Hamish McManeish
Created | Updated Mar 17, 2012
His father was a rogue and when he was born there was a hint that this trait would live on in the son. Adopted by a family after being abandoned by a father who just did not care for his own flesh and blood, Hamish began his new life in a suburban setting of a large city. He was indulged by members of his new family. Only one person was determined enough to teach him any manners. But Hamish turned those manners into a party trick and used them to charm gullible strangers. They did not work on anyone who knew him because he was bad from the beginning.
Yet his early years were ones of fear of abandonment by young Hamish. He often imagined that this new family would just chuck him out to fend for himself. Surprised when he found that they all loved him deeply and would not be parted from him, Hamish became the family's lovable rogue. He was to keep this title all his long life. Working out from a young age that he could virtually do what he wanted and then charm his way out of trouble, Hamish set out to enjoy life fully. But he never forgot his adopted family's gift of love. Hamish became fiercely loyal to his new family and attacked anyone he thought was threatening them in any way, shape or form.
At times this led to embarrassing moments with authority figures. One teacher found himself nursing a bleeding nose when he dared to discipline one young family member. Hamish was expelled from that school. A parking policeman received an ear bashing from Hamish when he dared to give another family member a ticket. Hamish's fine for verbal abuse was promptly paid from the housekeeping money. But the worst incident was when Hamish knocked a policeman from his bike because he had given the oldest son a verbal blast. The policeman wanted to arrest Hamish but the oldest son talked him out of taking any action by apologizing for Hamish's behavior. Repeated attempts to explain moderation to Hamish, fell on deaf ears. As far as Hamish was concerned, anyone who attacked his family better watch out for the storm that would break over their heads. "Cyclone Hamish" was a site to see in full fury.
As he grew up it became obvious that Hamish was a natural athlete. He could run faster than most males his age and could clear the high jump
bar at two meters. This was unfortunate because it made him very attractive to the teenage females that clustered around Hamish. And so began a human legend. Hamish became a ladies man the equal of any that had gone before. Hamish never had to cook a meal in his life. When he was not sitting down to a big family meal, Hamish was being fed by his latest female. Even the ones who could not cook went out and bought fast food to entice Hamish to spend some time with them. And the family had to sooth over many a parent upset at having a crying female on their hands due to the attentions of Hamish being withdrawn. For there was no denying that Hamish was fickle and had the roving eye. Few females could withstand the charm attack that Hamish could unleash.
Like all rogues, Hamish finally went too far and got the wrong female in trouble. A young female, who had been carefully raised to be married
to a socially elite suitor, was left unguarded for only one afternoon. That was enough time for her to see Hamish and flirt with him. Never slow to make a new conquest, Hamish was "in like Flynn". The young woman soon found that she was pregnant. Scared of her parents, she laid all the blame on Hamish. The parents exploded with rage and descended on Hamish's family. Luckily for them, Hamish was not at home. His adopted parents listened to the tirade and did the only thing they could to keep Hamish out of jail for rape. The young woman had saved herself by saying that Hamish had raped her. Hamish's adopted parents agreed to pay for a year long European "tour" for the young woman. The story will be put out that she went to finishing school overseas. And Hamish's parents had to agree to taking the offspring of the "rape".
The parents had to go over to a certain European country eleven months later and return with baby. The oldest son's wife actually had a miscarriage at that time and the baby was substituted for the dead child. It was a boy and looked like its real father. As it grew up, the extended family started to recognizes certain inherited traits. The boy could not stay out of trouble. He went to his first school and his first teacher resigned after one term because, in her won words "that devil child made my life a living hell". Yet with his extended family, the boy was happy and loving. He just had no idea of boundaries. And crossed every one he came up to with disastrous results. Finally the family decided that the boy would have to go to boarding school. His "mother" fought hard to keep him with her, but the oldest son was now the patriarch due to the early death of his father. And the oldest son knew where the boy was heading. He had seen it all with Hamish and he knew the boy's only chance was to learn to accept discipline. Also he knew that the boys charm was causing him to be spoilt rotten by family members. So the boy was sent to boarding school.
As soon as the boy was packed off to school, Hamish returned from his years abroad working on the family's South American estate. The plan had been for him to stay there for ten years but a certain scandal had brought forward his departure from that post. Arriving back in home territory, Hamish soon took up where he had left off and was fattened up by old lovers. Older now and wiser, Hamish took steps to ensure he never fathered another child. The family welcomed this new mellow Hamish but the oldest daughter was not fooled. She heard him cry at night in his room and she saw the sadness in his face when some one mentioned South America. Guessing that Hamish had finally met his lone match, she became a little kinder to him and defended him to all her friends. Her guess was proved beyond doubt when the manager from their estate arrived to give the patriarch his yearly report. The two men had finished their business and were relaxing over some expensive Irish Whiskey. The manager asked leave to mention a personal matter and, when he got that permission, told the full tale. Hamish had worked well on the estate for years. There were rumors of love affairs but never anything that was serious. But the manager had a young daughter who grew up into a young woman. One day she looked at Hamish and everything changed. At first it was just a game of flirting they played when they met socially. But soon it got beyond that and became serious. Finally Hamish approached the manager and asked permission to marry hie daughter. The manager could not refuse the son of his employer and so reluctantly gave permission. Hamish went to the young woman and proposed that very night. The next morning Hamish was found drunk in a local club. The manager went and spoke to his daughter. She told him that she had refused the marriage proposal! She thought that Hamish was too old for her and told him that she thought of him as a kindly uncle. Hamish left the estate the following week.
And so the great lover had meet his Waterloo. The rest of his life was spent reliving old love affairs. Hamish still never had to cook for himself but he got fewer and fewer new conquests. By the time he turned seventy, Hamish was showing the signs of his rakish life. One day his doctor called Hamish in for a private word. Hamish left the doctor's surgery grey in the face. He went to see his adopted older brother. Then he went for a bush walk. This had always been his favorite hobby. Hamish never returned from that walk. His body was found by hikers the next day. The funeral was one of the largest that suburb had ever seen and there was an overflow of people. Strangely enough most of them were women. And sitting at the back was a Latin woman crying uncontrollably.
Only the patriarch recognized her because she was the spitting image of a manager he had once employed. The patriarch shook his head, even in death Hamish had been able to win the heart of a woman.
------------------------EPILOGUE--------------------------------------
Some time after I wrote this up for the paper, I ran into someone who I had tried to track down earlier. He was the young person taken over to
South America by Hamish all those years ago. He filled in a bit of what went on over there. Hamish had a habit of sponsoring some young thing. This usually meant that this young one ran around doing odd jobs for Hamish. Today we would say that they were unpaid PAs. So this man told me, why he thought Hamish failed to win a certain heart at that time. Firstly, he described THAT female as the most beautiful young woman he had every seen anywhere in the world. According to him, she was taller than Hamish and very slender. Her gloden blonde hair was long but not excessively bulky. She could have, in fact, passed for a moden day model. The only difference would be that there would be no need to either, air brush, or, photshop her photos. Secondly, this man asserted that this young woman fell in love with him on first sight. I have no way of verifying his claim or of disproving that statement. Finally, he said that he was never in love with the young woman but was flattered by her attentions. He admitted to treating her badly and finally terminating their liason. i asked him if the young woman ever got married and he said that he had no knowledge of her after he left South America. This occured some six months after Hamish had left to go home. He left me with the impression of someone who regretted much in his life.
Yet his early years were ones of fear of abandonment by young Hamish. He often imagined that this new family would just chuck him out to fend for himself. Surprised when he found that they all loved him deeply and would not be parted from him, Hamish became the family's lovable rogue. He was to keep this title all his long life. Working out from a young age that he could virtually do what he wanted and then charm his way out of trouble, Hamish set out to enjoy life fully. But he never forgot his adopted family's gift of love. Hamish became fiercely loyal to his new family and attacked anyone he thought was threatening them in any way, shape or form.
At times this led to embarrassing moments with authority figures. One teacher found himself nursing a bleeding nose when he dared to discipline one young family member. Hamish was expelled from that school. A parking policeman received an ear bashing from Hamish when he dared to give another family member a ticket. Hamish's fine for verbal abuse was promptly paid from the housekeeping money. But the worst incident was when Hamish knocked a policeman from his bike because he had given the oldest son a verbal blast. The policeman wanted to arrest Hamish but the oldest son talked him out of taking any action by apologizing for Hamish's behavior. Repeated attempts to explain moderation to Hamish, fell on deaf ears. As far as Hamish was concerned, anyone who attacked his family better watch out for the storm that would break over their heads. "Cyclone Hamish" was a site to see in full fury.
As he grew up it became obvious that Hamish was a natural athlete. He could run faster than most males his age and could clear the high jump
bar at two meters. This was unfortunate because it made him very attractive to the teenage females that clustered around Hamish. And so began a human legend. Hamish became a ladies man the equal of any that had gone before. Hamish never had to cook a meal in his life. When he was not sitting down to a big family meal, Hamish was being fed by his latest female. Even the ones who could not cook went out and bought fast food to entice Hamish to spend some time with them. And the family had to sooth over many a parent upset at having a crying female on their hands due to the attentions of Hamish being withdrawn. For there was no denying that Hamish was fickle and had the roving eye. Few females could withstand the charm attack that Hamish could unleash.
Like all rogues, Hamish finally went too far and got the wrong female in trouble. A young female, who had been carefully raised to be married
to a socially elite suitor, was left unguarded for only one afternoon. That was enough time for her to see Hamish and flirt with him. Never slow to make a new conquest, Hamish was "in like Flynn". The young woman soon found that she was pregnant. Scared of her parents, she laid all the blame on Hamish. The parents exploded with rage and descended on Hamish's family. Luckily for them, Hamish was not at home. His adopted parents listened to the tirade and did the only thing they could to keep Hamish out of jail for rape. The young woman had saved herself by saying that Hamish had raped her. Hamish's adopted parents agreed to pay for a year long European "tour" for the young woman. The story will be put out that she went to finishing school overseas. And Hamish's parents had to agree to taking the offspring of the "rape".
The parents had to go over to a certain European country eleven months later and return with baby. The oldest son's wife actually had a miscarriage at that time and the baby was substituted for the dead child. It was a boy and looked like its real father. As it grew up, the extended family started to recognizes certain inherited traits. The boy could not stay out of trouble. He went to his first school and his first teacher resigned after one term because, in her won words "that devil child made my life a living hell". Yet with his extended family, the boy was happy and loving. He just had no idea of boundaries. And crossed every one he came up to with disastrous results. Finally the family decided that the boy would have to go to boarding school. His "mother" fought hard to keep him with her, but the oldest son was now the patriarch due to the early death of his father. And the oldest son knew where the boy was heading. He had seen it all with Hamish and he knew the boy's only chance was to learn to accept discipline. Also he knew that the boys charm was causing him to be spoilt rotten by family members. So the boy was sent to boarding school.
As soon as the boy was packed off to school, Hamish returned from his years abroad working on the family's South American estate. The plan had been for him to stay there for ten years but a certain scandal had brought forward his departure from that post. Arriving back in home territory, Hamish soon took up where he had left off and was fattened up by old lovers. Older now and wiser, Hamish took steps to ensure he never fathered another child. The family welcomed this new mellow Hamish but the oldest daughter was not fooled. She heard him cry at night in his room and she saw the sadness in his face when some one mentioned South America. Guessing that Hamish had finally met his lone match, she became a little kinder to him and defended him to all her friends. Her guess was proved beyond doubt when the manager from their estate arrived to give the patriarch his yearly report. The two men had finished their business and were relaxing over some expensive Irish Whiskey. The manager asked leave to mention a personal matter and, when he got that permission, told the full tale. Hamish had worked well on the estate for years. There were rumors of love affairs but never anything that was serious. But the manager had a young daughter who grew up into a young woman. One day she looked at Hamish and everything changed. At first it was just a game of flirting they played when they met socially. But soon it got beyond that and became serious. Finally Hamish approached the manager and asked permission to marry hie daughter. The manager could not refuse the son of his employer and so reluctantly gave permission. Hamish went to the young woman and proposed that very night. The next morning Hamish was found drunk in a local club. The manager went and spoke to his daughter. She told him that she had refused the marriage proposal! She thought that Hamish was too old for her and told him that she thought of him as a kindly uncle. Hamish left the estate the following week.
And so the great lover had meet his Waterloo. The rest of his life was spent reliving old love affairs. Hamish still never had to cook for himself but he got fewer and fewer new conquests. By the time he turned seventy, Hamish was showing the signs of his rakish life. One day his doctor called Hamish in for a private word. Hamish left the doctor's surgery grey in the face. He went to see his adopted older brother. Then he went for a bush walk. This had always been his favorite hobby. Hamish never returned from that walk. His body was found by hikers the next day. The funeral was one of the largest that suburb had ever seen and there was an overflow of people. Strangely enough most of them were women. And sitting at the back was a Latin woman crying uncontrollably.
Only the patriarch recognized her because she was the spitting image of a manager he had once employed. The patriarch shook his head, even in death Hamish had been able to win the heart of a woman.
------------------------EPILOGUE--------------------------------------
Some time after I wrote this up for the paper, I ran into someone who I had tried to track down earlier. He was the young person taken over to
South America by Hamish all those years ago. He filled in a bit of what went on over there. Hamish had a habit of sponsoring some young thing. This usually meant that this young one ran around doing odd jobs for Hamish. Today we would say that they were unpaid PAs. So this man told me, why he thought Hamish failed to win a certain heart at that time. Firstly, he described THAT female as the most beautiful young woman he had every seen anywhere in the world. According to him, she was taller than Hamish and very slender. Her gloden blonde hair was long but not excessively bulky. She could have, in fact, passed for a moden day model. The only difference would be that there would be no need to either, air brush, or, photshop her photos. Secondly, this man asserted that this young woman fell in love with him on first sight. I have no way of verifying his claim or of disproving that statement. Finally, he said that he was never in love with the young woman but was flattered by her attentions. He admitted to treating her badly and finally terminating their liason. i asked him if the young woman ever got married and he said that he had no knowledge of her after he left South America. This occured some six months after Hamish had left to go home. He left me with the impression of someone who regretted much in his life.
