The G. M. Os. - 3. Chapter 3 - The Commune

Chapter 3
Ship Clock 262003
Frederica 72-893b
The Commune

At five thousand thirty-two hectares the commune was the largest on Ring 5, but not the largest on the ship. Frederica had heard there was a new commune on Ring 1 that was made up of thirty-seven adjoining farms and totaled over thirty-eight thousand hectares. Of course, those were established farms that already had male and female partnerships—usually brothers and sisters, but sometimes due to circumstances and permission of the bots, by husband and wife teams—that ran their one thousand forty hectare operations with the assistance of bots. There were no bots on Frederica’s commune where there were twelve two hundred sixty hectare farms operated by male and female partnerships and three two hundred sixty hectare farms operated by double male partnerships, therein lay Frederica’s current problem.

The bots that visited yesterday suspected the male humans that made up those partnerships were homosexual due to the fact that bots had never encountered two males living together that were heterosexual, or that was what they said was the reason for their visit. There were two possible solutions, the men could identify themselves as homosexuals or be taken into the Ring 5 bot detention facility and questioned about their relationships. That was why there were six men outside her office waiting to find out what she wanted. She knew this was not going to be easy.

“Marcy, ask Matthew and Mark to come in, please,” Frederica said into the intercom.

“We heard, Marcy, thanks for being nice,” Mark said. “Coming Matthew?”

“Do we have a choice?” Matthew asked as he followed his partner into the commune manager’s office.

“Sit down gentlemen,” Frederica said as she pointed at the two chairs facing her.

“What have we done this time?” Matthew asked.

“The short answer, living together here at the commune,” Frederica said. “Two bots were here yesterday. They suspect you two are homosexuals. You have two choices, identify yourselves as such or be picked up by the bots for questioning.”

“Get tagged or die, you mean,” Matthew said.

“Actually, we don’t really like being called homosexuals, it’s too cold, technical sounding,” Mark said. “We prefer being called gay. It’s been that way since long ago back on Earth. Matthew, I prefer taking the eagle to being hauled off in the bots’ Black Maria. I’m quite happy with the body I’ve been given.”

“Fine, we’ll take the tattoo,” Matthew said. “Are you satisfied, Frederica?”

“I was told to ask,” Frederica said. “I was given another option, too. I could very well have just reported that you refused to answer and let the bots haul you off. They said I probably had couples in the dormitories that were ready to move up to a full-sized farm and now might be a good time to do that.”

“They’re really cold,” Matthew said as he stood up. “Come on Mark, let’s go tell the others and get out of here. We have broccoli sets to put out.”

“No, please don’t tell them,” Frederica said. “I was told to ask the couples separately. I don’t like it, but that’s the way it has to be. You know they have spies. The last thing I want is to have a Black Maria sitting outside my door.”

“Okay, we’ll be nice,” Mark said. “Let’s go Matthew.”

“Marcy, Luke and John are next,” Frederica said into the intercom after her door closed.

“What is this all about?” Luke asked the exiting men.

“You’ll have to find out for yourselves,” Matthew said. “Our lips have been sealed by the boss.”

John followed Luke into the office. He looked sheepishly at Frederica and asked, “Well, what’s this about?”

“Sit down gentlemen,” Frederica said, again, as she pointed at the chairs in front of her. This already had gotten to be too much. Why couldn’t she ask them all at once? Was there a chance one of the couples was actually heterosexual? Why would they agree to live together on a commune miles from the nearest city? They’d have a very difficult time of finding mates, unless they started dating someone out of the women’s dormitory, but nearly all of those had already teamed up with one of the men from the other dormitories. No, being homo ..., no being gay was probably true for all of them. Then she wondered if there were others in the men’s dormitory. Thank the god there was no such thing as women homosexuals.

“I have been told by the bots to ask you if you two are in a, um, gay partnership or to use their term, homosexual coupling,” Frederica said. “Well?”

“And, if we don’t say?” John asked as he looked at Luke.

“Yeah, what if we don’t say?” Luke asked. “It’s our life, not theirs.”

“This is their ship, we are their cargo, and they determine how the cargo is handled. If you refuse to answer, I will have to report that to the bots. I’m sure you know what that means.”

“Decapitation,” John said. “Or, worse. I do not look forward to a long, slow death.”

“I don’t want to take the tattoo because of the stigma attached to it, but I’m in favor of life,” Luke said. “Well, John, do we take the eagle?”

“Fine, sign us up at the nearest tattoo parlor,” John said. “Come along, Luke. Paul and Barnabas are really going to like this.”

“Please, don’t tell them.”

“Why shouldn’t we?” Luke asked as he stood up.

“Because the bots told me to ask you guys separately. You know what they’d do if they found out you told them. It’d be a quick trip to the death house for the three of us and maybe those two, also.”

“Fine, we’ll act just as Mark and Matthew,” John said as he put his hand on the door handle. “Oh, Frederica, when do we get our tattoos?”

“Tomorrow; you’ll have to come down here,” Frederica said. “I’ll let you know what time.”

“Marcy, tell Paul and Barnabas to come in,” Frederica said with a sigh. This had really gotten to be too much. Why did the bots have to be so difficult?

“Please sit down gentlemen,” Frederica said as she offered the two chairs in front of her. “I have been told by the bots to ask you gentlemen if you’re gay. That wasn’t their words, but I’m sure you know that.”

“And, if we don’t say?” Paul asked. “I’m not in the habit of telling anyone about my personal likes and dislikes, even the bots.”

“Do you want me to report that, to them? I’m sure you know what that will mean.”

“Death,” Barnabas said. “Come on Paul, what’s wrong with a little eagle on your forehead?”

“Do you know what people will say about us?

“What people? We don’t go anywhere except to Matthew and Mark’s place or Luke and John’s. Sometimes we all get together at the same time. By the way, have they agreed to take the eagle?”

“Yes,” Frederica said, flatly.

“I see,” Paul said. “To either die for my convictions or walk around with the mark on me, some choice. Okay, let’s do it. Is there anything else?”

“No, a bot will be here tomorrow to administer the procedure. By the way, do either of you know if there are any gay men in the dormitories? Thankfully, I don’t have to ask you about women, since there is no such thing as a gay woman.”

“They’re called lesbians and I know of at least four,” Barnabas said. “As far as men, well, I’d rather not say, but I’m fairly certain there are three maybe four or five.”

“That many?” Frederica asked in disbelief.

“We’re all around you, Frederica,” Paul said. “But, we’re not going to say who. One never breaks a confidence, but I’m sure you know that.”

“Yes, thank you. By the way, I did not notify the bots. They have their own sources.”

“You mean we have a spy,” Paul said.

“I’m sure of that. Why else would they come here? Like you said, we don’t go anywhere. Besides, it’s too far anyway. Who wants to spend half a day travelling to the city and then have to spend the night in a hotel before coming home? No, we have a spy, but whom, I don’t know.”

“Is it you?” Paul asked.

“No! Even if I was, I certainly wouldn’t tell you. No, the bots got their information from someone else.”

“Okay, we’re going,” Barnabas said. “Come along, Paul.”

Frederica sat there alone at last. If she could have done something else, she would have, but the bots gave her no choice. Yes, there was a spy here, but whom? The only odd person here was Marcy. She was the only person that didn’t farm. Of course, Frederica no longer had a farm. Though, there were a few times when one of the sixteen hectare farms needed an extra hand, besides the extra men and women in the dormitories waiting for their turn to move up to a small farm. She had the experience and they seemed to appreciate her help. But, who was the spy?

********

Six men with eagles tattooed on the left side of their foreheads sat in the living room of Luke and John’s residence. All were drinking various varieties of beer, ale, wine, or liquor produced by the commune. Steaks were under cover outside on the patio ready to be grilled. It was a nice evening, except the discussion stayed away from the glaring examples of the way bots handled their cargo.

Unexpectedly, there was a knock on the door. John got up and went to answer it. A man and a woman stood there, both looking rather sheepishly.

“Peter, Dorcas, what are you doing here?” John asked.

“We were invited to your party,” Peter said. “Didn’t you invite us?”

“No. Luke, did you invite Peter and Dorcas to our little party?”

“Whatever for?” Luke asked as he walked over to the door. “Wait a minute, do you know who invited you?”

“We received a message at our module in the farm office,” Dorcas said. “It didn’t have the sender’s name on it. We just assumed it was from one of you and that you simply turned off your RSVP service.”

“Did anyone see you come here?” John asked. “Did you see either Frederica or Marcy after you received the message?”

“Marcy was at the dormitory after I finished getting ready,” Dorcas said.

“What’s going on?” Peter asked.

“Frederica suspects we have a spy here at the commune,” John said. “But it appears to be something quite different. Dorcas, does Marcy spend a lot of time at the dormitory?”

“She has a room there, but she seldom uses it. We don’t know where she sleeps. Could it be possible she’s one of those modern bots we’ve heard about? You know, one of those that look like a human.”

“That would certainly explain a lot,” Mark said as he walked up to the door. “John, are you going to invite them in?”

“I don’t know if I should, it might get them in real trouble. But, I guess the damage has already been done. Come on in you two, we’ll make room.”

“Thanks,” Peter said.

“You know, I was thinking this might also be the work of nano bots,” Matthew said. “I was reading about them in a technical journal on robotics. It seems the bots are working on methods to watch humans more closely and some bot systems have proposed testing what they’re calling nano bots; nondescript bots that are able to hide within places where humans congregate, like residences and work places. They might have selected the commune as a test site, which would explain a lot of what’s been going on recently.”

“How do you get access to a journal like that?” Paul asked. “You’d think the bots would restrict access.”

“My original doctorate was in robotic systems. They never stopped my subscription when I quit and moved to the commune. Maybe they figured a farmer way out here in the middle of nowhere would be harmless to them. But, that may change considering I’ve been given the mark.”

“It’s for social reasons, not work related,” Peter said. “The bots are afraid men, who haven’t been given eagles and are gay, might pose a hazard to young and defenseless human boys in larger population areas. I suppose you guys got them because of the young men in the dormitory. Not that it would’ve mattered to some of us.”

“Yeah,” Dorcas said.

“Oh, no, not you, too,” Mark said. “What do they give lesbians?”

“Pink hearts on the right side of their foreheads. A number of years ago, they simply disappeared, but now we get a tattoo when discovered. I suppose Peter and I are going to be hauled into Frederica’s office and given the choice you guys were.”

“How do you know about that?” Luke asked.

“It’s all over the commune,” Peter said. “Like you said, there’s either a spy or as Matthew suspects, nano bots are doing the spying and have the ability to spread rumors. Don’t worry, nobody cares. The machos on the outside might care, but here, we’re all escapees from the drudge of everyday life in the cities and the machos that make a big deal about the tattoos.”

“Yeah, you look for a place to escape and after a while you find a place like this,” Paul said. “It’s not heaven, but it is a close second.”

“Don’t tell me you still believe in that religious crap,” Dorcas said.

“I was raised in a Catholic orphanage and school, after my parents were murdered,” Paul said, softly. “I didn’t say anything about believing in stuff like that. I just said this was almost like the heaven I heard about there.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know. Is that where you learned about being gay?”

“No, we didn’t have any priests living there,” Paul with a dull laugh. “One came in every few months to see how things were going, but left the same day. No, I learned most of what I know today from Barnabas, who wasn’t much of a teacher, but was a great kisser. Right?”

“Yeah,” Barnabas mumbled, obviously embarrassed. “But, you were the one with the hands.”

“Now, now, this is a party, not a gay porn vid,” Mark said with a chuckle.

“What’s a gay porn vid?” Dorcas asked.

“It’s vid you get to watch once you’re given an eagle,” Luke said, flatly.

“Oh, yeah,” Dorcas said, still sounding puzzled.

“I’ll explain it later,” Peter said.

“How were you able to watch one?”

“I’ve never seen one, just know about them, not that it would do me any good living in the dormitory.”

Whether or not it was unexpected, there was another knock at the door. Everybody stared, somewhat certain it was the bots to take the young couple away to be questioned. Luke opened the door and paused a moment.

“What’s wrong?” John asked.

“It’s Ben and Charity,” Luke said.

“Sorry we’re late, but we had a calf to pull,” Ben said.

“Is it okay?” John asked, as the young couple came inside.

“Yes and the mother was happy to welcome it to Ring 5,” Charity said.

“You guys look like you weren’t expecting us,” Ben said.

“To be honest, we weren’t,” Luke said. “I suppose you received a message from some unknown person inviting you to the party.”

“You didn’t send it?” Charity asked. “Oh, hi, Peter. Dorcas? What are you doing here? Is something going on that we should know about?”

“That’s what we were trying to figure out,” Mark said. “It seems Peter and Dorcas received the same kind of message you two did. I don’t want to ask and I know I really shouldn’t, but are your pairs interchangeable.”

“What do you mean by that?” Peter asked.

“You know what I’m asking. It might explain why the four of you are here.”

“It’s come to that, then,” Ben said. “Do you guys have any idea what’s going on?”

“We have a few ideas,” John said. “Frederica suspects there is a spy at the commune. Dorcas suggested the bots may have planted one of their new bots that look like a human here. Matthew said there’s a new technology called nano bots that are too small to see, but have the ability to spy on humans. The bots are so paranoid that humans might be doing something subversive, they’ll go to extreme ends to find out all the information they can get; no matter how much the humans on the ship dislike it.”

“Okay, whatever is going on, let’s figure out what we’re going to feed our extra guests,” Luke said. “I’m getting hungry.”

“After grilling the steaks, you could slice them and distribute the pieces around the table,” Paul said. “That way everybody gets some meat. As far as the other items on the menu, that’s your problem Luke.”

“Don’t lay it on me. This whole thing was John’s idea. He can figure out the revised menu. You can do that, right, Bud?”

John ended up doing a bit of kitchen wizardry ensuring that the meal went off like everything was planned from the beginning. The discussion of who the spy was continued throughout the evening. As everyone relaxed in the living room with their crème de menthes, there was another knock at the door.

“Oh, god, now what?” Paul asked no one in particular.

Luke got up, went to the door and opened it. He stood still and stared.

“May I come in?” a security bot asked.

“Sure, okay, fine,” Luke mumbled.

The bot entered the room and stopped facing the assembled guests. It said, “I have a message for Peter 41-331u, Benedict 02-933g, Dorcas 01-563n, and Charity 01-673t. You will come to the commune office tomorrow morning for tattoos or you can come with us now. Your choice.”

“Can I ask you who the spy is?” Mark asked.

“I am not permitted to say,” the bot said.

“So, we do have a spy,” John said.

The bot stood still for a moment, its eyes darkened, then brightened again, and then said, “The human will be removed tomorrow morning.”

“I think I can speak for the four of us,” Peter said. “We’ll be down at the office in the morning. What time?”

“Eleven,” the bot said.

“That’s inconvenient, but we’ll all be there,” Charity said.

“We do not want to interrupt the operation of your farms, but the procedure must be done,” the bot said.

“Could the tattoo artist come to our place?” Charity asked. “We could do that. We don’t want to be away too long. It’s calving time.”

The bot paused, again, and then said, “Yes, that is permissible. We will see the four you at eleven.”

After the bot left, everyone was uncomfortably quiet. So that was why the unexpected four showed up at the party uninvited; though, nobody wanted to say it.

“We need to get a message to Frederica,” Peter said. “I think the four of us are ready for larger places. I’m thinking we could split a section. One hundred and thirty hectares sounds about the right size for the two of us. We can discuss it tomorrow.”

“We just have to figure who is going to learn how to do the new job,” Dorcas said.

“We could put our residences across from each other,” Ben said. “I think that might work.”

“We’ll work out something, Ben,” Charity said. “Come on guys, tomorrow will be a busy day.”

“Luke, John, thanks for inviting the four of us, even if you didn’t mean to,” Peter said.

“We’re sorry it had to turn out this way,” Luke said.

“No, they would’ve found out eventually, even if we didn’t have a spy,” Dorcas said. “I just wonder who it is.”

“Well, we’ll find out tomorrow,” Peter said. “I’m going down to the office after the tattoo session to talk to Frederica, if she’s there.”

********

Three months later Frederica sat in her office looking out the window and watched a bunch of busy bees busily buzzing over a field of clover grown for the honey the bees produced and green manure for the vegetable farmers. There were hectares and hectares of it and this time of year no one dared to walk across it; the field belonged to the bees.

Her mind wandered back to those days when the bots showed up looking for gays and lesbians. Of course, they hadn’t used those words and assumed she knew who the sexual criminals were. She explained a person’s sexual persuasion was not on the application for admittance to the commune. They didn’t seem too disappointed with her answer. Then they dropped the real purpose of their visit. They knew of six homosexuals at the commune and wanted her to confront them. Of all the days in her life, that by all accounts had been the worst of all.

Since then two other gay men were discovered, as were the two lesbians they worked with. The bots agreed to give the commune an additional two hundred sixty hectare section to be split between those two couples as an orchard and a beefalo ranch. It meant additional future income for the commune when their harvest overages would be sold to the bots. Interestingly, at least to Frederica, they built their residences across from each other. She assumed that would permit the women to live in one while the men lived across the road. She didn’t ask as it was none of her business. They had been identified by the bots and willingly took their tags.

It also meant two sixteen hectare farms available to two women and two men in the dormitories. She didn’t ask, but they told her they were definitely not of the homosexual persuasion and in typical macho language said they couldn’t see how anyone would agree to take up that lifestyle. She didn’t offer any argument. She’d learned long ago one could never win in a heated conversation with a macho.

Yes, things were looking up. The spy was removed by the bots. However, it turned out not to be Marcy. It was a woman in a dormitory who felt she was ready to move up to a bigger farm and thought the people she identified as homosexuals would not freely admit to their lifestyle choice. That would mean they would be taken away from the commune, never to return.

There was a soft knock at the door. Frederica turned around and said, “Come in, Marcy.”

“I was just wondering, Frederica, if I could come over tonight,” Marcy said. “I’ve found an interesting chicken pot pie recipe that you might like. Could I stay at the residence?”

“There’s always been a bed for you at my place,” Frederica said.

“Thank you; I could call Charles or Charlene to see if I can have a chicken. Do you think that would be okay?”

“I’m sure they will be willing to give you a chicken. Make certain you ask for a young one, we don’t want an old hen.”

“Yes, thank you, Ma’am,” Marcy said. She turned and went out the door.

Frederica thought what a nice girl Marcy was. She had been asking to come over to the residence ever since coming to the commune when Frederica’s brother Frederic had been summarily executed by the bots for attacking a bot shipment driver with an axe. For some reason the bot had asked for something totally inappropriate and Frederic had reached the limit of patience with the “cans of bolts and wire clippings.” She didn’t blame him, but it put a crimp in the future of their citrus orchard. She had to give up the farm to a couple who were operating a sixteen hectare apple orchard; which was the one that Peter and Dorcas ran before they moved up to one of the one hundred thirty hectare farms.

Her thoughts returned to Marcy, a young woman from Central City who was working as a receptionist out of an agency for that purpose. When she called to see if they had anyone available who would be willing to move out to the middle of nowhere, they said Marcy might be the right choice. She had been here five years now and seemed, to Frederica, to be slightly in love with her boss. The young woman was only eight hundred thirty-four years younger than Frederica, but only three years younger physically. That couldn’t be that far apart, could it?

Frederica stopped herself thinking such thoughts and turned back to watch the bees. Could Marcy be a lesbian, but what about herself? She had never thought of breaking up with Frederic to marry another man. Did that mean she might be attracted to women, but never met one that flipped that switch on? Marcy was very pretty, no very beautiful in spite of the oneness of humans. Just the kind of woman Frederica might have wanted to meet up with back when she lived in Central City herself, working in her brother’s boot shop. Frederica thought maybe tonight could possibly be the right time for her to decide where her future lay with Marcy.

Later that night, Frederica was standing in the kitchen watching Marcy roll out the dough for the pies. The chicken had been cut up and parboiled cooked. The vegetables and mushrooms were waiting in individual bowls. Frederica took a sip from her whiskey and soda and thought about bringing up the subject from earlier in the day, but decided to wait. Maybe later when the pies were baking in the oven, maybe after dinner when they were having their schnapps, or maybe later when they were getting ready for bed; but tonight was definitely the time to finally find out why Marcy continued to want to come over to cook dinner and then stay the night.

“Would you like something to drink?” Frederica asked.

“Maybe some white wine; I don’t like whiskey,” Marcy said as she looked up from the dough. “Ma’am, I will get it, you just relax, you’ve had a full day at work; what with the bots messaging about the cherry harvest and how many tons they were going to get and then the other ones messaging about how many beefalos will be ready for slaughter. I know you don’t like talking to them.”

“Freddy, you can call me Freddy. Ma’am makes me sound old. I’m not that much older than you.”

“No, I guess not,” Marcy said, blushing.

Freddy went over to the liquor cabinet and open the door; then remembered she kept the white wine in the reefer. She noticed a bottle of gin that Frederic used to drink. Why had she brought it from their residence at the farm?

“Marcy, would you like some gin?”

“Yes, Ma ..., um, Freddy, that would be nice. Do you have ice?”

“I’m a woman, I always have ice.”

“I’ll get it.”

“No, you’re fixing supper. I’ll make your drink.”

“Freddy, can I ask why you don’t put ice in your whiskey and soda?”

“I don’t really know, I’ve always drank it this way. You certainly seem to have picked up on my nickname.”

“When I was in the orphanage on Ring 2, my boyfriend was Freddy.”

“Oh, you had a boyfriend,” Frederica said. A boyfriend; so Marcy wasn’t into women. Well, so much for having brought up the idea of having the younger woman use her nickname, but maybe it was okay since they did work together.

“Yes, Freddy was really nice, but the bots picked him up when he was nearly fifteen and he never came back. We never found out what he did, but I never had another boyfriend. I’ve had girlfriends, but not boyfriends. I guess I’m one of those women who prefer women as company. I’ve never done anything, uh, sexual, only a little kiss or two, but nothing more. I guess I’m scared of having to get a tag. Of course, back then they didn’t tag women, they just disappeared. I don’t like pain. I never have. I never liked it when I had to take swats from the sisters. I wasn’t a bad girl, just a little forgetful. That’s why I’ll never be anything more than a receptionist or secretary.”

“Marcy, I can get another secretary. You can stay here permanently.”

“As your, uh, wife?” Marcy asked. She looked at Freddy.

“If you prefer, yes, as my wife, my young wife.”

“Oh, Ma ..., Freddy, that would be nice. But, my savings, what will I do with that?”

“Keep it, let it draw interest. We’ll make it official. It’ll mean having to get tags, but I’m willing to do that, if you are.”

“Will you want me to sleep with you?” Marcy asked. She looked down at the dough.

“If you want, if not, that will be okay, too.”

“Oh, no, Freddy, I want to,” Marcy said She returned her eyes to Freddy and smiled. “I suppose that means you will want to do things.”

“Marcy, I’m not forcing you to do anything. I’ve never suspected I was attracted to women. It’s only in the past few months that I’ve finally noticed how happy you seem when you come over here. Marcy, I don’t know how to do, uh, things and would only do, things, if you wanted. I’m only suggesting this because I do really, really like you. I might even love you. You’ve filled a hole in my heart and I don’t want to let you go.”

“Oh, Ma’am, you’re being so nice, I don’t know what to say,” Marcy said as she started to weep. She went over to the dinette, sat down in a chair and continued to weep.

Freddy picked up Marcy’s drink and went over to her. She pulled a chair around the table and put her arm across the shoulders of the younger woman; then pulled her into an embrace. She felt the weeping become a little heavier, almost crying. She put her hand up on the back of Marcy’s head and pulled her to her breast.

“Now, now, my little girl, that’s no way to act on such a happy occasion,” Freddy whispered.

“I never imagined someone would ask me to marry them,” Marcy whispered through her tears. “Oh, Freddy, I’m so happy I don’t know what to do.”

“You sit here and enjoy your drink, I’ll finish supper,” Freddy said as she handed Marcy a napkin. “Would you like a salad? I have all the ingredients, so it won’t be any trouble.”

“Yes, Freddy, that will be nice,” Marcy said as she took a sip of her gin.

********

“I, Maracella, do give my love, my heart, my soul, to Frederica forever. May we walk the path of life together as we join together in matrimony,” Marcy said.

“Maracella? You never told me your name was Maracella,” Freddy said.

“Hey, you two, let’s get on with the wedding,” Peter said. “I have trees to watch grow.”

“Hush, Peter,” Paul said.

“I, Frederica, do give my love, my heart, my soul, to Maracella forever. May we walk the path of life together as we join together in matrimony,” Freddy said.

They softly kissed and turned to their assembled friends.

“Okay, everybody, I’ll open the bar,” Luke said. “John, you start the grill.”

“Hey, you two, we just got married,” Marcy said. “Can’t we get a little peace for a moment?”

Everyone came up and flocked around the couple. They were all thinking that maybe they too should make the commitment of hearts to the partners. Then everyone kissed the brides and stood around as if they didn’t know what to do next. As a happy occasion, it had suddenly turned quite calm. Not too surprising many noticed they had teary eyes. Yes, they would have more of these in the weeks ahead.