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Ukraine, 2016, Waiting on the Other Side
“The plane is delayed, but soon two people come out with large suitcases and two matching smaller ones. The man has a black computer bag on his shoulder and the woman a Burberry handbag. When they come close to me, the woman’s face appears younger than from afar, but still, I think I look good enough. They stop and they look at me. ‘Hello,’ I say. ‘I’m Giji. Welcome to Ukraine. This way, please’, and they follow me. Cross the road, to the boot of car: open. Mr James-Paxton lifts the lady’s case in first, then his one. I take the smaller cases and place one by the lady’s feet in the back; she’s got … no trousers on, no tights, and the other case I put on the front passenger’s seat next to my own. ”
From ‘Our Foreign Borders’
Melanie
“The best thing about my job back then was the people you met, their stories … how they’d confide in you. I remember this one time, in October, I think it was—a typical English afternoon: freezing. I’d finished work early, was tired; didn’t want to go out again, when a lady named Melanie called, said she’d pay me double if I’d go. I thought it a bit odd, then: ‘I’m desperate to sort out my hair,’ she said. ‘I’ve been in hospital for a long time and am nervous about letting anyone near it.’ The person coming had to be gentle, understanding, patient, as you lose your confidence in a situation like that. I immediately thought the worst and a pain twinged at my heart, so I booked her. ‘Please don’t be surprised when you see me,’ she added. I’ll write what I remember.”
