Dear Grandad,

YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHAT!!!

I heard Old Shuffler speak – not just his usual mutter, mutter, mutter, but real, actual words that I could understand. Dad and me were walking along the pavement on The Plain when OS came out from the side road in front of us and came straight towards us. I told you before that usually when you see OS he does this kind of lurch sideways towards you but he always goes straight past and is gone before you know it really. Well this time he didn’t go straight past, he kind of stopped at the end of his lurch and because he was right next to me (he was on my side not Dad’s) I could hear what he was saying. It was really strange because what he said was “Have you seen my birds?”. He was asking me a question! But how could I know the answer? I didn’t know where his birds are. I didn’t even know he had any. I don’t anything about him.

I asked Dad why OS had asked me about his birds and Dad said that he must have said “Have you seen the birds?” and that he was just thinking that I might like to see the birds swooping around but that’s just nonsense, I mean: 1) the only birds on The Plain are the pigeons and they don’t really count and 2) I don’t like pigeons and 3) in any case he said my birds not the birds, I know he did. After all, it was me that actually heard him say something, Dad was just guessing. Plus, there aren’t any birds on The Plain – they like nice places and on The Plain there are just buildings and cars (lots of cars) and no trees or bushes. So The Plain is hardly likely to be a place where you’d find nice birds. It’s like the Spooky House really, a place where only the pigeons hang out pecking away at the seed that gets thrown down and the scraps of rubbish from the cafes and take-away shops.

Old Shuffler definitely said “Have you seen my birds?” and now I come to think about it, I’ve often seen him looking up at the sky and jerking his head around this way and that way like he is looking for something that he has lost. Maybe he did have some birds once but they got lost or went away and he is still looking for them. That would be sad. He’s obviously not very well, like he is a bit broken, and it would be horrible to be like that and to have lost something that you really loved. He has lost his birds, Annie has lost her ball and I have lost… well you know what I have lost, I don’t want to write it… if it hurts his head to have lost his birds as much as it hurts inside me then he must be SO sad.

At least Annie can get another ball.

Maybe he will find his birds, although I don’t think he could look after them any more. I wish I could get back what I have lost.

LATER: I’m sorry that I got sad in this letter. I don’t want to be but I can’t help it. Sometimes something comes along and starts me off thinking about things and I just can’t stop. Dad says you have to make sure that you remember the good times, hold them in your mind and move on and I do try to do that. I really do.

I miss you.

Love

Kate

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