Birds of a Feather

Never judge a journey by the distance...

Wisdom comes when we acknowledge what we can never know.

[Maisie] "Tell me, Dr. Dene, if you were to name one thing that made the difference between those who get well quickly and those who don't, what would it be?" [Dr. Dene] "...In my opinion, acceptance has to come first. Some people don't accept what has happened. They think, 'Oh, if only I hadn't...' or... 'If only I'd known...' They are stuck at the point that caused the injury. "...I would say that it's threefold: One is accepting what has happened. Three is having a picture, an indea of what they will do when they are better or improved. Then in the middle, number two is a path to follow.

May I not sit in judgment. May I be open to hearing and accepting the truth of what I am told. May my decisions be for the good of all concerned. May my work bring peace . . . Charlotte

In learning about the myths and legends of old, we learn something of ourselves. Stories, Maisie, are never just stories. They contain fundamental truths about the human condition.

Grief should be aired, not buried.

Maurice’s maxim: “To solve a problem, take it for a walk.

And perhaps you can stay longer next time. I sometimes miss the debate my students challenged me with when they stopped being scared of me and before they were mature enough to realize that those who are older may know something after all.

Grief from the war casts a shadow that at times was dense and at others seemed as pale as a length of gauze, but it was never gone.

Maisie gathered her thoughts and sought to banish the sound of nothing at all

Those of us who have reached our more mature years know the value of a nap, Maisie, and we can indulge ourselves without the comfort of pillow or bed.

But for Maisie the case notes would not be filed away until those whole lives were touched by her investigation had reached a certain peace with her findings, with themselves, and with one another - as far as that might be possible.

May I not sit in judgment. May my decisions be for the good of all concerned. May my work bring peace.

To solve a problem, take it for a walk.

Maurice often quoted one of his former colleagues, the famous professor of forensic medicine, Alexandre Lacassagne, who had died some years earlier: As my friend Lacassagne would say, Maisie, ‘One must know how to doubt.

One can appreciate the flavor, the heat and the ingredients that went into the pot that will merge together to provide sustenance. But it’s on the second day that a soup really reveals itself and releases the blending of spices and aromas onto the tastebuds. In the same way, as Maisie walked through the rooms in her mind’s eye, she was aware of the rigid control that pervaded the Waite household and must have enveloped Charlotte like a shroud.

That’s one more thing that I detest about war. It’s not over when it ends.

And talking of powers of deduction, I’ve just taken on an interesting new case.

In your mercy, Lord, give them rest. When you come to judge the living and the dead, give them rest. Eternal rest grant to them, O Lord, And let perpetual light shine upon them; in your mercy, Lord. Give them rest.

Regaining her composure, Maisie stood away from the wall, keeping one hand outstretched, touching the bricks. As confidence in her stability returned, she walked slowly into Charlotte Street. Maisie brushed off the interlude, telling herself that it served her right for skipping breakfast. Frankie Dobbs would have had something to say about that! “Breakfast, my girl, is the most important meal of the day. You know what they say, Maisie: ‘Breakfast like a king, lunch like a lord, and dinner like a pauper.’ Key to bein’ as fit as a fiddle, is that.

I like pickled onions, I like piccalilli. Pickled cabbage is all right With a bit of cold meat on Sunday night. I can go termartoes, But what I do prefer, Is a little bit of cu-cum-cu-cum-cu-cum, A little bit of cucumber.

[Maisie] Tell me, Dr. Dene, if you were to name one thing that made the difference between those who get well quickly and those who don't, what would it be? [Dr. Dene] ...In my opinion, acceptance has to come first. Some people don't accept what has happened. They think, 'Oh, if only I hadn't...' or... 'If only I'd known...' They are stuck at the point that caused the injury. ...I would say that it's threefold: One is accepting what has happened. Three is having a picture, an idea of what they will do when they are better or improved. Then in the middle, number two is a path to follow.

With the hindsight of the worldly experience she had since acquired, it was clear to Maisie that Dame Constance had suffered fools, if not gladly, then with gracious ease.

[Maisie]:...going out for luncheon with a gentleman is definitely not the same as going out to dine in the evening. [Billy]: You get more grub at dinner, for a start -

Don't mind me askin', Miss - and I know it ain't none of my business, like - but why don't you take 'im up on the offer of a dinner? I mean, gettin' the odd dinner fer nuffin'ain't such a bad thing.

Fancy 'avin' to say you work for the Murder Squad, eh, Miss? Don't exactly warm folk to you, does it?