Karl lost his mother when he was three years old. Now he was seven. His father had married again a year after Karl’s mother died. The step-mother was not very nice, and had three children of her own who were a little bit older than Karl. There was Margarette, Suzette and Angelo. Karl didn’t have any brothers or sisters of his own.
One day at school, Karl’s teacher dropped dead in the classroom. Just like that. It was very traumatic. The whole class got free counselling. Then Karl got his foot jammed while playing outside and he had to have his leg in plaster for six weeks.
When his father suffered severe injuries in a car accident, Karl was looked after by his step-mother. That was when the most horrible thing in his life happened. It made all other tragedies look like nothing.
His step-sister, Suzette, told him that Santa Claus was not true.
Oh poor Karl, what a catalogue of calamities – I still remember crying when I was told that terrible lie!
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I could take you to the exact rung of the farm gate where Susan Cullen told me that Santa was not true. Indeed – these lying children should be smacked.
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No doubt they’re on the naughty list forever which is why he doesn’t visit them!
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A rotten potato for them.
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My heart goes out to Karl. Having said that, nothing could be a better prelude to the tragedies of Thomas Hardy.
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Blood seeping through the ceiling from the room above was one of Hardy’s finest moments! (Tess I think?) Horses drinking from the ford in The Mayor of Casterbridge is one of my favourite paragraphs in all literature!
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The Mayor and Jude haunt me the most.
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I haven’t read Hardy since 1972 – when I read them all. I’m not sure these days if it’s my reading glasses that need adjusting..??
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