Jack sensed everyone’s eyes on him as he walked down the centre aisle of this magnificent church, but he could not drag his gaze away from the woman he knew to be Gloria – and, more importantly, the baby she was holding in her arms.
So, this was what Arthur had really wanted to tell him.
Of course, it all made sense now – why Arthur had come to see him yesterday at work, and why they had met this morning at the café.
This was where he’d really wanted to bring him.
Jack could just about make out the baby’s profile. He could see two small clenched fists, and the long, very beautiful ivory christening gown the baby was wearing – but that was all.
He had to see this baby.
As he approached the altar, he glanced at the vicar and the young woman welder in the black dress, but still he could not pull his attention away from the baby.
As he neared mother and child he had the sense of being surrounded by water, and for a split second he was propelled back into the ocean – but then he was once again in the present and only a few yards away from the baby.
The air in the church was still – serene, almost – and there was not a sound to be heard.
As he slowly walked up the three stone steps to the font, the woman he knew he had loved – both as a young lad, and again as a middle-aged, married man – stepped forward and carefully lifted the baby up.
She was handing him the baby.
He was aware of his own arms stretching out to take hold of the treasure being offered to him.
He heard the slight gurgling as the child sensed movement.
As he took the baby in his arms, and looked down at the face of the cherub, he knew for certain who the baby was.
It was the baby he had seen when he had nearly drowned at sea.
The baby with the grey-blue eyes that had looked at him when he had thought he was facing almost certain death.
And he knew – just like he had known when he had been gifted the vision of the baby as he fought for his life in the dark, icy cold ocean. He knew that the child that he had seen then – and the child now lying in his arms looking up at him – were the same.
But, most of all, he knew, with absolute certainty, that this baby was his.
As he stood and gazed at his child, Jack was aware of the vicar’s arm on his shoulder. The man’s old but kindly face smiled at him and he said a few words, before stepping back and speaking once more to the small congregation.
Jack allowed his eyes to break away momentarily from the child to see that Arthur and the two women, who had gone to help him, were taking seats next to a man in a soldier’s uniform.
His eyes, though, were soon pulled back to the child in his arms. He continued to hold her and gaze down at her in awe and adoration.
And the child stared back at him, the beginnings of a smile on her rosebud lips.
And they both stayed there, simply looking at each other, while the vicar gave his short sermon.
When there was silence again, Jack looked up to see Gloria. Tears were forming in her eyes. And as they looked at each other he knew he loved this woman. He still could not recall his past with her, but he knew in his heart that he had loved her – and moreover that he still loved her.
As Jack felt Gloria take his hand into her own, he continued to look down at his daughter – the baby with whom he had finally been reunited.
‘… Shine as a light in the world to the glory of God,’ the vicar read from his script.
Jack remembered the light he had seen when he was drowning. He had learnt when he was in hospital that the light had come from a fisherman’s trawler and that it had been the men in it who had saved him.
As the vicar started talking to the pretty woman welder about her responsibilities as the baby’s godmother, Jack looked again at Gloria and moved to her side so that they stood next to each other, shoulder to shoulder, together with their baby.
‘… and you promise to continue to support this child from this moment.’
Jack heard the words and knew that no matter what happened, he would love, cherish and care for this child for the rest of his days.
The vicar allowed a few moments’ silence, then turned to Jack and Gloria. He didn’t have to ask if this was the child’s father. He also knew not to question the absence of a wedding ring on the woman’s hand, or why the baby’s father was wearing an expensive gold band on his.
The vicar moved towards Jack and Gloria and dipped his thumb lightly in the font’s holy water. He gently made the sign of the cross on Hope’s forehead, and told the baby lying happily in her father’s arms, ‘Christ claims you for his own. Receive the sign of the cross.’
There was another short pause.
Angie, Martha, Hannah and Olly all sat in a row, their eyes glued to the scene in front of them, all with silent tears running unchecked down their faces.
The vicar looked at his attentive congregation and saw that there did not appear to be a dry eye in the house. He realised that there was much more to this ceremony than a simple christening, but he was not one to probe, or to judge. The baby was here to be baptised. That was all that was required of him today. Besides, they were running out of time. The next christening party would be in soon.
‘And, now,’ he said, ‘it is time for Hope to be baptised in water …’ he turned to Jack, who took his cue and stepped towards the white and grey marbled font, ‘… in water which is blessed.’
As baby Hope was held over the font her eyes still focused entirely on her father, as if she was in a trance. Only the holy water, trickling across her forehead, caused her to break her stare, her little face crunching up in discomfort at the feel of its cold on her warm, dry skin as the vicar spoke the age-old words: ‘I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.’
The vicar looked at Jack and then at Gloria and told them, ‘This is your child’s baptism. It is a sign of a new beginning …’
Gloria looked at Jack and her baby and thought how true the words of the vicar were.
This was a new beginning. It was a terrifying, exciting beginning. A beginning she had only dreamed of. It was the beginning of a new life. Not just the new life of her baby daughter, but a new life for them all – for her, Jack, and Hope.
Gloria knew the road ahead of them would not be an easy one. There would be huge hurdles to overcome and many battles to be fought. She could see in Jack’s eyes that he still did not know her – but she had also seen love, and that was enough for her. If they had love, then they had a foundation on which they could build a future. They could face their new life together.
After the vicar said a short prayer for Hope and for all those who would support her, everyone recited the words printed on the Order of Service leaflet that had been put out on their seats at the start of the ceremony. As they did so, Gloria caught Arthur’s eye and mouthed ‘thank you’ to him. He smiled back at her, before closing his eyes and saying a few words to his beloved Flo, who he knew would be pleased with what he had done.
Lily pulled out a hankie from her bag and handed it to Kate, whose face was now wet with tears. Rosie put her arm round Kate and gave her a little cuddle, thinking that for someone who had endured such a hard life, she really was a big softie. Rosie kept a protective arm around her old schoolfriend as she watched the vicar light a candle and hand it to Dorothy, who took it with a look of great seriousness and listened intently as the vicar told her that, as godmother, she was holding the light for her goddaughter.
As the vicar brought the ceremony to an end, Gloria looked across to Dorothy, who looked as though she didn’t know whether to laugh with joy, or cry with sheer emotion.
Gloria then looked at all the people she knew and loved, who were sharing with her the most wondrous moment in her life. Hope had been the one to be blessed by the vicar with his holy water, but it was Gloria herself who felt truly blessed.
Blessed to have her baby daughter.
Blessed with the return of the man she had loved her whole life long.
And blessed with her family of friends.