At the weekend our next door neighbour died. It was very sudden. The day before she had been walking up and down the road discussing the flowers with my husband. She had been ill on and off but she was 92. I always think a quick death maintaining a certain amount of their lifestyle until the end is the best way to go. A lingering existence and suffering is no fun for anyone.
Marcelline, the neighbour, was a character. She lived through German occupation and remembered the work of the resistance locally She regularly talked about what happened during the war and who was billeted in the village and where. She spoke both French and Breton. She would often tell us about the fact that whilst she learnt French and German at school, she didn’t learn English and so talking to us was difficult. It was often made more difficult because she would mix Breton and French.
Marcelline was born here in La Feuillée. She returned to her parent’s house for her retirement years. She never married or had children. She spent her working life away from Brittany, working as a nurse in Paris. She was happy to talk at length about her experiences there in the country’s capital.
In recent years she had acquired a cat. It would seem that there was a story to that. The cat Féline originally belonged to the nextdoor neighbour. However she often went in to spend time with Marcelline. It seems that at some point the decision was taken that Féline should move in with Marcelline. One of the reasons being that Féline provided company for Marcelline.
She has lived with her for several years. In the meantime the other neighbour had got another cat and two dogs. So it is no longer possible for her to return where she came from. So it became necessary to find a new home for her.
Having spoken to Les Puces and a friend who lost a cat on Friday a solution has been found. This morning I took Féline to the vet for a check up. This afternoon her new owners have taken her home. Given that they have other cats she is spending some time in an introduction crate. Hopefully she’ll be out and about soon.
Until tomorrow…
Tales from the Sheshed France 