(4) Fall

After the death of King Henry, I decided it was fairly safe to dip
back into my project about the late Archbishop Thomas a Becket.
Henry's successor was King Richard I, who seemed a far more
fair and benevolent ruler. Still, I felt I should be careful. But I did
start writing the book about this martyr--in secret.

Also, my stress level subsided considerably. I was relaxing into
my duties quite nicely, and sleeping well at nights. Most curious,
but I kept having re-occurring dreams. I kept dreaming about an
older, kindly looking woman who probably was about my age.
Scratching my head, I knew that I had never met her in my life.
But I kept dreaming about this matronly woman.

Perhaps some six months later I had a visitor, the young scion of
one of the greatest families in the area. Indeed, earlier family
members of this aristocratic house had been responsible for
the earlier construction of Tewkesbury Abbey! The young man
asked a favor of me. His mother had heard good reports about
me, and she was hoping that I might serve as her spiritual guide.
I could hardly decline.

So arrangements were made for his mother, Lady Helen, to meet
with me perhaps twice monthly. Need I say that I was a little
nervous, but I almost dropped when I first saw her. Unbelievable,
but she was the woman in my recent dreams! It was as if her
arrival was foretold. After our first meeting, I relaxed. She was a
kind and intelligent woman, quite well educated, who not only
loved her children but also her grandchildren. Lady Helen was
my age, born exactly one month after myself.

Basically, she was interested in pursuing the study of Scripture
more in-depth, from a more mature perspective. Also, she was
interested in pursuing the Benedictine lifestyle as it might apply
to her and her situation as the matriarch of her great family.
Listening to her, I began to think that I might actually learn more
spiritually from her than she from me.

Lady Helen made me feel comfortable.