**Five Facets of Tomorrow**
* Well, the kids will look after us in our old agethats why we had them. But you, Maisie, youve got a real problem,* Nat said with mock sympathy, pouring another glass of white wine.
Five women lounged under parasols on beanbag chairs at a beachside bar in Brighton. The evening smelled of salt, pine, and a hint of melancholy.
When her friends invited Maisie to join them at the spa retreat, she hadnt known what to expect. In her mind, *spa* conjured images of stuffy sanatoriumstrade unions, aching backs, medicinal mud, and boredom. Maybe a bit of late-life flirting if she was lucky.
Instead, it was a modern hoteldelicious food, treatments, a woodland trail carpeted with emerald moss where she could wander for hours, listening to the whisper of pines and chasing sunbeams.
The sea, though shallow and chilly, was still a joy. Stretching in either direction were nudist beacheswomen to the left, men to the right.
The womens side was amusing. *»Were still holding up alright, compared!»*
The mens side? That was another matterlaughter turned to shocked giggles.
* Look at that blokesmaller than my grandsons!* Lily cackled.
* And that short ones gone the other wayburied in the roots!* Tanya added.
* Cheers, ladies!* a male voice called back.
They burst into laughter and hurried off, faces burning. Theyd forgottenBrighton might feel continental, but it was still England.
After dinner, no one wanted to leavethe treatments had left them buzzing. The beach bar hummed with music, the sun melted into the sea, and conversation drifted toward sore subjectsliterally.
One had high blood pressure, another a bad shoulder, the third couldnt sleep. Then came the real talkold age, loneliness, children too busy with their own lives.
Maisie tried to lighten the mood. *»With the way the worlds going, we might not have to worry about getting old.»*
But the others were in full swingeach swapping horror stories or fragile hopes.
Then Diana perked up. * Remember when you lost me at the market? I met an old woman selling strange stones. Bought this crystal from her* she pulled a green-blue prism with a chipped tip from her tote. * Said it shows the future.*
* Shows what?* Nat squinted.
* The future, supposedly. Her English was patchy, but she said, Five visions left. And theres five of us. Fancy a go?*
They laughed but touched the crystal anyway.
**First vision: Nat**
By eighty, Nat had been a widow five years. She lived alone in her spacious flat, staying sharp despite fading eyesight.
Her daughtera high-flying executivewas always busy, barely time for a family of her own. She cared for Nat out of duty, not warmth.
One day, Nat climbed a chair to fetch an old vase for her daughter. She fell. No breaks, but bruises galore. Her daughter gasped and took her in *»just for a few days.»*
White kitchen, white walls, white misery.
Once, Nat spilled tomato juice.
* Mum! Why must you meddle?!*
* Well,* Nat forced a smile, *now your décor has a pop of colour. Was starting to look like a surgery.*
The joke fell flat.
**Second vision: Diana**
Diana raised her son aloneeverything for him, everything sacrificed.
He became a successful programmer, married a German womanand gave her all the love meant for his mother.
His wife was steel-cold. The house, signed over *»to avoid inheritance tax,»* became hers.
Diana, frail and breathless, was tolerated. *»Mum, dont touch that. Dont interfere.»*
She hid in her room, cried silently at night, smiled by morning.
One day, she called Nat.
* I cant do this anymore.*
* Pack your things. Move in with me. Well manage.*
And they did.
One half-blind, the other slow on her feetbut together, they coped.
They joked about their frailty:
* Youve swept all the dust into the corners again.*
* But the middles spotless!*
Evenings were for debatespolitics, technology, happiness. They disagreed on everything, but it never mattered.
Then the telly went onNat listened, Diana narrated.
* Maybe its a blessing I cant see well,* Nat mused. *The worlds turned ugly.*
* Nonsense,* Diana said. *Were just relics. The world moves on.*
**Third vision: Lily**
Lily had twin daughters. One took her in; the other visited with grandkids.
The house buzzedpopcorn, bubblegum shampoo, giggles.
* Grandma, is it true you were born before the internet?* a curly-haired boy gasped. *Did you see mammoths?*
* Aye,* Lily laughed. *And saber-toothed tigers!*
The boy dove under the table.
Lily ruffled his hair, thinking, *This is joytiny curls and all.*
**Fourth vision: Maisie**
Maisie, a doctor, spent most of her life alonetwo divorces, endless shifts, countless patients. She worked, saved, knew shed rely on no one.
When her strength waned, she chose a care homemodern, cozy, with gardens and Wednesday dances.
And suddenly, she thrived.
Shopping trips, bingo, excursions, new friends.
At the dances, a charming man with a walker once asked,
* Care to cha-cha with me?*
Maisie grinned. * Keep up if you can. Maybe start with something slower?*
**Fifth vision: Tanya**
Tanya and her husband always dreamed of a seaside home. They bought onein a faraway Asian country.
Now, they had paradisea local woman cooked, cleaned, helped.
Her husband had suffered a stroke, but evenings, Tanya wheeled him to the shore.
They watched the sun sink into the ocean, talkingor sitting in comfortable silence.
* Glad we made it,* he whispered.
* We did,* she replied.
When the visions faded, the women sat quiet.
The sky turned violet, waves murmured secrets.
* Well,* Tanya cleared her throat, *not so terrible, eh?*
* Quite the opposite,* Diana smiled. *Almost human.*
* Even beautiful,* Nat added. *Fewer bruises, though. Another round?*
They laughed.
The waiter brought another bottle. The crystal on the table caught the dying lightdim but stubborn. It hadnt cracked or dimmedjust turned clearer.
* Let it be,* Maisie said. *Each to her own path, but on the wholenot bad.*
* Old age is still life,* Lily said, filling her glass. *Just a different time of day.*
They clinked glasses, and the sea softly agreed.
**Lesson:** The future isnt a cliff to fearits a horizon, different for each of us, but never without its light.
