed more time to enjoy – but she was a patient woman. Her husband dashing in and out and coming home late was apparently part of the deal of living in a vicarage.

The Persham Middle School hall was packed. As Dave and Jack were ushered up onto the dais, there was a rumble of dozens of conversations and greetings and the clanking and scraping of more chairs being brought in to accommodate a larger than expected gathering. Jack got whiffs of his old school mixed with the smell of bodies, make-up and damp wool. He was in one sense ‘at home' again in Persham but was overwhelmingly grateful that he was no longer trapped in the school as a pupil. Tomorrow he would step through the white gate to the freedom of White Gates Cottage and into Jalli's arms!

These, however, were not the thoughts of our two teenagers. Bandi was contemplating how much he would miss his new friend, while Abby felt it was quite unfair. They found themselves crushed together on a gym bench on the side of the hall – the chairs given to people of more mature years. Abby knew (or she thought she knew) that she would never meet anyone so wonderful as this boy from across the universe again. It occurred to them both in that moment that it might be possible for Abby to see the white gate and to visit Joh, but neither of them said anything.

“Welcome everyone,” announced Councillor Banks calling the meeting to order. “Welcome to this meeting to acquaint you all with the latest developments of the proposed new unit for blind children to be connected with Persham Middle School. And today an especial welcome to our own Jack Smith, one time pupil of this middle school, who now works as a full-time teacher in a specialist school for blind children overseas. I heard Jack was in town and I am so glad I persuaded him to stay on for an extra day to come to this meeting. Judging by the attendance this evening, Jack,” he turned and looked at his unseeing guest, “it seems as if my getting an announcement on local radio has drawn in some of your fans!” He continued to address the gathering, “But, whether you have come because you are interested in the plans, or just meeting your friend again after all these years, I hope you find this evening informative and enjoyable. Let me begin by summarising where we are with this project.”

Councillor Banks went over the history of the proposal. It had long been felt by some that a specialised school for blind children was needed, although they had had to fight off strong objections. A compromise had been reached. Falling roles had made the three tier system in Persham precarious. It was uneconomical to run a pyramid with most schools not coming near their planned admission levels. Other councils had solved the problem by opting for a two-tier arrangement. But in Persham there was a particular problem because it would mean building a new secondary school on a new site from scratch – there simply wasn't room to expand Renson Park High in its current location. Then the middle school head had come up with a suggestion that part of her school could become a specialised unit for blind children – from reception to Year Eight when they could move on to the mainstream upper school. As they were associated with the middle school they could be gradually integrated into the activities and learning in the mainstream which would mean the transition to the upper school would not be as daunting. “Amazingly,” Councillor Banks declared, “all sides have united on the plan. The blind children's unit will draw in pupils from across the county.” The most enthusiastic people seemed to be the parents of the blind children, which was significant.

“Now,” continued the councillor, “I have asked Jack Smith who has been teaching at a specialist school for over twenty years if he would tell us about his school. I know this school is not in Britain, but Jack grew up here and he is in an excellent position to explain how a school for the blind could work in Persham. Ladies and gentlemen, Jack Smith…”

There was a rattle of applause as Jack rose to his feet. He felt for the rostrum. “Councillor Banks, ladies and gentlemen, I don't know how many there are here this evening but the room smells quite full… I sense one of you is about to open a window.” The whole room turned to stare at a man at the back just in the process of reaching for a window catch. As the window swung open Jack heard the creak in the silence and continued, “I am blind, but when one is blind you learn to use other senses you take for granted if you can see. This is the point of a specialised school for blind children in their early years. They need to be taught how to use and hone those faculties of hearing, touch and smell which mainstream teaching often puts into secondary place. Five-year-olds can pick up Braille very quickly, for example, but it is much more than that. Children can be taught how to touch faces and how to sense danger and a multiple of other necessary skills. But perhaps the most important thing of all is for them to relate to children like themselves from a young age – ”

“Cheat!” yelled someone from the back of the room. “Jack Smith you're a cheat… and a liar.”

The audience again turned; this time to look at a small man dressed in scruffy jeans and a dirty white T-shirt.

“I'm sorry,” said Jack. “Should I know you?”

“Too damned right you should. My life has been shit because of your cheating, you arrogant prig!”

Councillor Banks stood up but Jack motioned for him to sit back down.

“It's OK, councillor… explain,” Jack asked the man. Bandi watched his father, horrified but amazed at the way he was keeping his cool.

“Sure, I'll explain. When you were ten you cheated at the end of term tests. The daft teacher marked all the tests and then got us all to call out our marks while he wrote them down. He hadn't done it as he marked them. This was embarrassing for most of us, but Jack Smith just called out more marks than he had been given. You bloody cheated. You ended up in the top six and I was pushed into seventh place. The top six got special coaching, didn't yah?
You
got it and
I
missed out. Remember now?”

“Little Jim Carter.”

“Less of the little. I'm big enough to give you what for.”

“And I remember you tried that several times before I went on to sixth form and you…”

“Dropped fucking out at sixteen! That was all down to your cheating. Go on… deny it. Why don't you? You're good at lying so why don't you lie again?”

“I admit it,” sighed Jack, “I cheated. And I did a whole lot of other things when I was young that I am ashamed of. I wasn't a happy child and I certainly wasn't a good one. I am sorry Jim that you still feel cheated. After this meeting we'll meet up and see if there is anything I can do – ”

“Excuse me,” broke in Councillor Banks, “this is all very interesting but can we get on with the business in hand. Mr Smith was explaining what his experience
after he left Persham
can offer us now. Please continue, Jack.”

“I do apologise councillor,” said Jack, “there is always a danger in coming back to your roots where you can't hide.” There was a ripple of laughter.

“The school for blind children has been running in Joh where I live for the past forty years…”

“Rat!” It was was Jim Carter again. Jack ignored him and kept going. “It was the inspiration of two sets of parents who both had…”

“Prig!”

“…who both had blind children whom they felt were struggling in…”

“Shit-head!”

“Mr. Carter, if you can't be quiet, would you please leave!” roared Councillor Banks.

“No,” said Jack, “I wronged the man. It might have been over thirty years ago. But he needs a proper apology. Jim, come up here!” The man did not hesitate. He got up and stormed onto the stage.

Jack stood in front of him and said, “Jim Carter, I am truly sorry I cheated you, the teacher and the whole class. If I could turn the clock back I would. In those days I was indeed a liar and often a cheat. If it's any consolation I was so horrified by what I had done on that occasion I never cheated precisely like that again. I am truly sorry you missed out because of me. You tried to get your revenge on a number of occasions but I was rather bigger than you were. But now you have me at a disadvantage. I cannot see you. So you can safely beat me if that's what it will take. Go to it!”

The room was stunned. Councillor Banks tried to intervene but Jim pushed him off the platform. “No Bandi,” yelled Jack, “stay where you are!” He sensed Bandi was in the act of leaping to his father's defence. Jim Carter stared Jack in the eye but there was no emotion betrayed in Jack's unseeing eyes. Carter fumed and cursed. “Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck…” Jack reached out and found the man's shoulder and then enveloped him in a bear hug. “Jim Carter, you don't know how much this means to me,” said Jack, his eyes streaming with tears. “The guilt of what I did as a child has never left me. And I knew just how much you wanted to be in the top six… Dawn White,” he whispered into Jim's ear, “you wanted to be in the same group as her, didn't you?”

“You haven't bloody forgotten then.”

“No,” whispered Jack. “She was rather good-looking, wasn't she? Whatever happened to her?”

“Moved to London.”

It was clear the emergency was over and people were returning to their seats.

“I'm sorry… which is your local?” asked Jack.

“Pig and Whistle.”

“I promise I'll meet you there after I have finished here.”

Jim Carter nodded and slowly made for the door. People moved aside to let him through.

Councillor Banks had a bruise on his lower arm, otherwise he was physically in one piece, but he was in shock and his dignity was dented. He looked flustered and confused. Jack reached forward, “Bandi, will you find the councillor some water?”

Jack found the rostrum again and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, if I had been blind as a child I would not be standing here now – I certainly would not have had the opportunities in Persham that I had as a sighted person. Even though the system in those days often failed Jim, me and others more than once, both he and I had so much more going for us than children with disabilities did. I commend the people of Persham that things have changed so much for the better. I am delighted that in Persham today you are united in seeking to give blind kids the best possible chance. Their parents know what they need. My own blindness has helped me to help the blind children in Joh – but so has my past. At times I was all those things Jim rightly accused me of. I was a rat, a cheat, a liar, a prig and lots beside, but I've learned from that and I hope I am a little better these days…”

Jack went on to explain the way they taught and encouraged the children in the school in which he taught on Joh.

Finally, he concluded, “I think the best thing for me to do now is allow you to ask questions, if there are any?”

“I have one,” spoke up a woman on the left of the hall. “If you were a ‘naughty' child, was it being blind that helped you improve?”

Councillor Banks had regained something of his decorum, “I don't think this the place for…”

“Let him answer,” shouted someone else.

“I suppose, I suppose – and this might sound stupid to you – I suppose the change in me began when I stumbled into, well, a holy place. I was eighteen. It was
before
my accident in which I became blind. I was still kicking out at life, angry with what others had and feeling cheated most of the time. I realise now I shouldn't have been, but I did. But then I was drawn into a beautiful garden. It wasn't just beautiful to look at, it was deep down beautiful. It was holy. It was overflowing with the presence of its Creator. We have so many different misunderstandings around the word ‘God' that I hesitate to use it even now. But I knew I was loved. I saw myself as if from the outside – selfish and self-centred. In this garden I saw hope, love, true goodness, and I met someone else there who helped me to discover that deep down
I
could be almost holy sometimes too. Basically, despite all the lies on the surface, the core of my being was still sound. I was loved by my mother, and despite my resentment, I discovered that I wasn't flawed beyond repair. And with the help of the Creator and other people – even people like Jim – I have learned to give love away. And when you start to do that – love others – all sorts of inner rubbish and mess gets flushed out. And you get huge amounts of love coming at you in return. Does that answer your question?” The room was silent for a moment as people were taking in what Jack had described.

Then, “How did you become blind?” asked another.

“Someone kicked my head in! I can't remember too much. I was unconscious for some time.”

There was an audible gasp from the audience.

“Why did he do that?”

“Sometimes you meet some messed-up people.”

“What happened to him? Did he get sentenced?”

“No. He died.”

“Did you kill him?”

“No. I might have wanted to if I hadn't been unconscious at the time. No, he had died of natural causes before I came to.” Jack wondered whether an insect attack was exactly ‘natural causes' but he wasn't going to prolong this conversation. “Anyway, to cut a long story short, I discovered,” he went on, “that, despite everything, my girlfriend still loved me. We married and I went to work at the school. Being blind was a real asset to hitting it off with some of the kids.”

To Councillor Banks' relief they were now back on task. Some good questions about the way the children benefited from the school followed.

As the meeting came to an end, the councillor concluded, “All that remains is to obtain funding for the project from the town council. We want this in next year's budget,” he declared, and he urged them all to write in.

Councillor Banks thanked Jack for coming. Jack apologised for the kerfuffle. He left the platform to applause. After some interesting conversations with parents, case workers and community leaders of various sorts, he and Bandi eventually set off for the Pig and Whistle.