A Letter To Leanne
written by: Sharon P Wilson
London, 2020
Alison turned the lovely brown woolen jacket over in her hands and wondered briefly about its owner. It was clearly good quality, and with it being autumn would be snapped up by a woman looking for a bargain. It was a quiet October afternoon, so Tracey, the other volunteer, had gone home early. Then something rustled as she tagged the jacket for sale. Alison discovered the letter in a pocket.
She sat down behind the till and unfolded the yellowing paper, her eyes quickly adjusting to the handwritten content.
My dear, beautiful daughter, Leanne.
Have you ever fallen in love? You know, that heart-stopping kind of love. A love where time seems to stand still when you are together? I know all about that depth of feeling, my dear daughter. My heart is pounding in my chest even as I write this, and it’s been over sixty years!
I met your dad at a dance in East London in the sixties. He was a jazz musician, a singer, and the moment we laid eyes on each other, sparks began to fly. I was out with my best friend Lucy, and we hung around until the set was over. He introduced himself as Desmond Walker and offered to buy us a drink. He was tall, handsome, and charming with skin the colour of nutmeg.
He later told me he was born in Jamaica and came to England to find work and to build a better life. He had a big family back home, so he was keen to work and send money to them.
Well, I have always had a soft spot for kindness, and before long, we began courting.
It wasn’t easy, though, my daughter. This was Britain in the 1960s. It was frowned on for a white woman to date a black man. We were looked down on and picked on by just about everyone. Your grandparents were dead set against us being together. It was an awful time.
To make matters worse, Desmond was having trouble finding work and somewhere decent to live. Then I became pregnant with you.
That’s when the real trouble started. Your grandparents threatened to cut me off if I kept you. In those days, you dared not defy your parents. I was also very young.
All the pressure put a strain on the relationship between me and your dad, so we broke up, and shortly after that, he went to live in America.
I had little choice but to put you up for adoption, which broke my heart to do. You were such a beautiful baby, with vanilla coloured skin, curly black hair, and the most serious deep brown eyes. I eventually married a very kind man called Nigel. We had over forty happy years together before he died of a heart attack. We had two lovely girls, Samantha and Rachel, your sisters.
They are good women who have gone on to have families of their own. I often wondered how life treated you over the years. I can only hope it has been kind to you and that you are happy and have had a good life with your adoptive parents. We are living in different times now, Leanne, so you are free to love whoever you want to love.
I am writing this letter because I am elderly now and I know I have not got long left. Your dad’s sister Jocelyn wrote to me from Jamaica, saying your dad had passed away in New York after a short illness. He was the only man I truly loved. It really saddened me, and knowing my time is near, I’m looking forward to seeing him again.
Leanne, I have nowhere to send this letter, but it will remain with me until I die. I am so very sorry I gave you up and wish I could hold you once again in my arms. I can only pray you can forgive me.
Wishing a spectacular life filled with happiness.
I will always love you,
Your mum,
Margaret Scott
Alison refolded the letter and looked off into the distance with tears in her eyes. She brushed them away just as a customer walked into the shop. She was truly grateful it was a different world from the one the lady who had written the letter had lived in. Her own husband was black, and their two children were biracial. Alison couldn’t imagine a world where her family couldn’t be together. Shaking off a shudder, she smiled when she saw the customer pick up the same woolen jacket and gaze at it admiringly.
NOTE:
Based on the Prompt – The Last Letter
- A Letter To Leanne - July 4, 2025
- Ol’ Halloween - October 28, 2024
- Wild Horses - July 26, 2024
