This whole story might seem very bizarre, but it’s true and I am trying to pen it as it happened because I think it’s so precious, so precious!
It had been a beautiful day in Grasmere the Lake District in the UK. We had spent the day walking around the lake and driving through the countryside admiring the views. Our accommodation was at a place called the Dale Lodge
in Grasmere. An old estate house converted into a lodge with its old world charm and quaint rooms. We had booked to stay here for seven days. As we drove back to the lodge we noticed a vintage car parked in the carpark. Curiosity drew us to it. It was a well maintain green color MG. We were wondering who would have driven in this car, as we walked into our room.
A Cosy Living Room at Dale Lodge, Grasmere. The living room at Dale Lodge was open to all guests, and in the evening you could have the staff bring you a drink from the bar and sit in the living room chatting with the other guests. Socialize with the guests of the house. The same evening my husband and I were sitting in the living room and checking our emails when a senior couple came in and started chatting with us. Putting our laptops aside, we sat back relaxed and a conversation started. After the normal formalities of when did you come here? how long are you staying? The conversation went to where are you from? so we told them originally from India but we live in the USA. The senior lady was very friendly and asked me if there were really arranged marriages in India? Now this is a question I have been asked many times? The other question is, do you travel on elephants! LOL! So anyway, I did tell her that ours was an arranged match and how it all happened. She turned around and asked my husband, “Do you tell your wife she is beautiful?” He replied, “yes of course”. Then she said to him, you know, when I met my husband, he told me, ” Your mother is more beautiful than you!” She said that with such a straight face that I was not sure I should laugh or not. But she was so talkative that she continued by interrupting her husband who was trying to get in a word by saying, “yes you did!” So I asked her how long they were married? She then told us that their son had gifted them this trip for 5 days to Grasmere to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary! How cool was that, I thought.
An hour into our conversation and we still did not know their names nor did they ask for ours. The conversation continued. Her husband said that she likes to go on hikes. But he was unable to go with her because of bad knees. So I asked her how far did she go for a hike? We did not even know how old they were, so curiosity had taken over and we wanted to hear more. So she said,” Oh! I walk about 10-12 miles a day up and down hills, I love to walk”! I was taken aback. I asked her if she went alone and she said she did. Then I asked her what would happen if something happened to her during her hike and she needed help? She said, “I take my mobile phone with me, and sometimes I stop and talk to myself”! I was aghast. I was more worried than this dear lady, in case something happened to her. But she was happy and fearless! Soon after, her husband said with pride in his voice, “She is 89 years old and unstoppable!” So she turned around and said to him, ” I don’t like you telling people my age, why should they know I am 89″. ( Both Hemant and I were laughing by now). She had a serious face when she told off her husband.
More than an hour had passed by and she sat next to me and said, ” Do you know, I have a granddaughter. She is really a nice young lady. But one day she comes to me and says Grandma,” I have to tell you something.” And she tells me that she is pregnant. ” What was I supposed to say?” she said. She said she kept a straight face and said, “that’s nice dear, but do young people not practice safety?” I burst out laughing again, as she was relating something that had happened a few years back. She continued by saying, ” do you know what my granddaughter said to me?” She said, ” Grandma it was in the height of passion, you will not know about it.” THAT last bit really got her started. I was laughing and she kept telling her story. “You know I was 19 when I got married, in July. My husband was to go to Asia on his posting in August, as he was in the Army. And this granddaughter of mine says I do not know what passion was!” I was rolling with laughter and the next line had me in stitches. ” You know I was like a new present wrapped in a box for my husband”. ( OMG! I was absolutely crying with laughter). She still had a straight face. I guess she was enjoying my reaction to her story. There were four other ladies in the Lodge living room playing cards. I guess they had stopped playing the cards to listen in to this conversation and burst out laughing as well. What an evening it was. Finally, without even knowing the names of these two dear people who had come there for their anniversary, they said they were a bit tired and wanted to retire. So we all left to go to our own rooms at 11 pm. What an evening!
Dale Lodge accommodation includes breakfast. So in the morning, when we came into the dining room, the two dear people were already seated having breakfast. They saw us walk in and waved to us to go and sit near their table. Hemant went up to her and shook her hand and said, “I am Hemant and this is my wife Ashwini”. She looks at us and says, “I am Beryl and this is David, but Beryl is such a boring name. My granddaughter calls me Madonna. So please call me Madonna. Madonna is a glamorous name. I like it. I always wanted a Glamorous name!”
After breakfast, they got into their MG and drove off back to Scotland where they live!
This is how we met Madonna!
