By Maureen Lee

Synopsis

Maggie was merrily married to john, on the first few years, until it turned into sour and dull. He became cold. In their 12 years of marriage, they never had a child. The doctor told her there’s nothing wrong with her yet John refused to talk about it and feared that everyone will find out its his fault. They do not share the same bed, and John was too busy to even take her out in dinners. Things changed wen she met Connor, in Brighton, and felt young again. Though unsure what Connor had seen in her, they seek each other out during the conference. They shared the night in her hotel until the end of the conference. When it was time for them to go, in separate ways, they cried and kissed for the final time. For Maggie, it was amazing while it lasted. She went home and told Tess everything, after her friend noticed her glow and guessed it was because of a man she met in the conference. Connor, called to meet him at a cafe in Liverpool. They expressed their longingness with simple gestures. They agreed to meet again next Sunday, same time and place. On Monday morning, Hugh Miller, her boss slash friend, had told her that he knew about her affair with Connor. He rudely confessed his romantic interest to her. She was stunned yet disgusted for she only see him as a friend. On Wednesday midnight, after she drank withTess in her mom’s flat, she was surprised that John was still up. He asked her if she’s having an affair, as Hugh had told him. She did not lie, but she can tell that she care less because John seemed not to care about them being apart for so many years. Sunday came and she bid last good bye to Connor, who was eager to come home because of an accident his wife had. She decide to go to her Mom’s flat, to spend the lonely night,but she was surprised to see that it’s open, she assumed it’s John. But when she opened the room, she was shocked, there stood John, naked, with his co-teacher, Mrs. Granger. John had the guts to ask her what she’s doing in there but she refused to answer because right at that moment, Maggie knew it’s all over. John’s affair had been going on for 5 years. Maggie realized all those years of sleeping apart, of him ignoring her, of seeing him only an hour or so everyday. John resasoned out that he is busy at school and Mrs. Granger was there to understand him. She left their house and she lived alone– not for so long because she was expecting a baby in the middle of July. She lived in her mother’s flat, where all the warmth is, it was where she wanted to be. At Christmas Day, she was greeted by John and asked if he could take Amber, their dog for a walk home. She agreed and went for party at her neigbor’s flat. Then she ate lunch at Tess’ and watched Gone With the Wind. She went home, in a cold night, but her Mom’s flat gave so much warm, the cold never mattered. This is what she wants, a welcoming home, and a child. Finally, her dream came true.

Characters:

Margaret “Maggie” Holt is a 43- year old married woman from Liverpool. She is quite attractive with simplicity. Maggie is a lonely wife and had no child, with a distant husband. She works part time at Astral Travel Agency. She is a kind woman who just wanted to feel loved and happy again. she dreams to have children of her own but unfortunately it did not happen.

Textual Evidences:
“Maggie Holt from Liverpool, I’m married but with no children.”
“She was quite attracttive, depite her ordinary white blouse, black skirt and low heeled shoes.”
“If only she could telephone and tell him how lonely she was.”
“You know, it jus shows what a lousy mrriagw we have that we sleep in separate rooms. There’s no reason for it.”
“Over the last few years, they’d grown further and further apart.”

John Holt is the husband of Margaret, a school headmaster. He is a strict man who is cold and seemed not to love her wife anymore. He is also very busy even at home. He is a proud yet infertile man with great hiding skills who cheated on Margaret for five years.

Textual Evidences:
“He keeps the remote control on the arm of his char, so they’re off limits.”
“John took her suitcase and kissed her briefy on the cheeks.”
“…but now they didn’t even sleep in the same room, let alone the same bed.”
“Bit by bit, he’d been distancing himself from her and now they were miles and miles apart.”
“ As he was the headmaster of a state school, all his days were busy…”
“the doctor had found nothing wrong with Maggie that could explain why she had not become pregnant…….. John didn’t answer, and she wondered if that was because he didn’t want people to know the fault was his.”
“’Hoow long have you and Mrs. Granger been having an affair?’ there was a scratching at the back of the oor so Maggie wen to let Amber in. ‘Five years,’ John said when she came back.”

Connor O’Reilly is a blue-eyed handsome gentleman who lives in Manchester with his family. He is the man who made Margaret happy again after their affair at Brighton. He is a sweet and caring man.

Textual Evidences:
“ ‘I’m Connor O’Reilly, from Manchester, married with three children.’”
“..with fair hair and deep blue eyes.”
“He was charming and handsome.”
“ He leant over the bed and kissed her..”
“Connor brought two mugs of tea and sat beside her on the bed.”

Setting

Liverpool

• It is where most of the scenes happened. It’s not that dull. It has River Mersey which was the view that the protagonist wanted. Liverpool indicates Margaret is home and it somehow made her a little bit lonely since her trip to Brighton.

Brighton

• It has a sea that soothes the protagonist, but also made her cry. Brighton is a view even at night. It is where all the happiness of Margaret began with Connor. The story’s rising action happened in Brighton and it is where the memories Margaret valued which she brought home.

Themes

Hope

• “For a moment, they were silent as they stared at the moon, surrounded by a million tiny stars. She had no idea what Connor wished, but Maggie wished that the weekend in Brighton, would be the best she had ever known.”

Love

• “Right now, Connor was the only man she had a room for in her heart and she couldn’t imagine ever becoming involved with someone else.”
  Happiness
• “ Suddenly, all she could see was herself and a glow spread through her, moving from the top of her headright down to the tips of her toes. She smiled and felt as if she was about to burst from happiness, though she knew that everyday would be as wonderful as this one.”

Figures of Speech

Metaphor

“Harry sounds as if he’s just full of beans.”

“It came to her like a flash of light.”

“I’m sorry I was such a beast yesterday.”

B. Simile

“As hard as nails and have a skin like an elephant.”

“Your cheeks are like roses.”

C. Hyperbole

“Maggie’s heart had felt as if it would break when theykissed for the final time.”

“The phone rang and her heart leapt to her throat.”

“The children are driving me mad.”

Sensory Exeperience.

A. Visual

-“Her eyes were grey with flecks of silver and her skin was flawless, if a bit pale.”

B. Auditory

• “She was leaning against the railing, listenin to the sound of the sea.”

C. Olfactory

• “She sprayed some behind her ears and sniffed. ‘ it’s lovely.’”

D. Touch

• “Her feet sinking into the thick carpets.”
• “He released her hands began and began to caress her face, her neck, her hair.”

E. Temperature

• “By now it was dark, but warm for October.”

Favorite Lines

“She had to be prepared for the bad times as well as the good times.”
This line tells us we need to get ready for the bad times, also good times because we don’t know what will happen to our lives next.

“I’m sorry, John, but you’ve already lost me. I think you lost me a long time ago.”
This line kinda stung a bit in my part because our selfishness hurt people that we love and saying this line emphasizes the loneliness Maggie had when John became distant.

“How could two people who’d love each other so much end up as strangers?”
This question really strucks real bad because I already experience treating someone I used to love as a stranger. Well, it happens, we don’t always get what we want. There are people who are better of without us, or the other way.