Call me Jon!....... I am 33 years old and have recently split up with my long term girlfriend so I now live alone in Bristol. My mother [Jane] is a fit 65 year old widow and lives alone in a big house in a small village on the south coast of England.
This was fine all the time my dad was alive as they lived together and had a happy life. However since my father passed I have tried to visit as often as possible usually every other weekend and when I could not visit my sister [Louise] went so that mother was not on her own too long.
This seemed to work well for the first year, but then one day I got a phone call from my Mother saying she was very depressed and lonely. I told her I would take some holiday from work and that I would come and stay with her for a couple of weeks, this made her very happy and she sounded much brighter and was looking forward to my visit at the weekend.
It is now Saturday morning and the beginning of my 2 week holiday. After packing my case I drive down to my mother's house in east Sussex the journey takes about 3 hours and I arrive about 1pm just in time for lunch. As I pull into the drive way I see mum is waiting for me at the front door. I get out the car and go towards her she has a big smile on her face and looks happy. "Hello Jon, it is so nice to see you!" She says with open arms ready to greet me with a huge hug.
"Hello, Mum it is nice to see you too." I reply as I hug her tightly in my arms.
We go into the house and straight to the kitchen where mum has set table ready for lunch.
"Would you like a drink Jon? Mother asks, there's some beers in the fridge help your-self and pour me one as well."
I pour the beers and we sit at the table drinking. I ask her what is wrong and why she is depressed.
"Well Jon, it's like this I have been missing your father a lot lately especially at night then the loneliness gets worse." She says sighing.
"Don't you have any friends who could stay over sometimes?" I ask.
She looks at me and says "Do you mean male friends?" there is a slight tone of disapproval in her voice.
I wonder if I went too far asking her the question. Oh well I have to get the cause of her depression in order to be able to help.
"Yes mum I do mean male friends. After all you have been on your own now for more than 2 years, I don't think it would be a bad thing to get a boyfriend after all you are still very fit and attractive there must be lots of men in your circle of friends who would be interested."
Again she looks at me with a disapproving glare and snaps at me "Jon, I don't think that's a topic you should be discussing with me!"
Opps! Think I touched a nerve there, clearly it is a sore point and that leads me to believe the issue is missing a male companion.
Neither of speak for a while and mother prepares lunch we sit and eat in a somewhat frosty atmosphere. Thankfully by the time lunch if finished the mood turns happier and mum says "let's go and watch a film on TV. Go and set it up Jon, I am just going upstairs to change into something more comfortable."