One Face in a Million Book 1: Mu Shangaaniana. William Bond
volunteer anything else, and they soon went on their way. Helen asked a few more questions, but Christine was not ready for a tell-all, so she simply restated that they had studied together and would probably do so again.
“Well, did he kiss you?” asked Helen.
“I had hoped he would,” Christine replied truthfully, but the shrug that followed seemed to indicate that, on this occasion, nothing intimate had occurred. Soon, Christine and Helen left their room and headed to dinner, and Christine was relieved that she had been able to keep part of her afternoon with Jim a secret.
After dinner, Christine and Helen returned to their room and studied for a while. Later, Helen went down the hall to visit with some of the other girls, but Christine decided that she needed to do some more reviewing for her math class. The tutoring that she had received from Mr. Edwards had proved useful, but she still had a feeling that he was attracted to her. Perhaps he had entertained thoughts of her that were much like the fantasies of Jim that she had entertained. To his credit, however, Christine had to admit that after their first tutoring session, Mr. Edwards’s behavior had been entirely professional.
In time, both Helen and Christine got ready to turn in for the night, and after the lights had been switched off, Christine relived some of the important moments of the day. Her little stumble after church had brought about the results that she had hoped for. Jim had come to her assistance, and they had been able to make plans to study together in the afternoon. More importantly, however, they had walked hand in hand, they had shared a kiss which was her first ever with a young man. Although time was growing short, they planned to meet together, now and then, before the school year ended and they departed from Swaziland.
Christine had enjoyed that kiss, and she could imagine how nice it would be to have a truly romantic relationship with Jim. She didn’t know much about his background except that his father was a doctor and Jim had also been giving thought to becoming a doctor. She knew that the Pearson family lived on a mission station at Akornhoek in South Africa, and they had come originally from Seattle, Washington, in the United States. She didn’t know Jim very well, but he seemed like the kind of fellow with whom she would like to spend the rest of her life. Unfortunately, their time together at St. Mark’s was growing shorter every day.
She had to smile to herself when she recalled that Jim had said, “I think you are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen.” She remembered that he had also said, “You are much better looking than my roommate. I wish I could exchange him for you.” Such words were nice to hear, and as she began to get drowsy, she imagined sharing a bed with Jim. It would be wonderful! There was no doubt about that.
Although Jim did invite Christine on a couple of dates that took them to some restaurants in Mbabane, most of their dates were for the purpose of studying for their dreaded matriculation exams. It seemed vitally important that they do well on their tests, so they took their studying very seriously. Nevertheless, they did find time for casual conversations as well as for affectionate hugs and kisses which were usually initiated by Jim. Although they may both have wished to have a more intimate relationship, Jim continued to keep his natural urges under control, and his behavior with Christine remained both gentlemanly and appropriate.
There came a time when they discussed keeping up a correspondence after they left St. Mark’s and they exchanged the addresses of where their parents were currently living. They also wanted to exchange some photographs, and Christine gave him one of her professionally taken school pictures and a casual one that had been taken of her as she was sitting on the veranda swing at Tavani. Christine received a professionally taken school picture of Jim that did credit to his good looks, and she had acknowledged that she would treasure it forever.
They continued seeing each other, and they frequently took time to review for their final exams. The time finally came when they took their dreaded exams, and afterward, Christine and Jim discussed the exams and seemed to feel that they had done quite well. Christine realized that if she had not undertaken her self-improvement plan, her grades might have been much worse. She had to thank Jim for the help he had given her during their study sessions, and she knew that she ought to also thank Mr. Edwards for the help he had given her with his tutoring. Understandably, it felt great to finally have all their tests behind them.
On a Sunday afternoon, there was a ceremony at church to recognize the upperclassmen who had successfully completed their studies at St. Mark’s. The happiness of completing a course of studies was tempered with the realization that many people were seeing one another for the last time. After the formal ceremony had concluded, refreshments were served from tables that had been set up on the lawn. People mingled and visited as they enjoyed a few refreshments, and later, people could be seen posing for informal photographs and giving hugs to one another. Some parents had come for the occasion, but Christine’s mother and Jim’s parents had not been able to attend.
Although Jim and Christine spent some time together, they both wanted to take the opportunity to bid farewell to various teachers and friends, and Christine found an occasion when she could thank Mr. Edwards for the tutoring assistance that he had provided. When he acknowledged to her that he was really going to miss her, she knew that he was speaking the truth from his heart.
“It’s hard to leave St. Mark’s,” she replied truthfully. “There’s so much that I am going to miss too.”
Christine also saw Mrs. Leonard and decided that she would tell her that she had been a real inspiration to her and had influenced her more than she could possibly imagine.
Mrs. Leonard was completely surprised that she’d had a positive influence on one of the students, and she thanked her for her lovely compliments.
“I’ve surely enjoyed knowing you,” she said at last, “and I do wish you the very best. Good luck to you, my dear, with all that lies ahead—and God bless you!”
Christine took time to bid other teachers and several dorm friends goodbye, and then, she returned to her dorm room and began organizing things for her departure. There was only so much that she could carry home with her, so she decided to leave her books, her bedding, and some of her other things with Mrs. Gibbons who could see that her things could be used by other students in the next term. Naturally, Mrs. Gibbons was another person who wanted to wish her well as she moved on to the next phase of her life.
On the following day, she bade farewell to Mrs. Gibbons and to other students that included Helen, Anne, and Elizabeth. Jim was waiting by the entrance when she came out of the dorm with her luggage. His bus was not leaving until later in the day, so he had said that he would help her with her luggage as she made her way to the place where she would be meeting her bus.
As they walked away from the campus, tears came into Christine’s eyes, for she suddenly realized that she was ending an important phase of her life. She didn’t know what was in store for her, but she knew that she would probably never return to St. Mark’s. And sadly, her brief friendship with Jim seemed to be coming to an end.
“I’m so sad to be leaving you,” she said, glancing over at Jim with her tear-filled eyes. “I’m going to miss you so much.”
“I’m going to miss you too,” he replied.
“Will I ever see you again?” she asked plaintively.
“God willing,” Jim replied. “Anything is possible.”
They discussed writing to each other, and they intended to do so, yet they sensed that their individual destinies would take them in very different directions, for soon, they would be thousands of miles apart. Jim suspected that he might continue his education at the University of Washington in Seattle, but Christine had no clue as to where she would be. For now, her destiny was a complete mystery!
Before long, they came to the bus that would be taking Christine to the border of Mozambique. Most people had already boarded the bus, and Jim handed Christine’s luggage to the driver who placed her things atop the bus with other pieces of luggage.
Before boarding the bus, they shared a lingering kiss and a few more words. “Even if you become rich and famous, I hope you will remember me,” he quipped good-naturedly.