Once upon a time - it could have been yesterday, or the day before or whenever - as bears have no fob watches, clocks or time-pieces of any kind; a diminutive baby bear called Hope, nestled against her mama Charity, closed her button eyes for an afternoon siesta to dream of fluffy meringues filled with raspberries, vanilla cream and flakes of chocolate. She awoke to the nudging of a frightful golliwog who said her mama had been swaddled in lilac tissue paper, stuffed into a magenta carry bag and carted off into the Great Unknown. Who knew where? Frightful golliwog didnʼt know. Nor did he care. And no; she did not leave a note with crosses for kisses and noughts for hugs. But money had changed hands. A transaction had taken place across the dreaded faux marble counter.
Hope threw herself off the shelf, skidding across the polished shop floor; thereby dislodging a cunning arrangement of miniature teapots balanced precariously upon a Chinese bowl of damask rose pot pourri, a square bottle of Coco eau de toilette by Chanel and a rather fine gold inlaid tray. Which was priceless. It must have been as there was no price tag attached.
Shards of delicate china, drifts of rose petals all steeped in the scent of Coco had shop assistants and patrons imitate the leaping nuns of Norwich as they sought to distance themselves from personal responsibility. Perhaps they should have been reading Albert Schweitzerʼs discourse on The Individual and Society instead of leafing through glossy cooking books showing the enhanced bosoms of Nigella or the latest expletives of Gordon Ramsay.
Frightful golliwog pointed the finger of blame as Hope pirouetted through the French doors and onto a pavement crammed with wrought iron tables laid with plates of éclairs, pumpkin scones and mugs of skinny latte accompanied by the clicking of busy stilettos mingled with clacking Pandora charm bracelets. She halted, a furry paw clamped against her mouth in dismay. As Confucius said - Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon or star. And this was day without moon or star and ignorance of this world made Hope the bewildered queen.
