Time has flown by and now Anne is 19! Ever since Anne has told Gilbert she doesn’t want to talk about pursuing a non-platonic relationship and made it clear she’ll do whatever she takes to avoid it, Gilbert has not pushed the issue since. So now Anne thinks he has dropped all his “nonsensical ideas”, but we all know that’s not really the case. He’s just a super respectful guy who knows not to try and force the issue, especially when he knows so well just how stubborn Anne is. However that doesn’t mean he’s stopping from looking out for her. While he tried to be respectful of boundaries, he was concerned about her safety of the three guys following her, and ultimately decided to leave whatever meeting he was in to make sure they didn’t stir up any trouble. That’s definitely something Anne hasn’t realized yet, of how much just by being Gilbert’s side keeps the pests away. Unfortunately for Gilbert, he did show up late, because instead delulu Charlie showed up… and… well… while he did help get Anne out of that situation, he cast her into a new one that really upset her, which was plainly proposing to her.
In-fact it was such a pathetic on-the spot proposal, it’d almost be rude to even call it such. The whole thing was such a sense of entitlement from his manifestation belief that Anne would absolutely accept his hand in marriage. And when she friend-zoned him with a firm, no thank you, what did he do? His pride couldn’t take it and took a hissy fit. He went on to call her an orphan and cried out how he’d tell his Mama and Papa about this. Wow, what a bratty baby! So now this is the second time (in a row no less) of half-ass proposals from guys she has no interest in. As result it’s truly crushing her hopes and dreams of finding her dream guy”. Too bad she’s too stubborn to accept her dream guy is literally right beside her, waiting ever so patiently.
While that was soul crushing for her, a letter from Stella, a fellow friend she made during her time at Queens has announced she will be coming to Redmond next year. She has asked Anne and Prissy if they’d like to find a house where they could rent altogether alongside her grandmother in Kingsport. So she has asked the two to house hunt for them. This brings us back to Patty’s House, an exceptionally charming house Phillipa had shown Anne on on Spofford Avenue. Ever since she seen it, it has been on her mind, so when the house-hunting didn’t seem to inspire any confidence them, Anne had a gut feeling to go and visit Patty’s House. Prissy thought she was out of her mind since it’s located in an extremely wealthy neighbourhood, so she truly didn’t think they stood a chance for it to be within their budget. Nevertheless, Anne pressed on, and to her credit it paid off.
Initially the owners were going to take down the “to let” (rent) sign because they were increasingly frustrated with the fact the potential renters wanted to take “Patty’s House” sign off the gate. But to Anne, that was part of the property’s charm and she didn’t want to touch it. In-fact they were so happy about how much they genuinely loved the place, they were even generous enough to cut down the rental costs to accommodate whatever the girls’ budget was. She also has a good eye for sentimental items, such as the China Dogs (Gog and Magog) over the hearth, a souvenir brought back from London by the owner’s brother Aaron, who had named the house and had the street named after him. She had even asked if they could leave those in the house since she thought of them to be so delightful. Anne’s attention to details and appreciation for things people cherish really can go a long way with creating a unique connection with others that may otherwise be difficult for those who can’t or just don’t.
And finally, the last half and also the most heart-warming bit of the episode. Since Phillipa is from Bolingbroke, Anne has asked her if she could help her try to trace down where she had been born. All this time, Anne always had this very specific vision of where she had grown up, despite the fact she was orphaned when she was still a little baby.
Naturally, after the streak of disappointments, Anne (and even Phillipa on her behalf) were nervous about whether she was set her expectations too high or not. But thankfully and amazingly, Anne’s vision of the home she was born in was right on the money. From the yellow house, to the lilac brush, and although the curtains are different, the vibe was exactly what Anne had imagined. And better yet, the most beautiful part was that although her mother’s room was smaller than her own at Green Gables, the view of the hillsides the two shared are very similar. It was also a wonderful thing, that the landlady not only kept some of her parents sentimental belongings, such as their letters, but she’s the living record of knowing what they looked like, and what sort of people they were. And Anne couldn’t have left with a better gift of knowing she has her mother’s eyes and her father’s hair and face, and now knows that her parents were deeply in love with each other and loved her dearly. This was not a situation of abandonment, but a tragedy that befell when both her mother and father died young to a fever at the same time. Heck even she was said to be a sickly baby, to the point the land-lady thought she might have died! So I’m very happy that Anne was able to reconnect a piece of her origins. And I know don’t talk about Phillipa much, but she deserves credit where’s due as she was the one who helped made this whole thing possible!
While this week ended on a bright note, next week we’re back for more heartache back home at Avonlea… TT ^ TT Prepare tissues!
