Letters to Ann

Dear Ann,

I wonder if you ever really knew what it meant to me to have you as one of my treasured friends. I think perhaps that our sons realised it more than we did. So often I look back on our meeting, what transpired & how our friendship began.

It was all through your son, Les, holding his film nights in his home on the first Saturday in every month. I was privileged to attend these events & you would be sitting in the best seat in the house & what a gorgeous seat it was. I so wished now I could produce a photo of you sitting there, so elegant & every inch a lady. I admired you as I sat back in my seat with Philip & Greg waiting for the film to begin.

The table of snacks.

That was after we dined in Les’ kitchen on all the delicacies that the guests brought along, including my famous Roasted Almond Slices which I swear introduced me to many friends around that dining table. I think that’s how I got to know them all.

It all brings back memories as someone would taste one & then I would get to know that person. All those people there, were & are, such lovely people to know & I am so looking forward to seeing them again. I will not die happy unless I see them all again in that venue with Les popping the popcorn, which was an indication that it was time to take our seats & let the party begin.

And what a great show your son would have prepared for us & you would be sitting in that special chair while we all looked upon you as the Queen Mother!

I didn’t get to know you very much for the first few film nights until Philip & Greg relocated from Woodland Hills t0 Burbank & I needed a hair dresser in that area. Philip & Greg mentioned to me a hairdresser just down the road from their apartment, Richard by name & suggested that I call in there also telling me they thought he was also your hairdresser.

I will never forget walking into that salon & asking for a hairdo. Richard was charming & the deed was done. He was a bit different to anyone I had ever met before, a very casual layback kind of guy.

In the course of Richard standing over me while my head was laying back in a basin being shapmpooed & I looked up to Richard & said “I think I know someone you know & mentioned you name.” He stopped dead in his tracks with his hand lathered in shampoo just above my eyeballs as I laid there helpless hoping the suds wouldn’t drop in my direction as he said “You mean Ann, her son has film nights in his home”?

I thought I had better tell him very smartly he was on the right track so that he would get on with the job & stop holding those shampoo suds just above my sensitive eyes!

Well then dear Richard concocted what we would do next day. The plot was that Ann came every Wednesday afternoon at three o’clock to have her hair set. I was to casually walk in, not knowing you where there & what a surprise we would all get!

Well, it did happen just like that didn’t it? You looked up at me saying so surprised ” We were just talking about you.” “Really, what a coincidence” I said! You never did know that was all planned

After all the hairdos were completed with every hair in place Richard suggested we should have afternoon tea at the Burbank Bakery, two doors up & what was to become a loving friendship was born. Little did our two sons know that not only one, but two very strong friendships were formed that day between Ann, Dawn & Richard.

Philip & Les I think got to know each other soon after Philip & Greg moved to America. It didn’t take long for one genius got to know another. They love technology & both are recognised in their chosen field.It was not outside the realms of possibility that they would become good friends. Technology has many facets which I don’t understand, but each operating in different areas & which seems to compliment each other & so it was with our two sons.

I remember well reading my 80th birthday card from Les, when celebrating the occasion in Burbank, LA & part of it said “And thank you for giving your son Philip to us.” I felt a lot of pride in my son at that moment &, of course many moments since.

Marlon, Les and Dawn at Dawn’s Burbank 80th party.

This whole letter is to tell you about how our two sons got together & did something for me which was not important to them. It was a trivial matter really but meant a great deal to me.

I told you recently how Philip & three of his friends spent a lot of energy & time in recording the hymn/song “Mary’s Boy Child’ in our home & made a tape. Philip playing on the organ, Bob on the guitar, Denise singing & David doing the electronic part of recording. It was a very special time on our home & I was privy to all of this going on which took many hours & weeks of perfecting it.

I had the finished tape which was made & I listened to it so much that I wore it out. It snapped and couldn’t be played. I was really saddened by this.

A few years ago, recognising that my son was a genius I took it over to LA asking if it could be restored. I sort of knew I was asking for the impossible, gave it to Philip with a hope that it could be miraculously made good again. I couldn’t really see that happening & over time forgot about it until I wrote to you about it recently.

Philip got to read the letter & emailed me saying that he hadn’t realised how much it meant to me, but that he had got some friend of his to do some work on it as a very special favour which ended up as a Christmas gift from him to Philip. Apparently it was a very big job & that took place some years ago.

Philip put it on YouTube & thought he had put it on my computer for me. Whether he did or did not, I never knew & it was a surprise to him that I wasn’t aware of it.

Philip is not one to leave so serious a matter there, so my son contacted your son knowing that he could make the impossible happen. Les did & I have an email from your son today which read that he had done the impossible & telling me how to listen to it from my computer. Philip also emailed me to tell me what had been accomplished; All is well again.

I know this is not important in the great scheme of things but it is very important to me as it is one of the loveliest memories of my life at Christine Close. Les had emailed me to say he was working on it & in the meantime sent to my computer a rendition of the hymn by Harry Belefonte.

That was really beautiful too & I loved it but tonight I listened to Mary’s Boy Child it as it was from our previous home. I could see Philip as he sat playing the organ, Bob playing the guitar as he sat on the sofa, Denise in the gold arm chair singing like an angel while David did all the important work. It certainly touches my heart strings. Technology is a miracle!

Our sons will never know how much I appreciate the work they have done for me to listen to Mary’s Boy Child again tonight & for a long time to come.

Love you always. Dawn X O X O