scars

chapter 3: Diligence

Grace was very happy to hear that. She really could not wait anymore to see the children. She just prayed that they would be well behaved and not give her a tough time in the house. She watched Mrs Jones keenly as she continued with the cooking. She really needed to start learning how to make new dishes. Everything looked so different and strange to Grace but she was determined to learn and make the most of every opportunity she was given.

"Who is this?" Mrs Jones's first daughter, Melissa asked when she spotted Grace in the kitchen. Her mother explained to her that Grace was their new maid and warned her to be well behaved. She also informed the rest of her siblings to do the same. "Grace is not a slave in this house, do u hear me?", she said. "So make sure you give her the respect of an elder sister because the day I will find out that you do not respect her, I will do something we will both regret. Don't let me repeat myself".

" Wow", Grace thought. Hearing those words made her happy. She was glad that Mrs Jones to said all those things and she figured that her boss wasn't bad at all. She was probably wrong about her because the impression she had when she first met Mrs jones was completely different.

Maybe she didn't hate her as her attitude earlier made her feel or could it be that she didn't mean those words? What if it turns out she's just using her presence in the house to teach her children to respect elders? After all, you can't tell if a person is genuine by just looking at their face or by hearing them speak.

"Mum, daddy is back..." Melinda, the second daughter said. Her daddy had just returned from a trip and she came to inform her mother. A smile appeared on Mrs Jones face the moment she heard what Melinda said and that made Grace rightly guess that the man must have been away for a long time.

The woman ran out to welcome her husband and Grace followed too because she was just as eager to meet the man of the house. But when she got to where everyone was, she suddenly felt like she shouldn't have come out . The man was holding his wife in a very tight hug and the children were busy opening the bags and trying to see what their father bought for them. Grace didn't have an idea of what she was supposed to do so, she just stood there enjoying the moment. She imagined herself returning home to her family someday with so much money and being hugged so tightly by her lovely mum and siblings. She missed them so much.

"This is Grace, the girl I told you about," Mrs Jones told her husband and that was when Grace had the man's attention. She greeted him in the best way she knew how to and it seemed like the man was impressed because he smiled at her and said "welcome to the family Grace. Please be a good girl".

Though she couldn't explain his overly friendly smile, those words made her feel welcomed and loved. She hopes it continued this way and if it does, she was willing to do her best for this family and be diligent in what she has come to do.

Mrs Jones encouraged her husband to go and freshen up while she sets the table. When she got to the kitchen, she served the food and asked Grace to take the food to the dining table when all was set, she invited everyone to the table. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their dinner except Grace who didn't know what food it was.

Of course, she knew rice but this rice looked green and there was a lot inside it which they called the green peas, the liver, sweet corn and so much more. She decided she would just eat the rice, and leave those things in the plate. But surprisingly, the children were enjoying it and Melisa was teaching her how to use the cutlery. It was such an embarrassing moment for her. She wished she could eat in private at least that would reduce the amount of food she was pouring on the table and floor. It's obvious this life was not for her but she was determined to learn and fit in no matter how long it took.