Remember I have mentioned that the order of the last two letters in Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS) epilogue might have been swapped? As explained in The day her life changed (Part 4), Candy possibly sent a mental letter to Anthony some time before writing a very long letter to Albert. The way Candy began the mental letter gives me the impression that she could hardly contain her excitement after spending nearly the whole day with her Prince on the Hill (driving back and forth plus a few hours in Lakewood).
In the letter to Albert, Candy wrote that she had returned from working at Happy Martin Clinic and just put the kids to bed. Yet, it’s unclear how much time had elapsed in between these two letters. I suppose Albert and Candy went to Lakewood on a Sunday when both were free, and Candy wrote this long letter to Albert on a weeknight, probably several days after the day trip.
Like her letter to Anthony, Candy was in high spirits when writing to Albert. First, she sounded elated about having the privilege to address Albert as “Little Bert” (see Endearing nickname for details). If you don’t appreciate this nickname, it’s fine. 😉 You can think of another name that Candy could use with fondness, such as “cutie pie”, “sweetie”, “Bertie”, “Darling Bert” or whatever. The point is, Candy understood it was a secret between Albert and her only. I bet nobody else knew about this name (perhaps except George), and Candy was highly likely the only woman in the world who had this “right” to call Albert this way. 🙂
Then Candy’s tone turned serious in her writing. She wanted to tell Albert that after spending hours with him in Lakewood, she felt something inside her heart “was brought back to life”. (For your interest, Candy used the past tense of the verb よみがえる.) Then she mentioned his sudden visit (apparently not the first time because またまた is used) wasn’t good to her heart, but she was getting used to it. 😀
Then she started describing the long ride to Lakewood (see my earlier post Wildflowers on the way to Lakewood). No doubt both Candy and Albert were in wonderful mood. He even sang a Scottish folk song while driving. We don’t know how many verses there were in that song and how long he had been singing, but Candy wrote that he had sung to her. 🙂 Have you ever wondered about his singing skills? 😛 😉 We only know that Candy wrote うっとりしていまった, meaning she remained enchanted, fascinated, captivated, etc, for a period of time, not just a brief moment. 🙂
Does it mean Albert sang very well? 😆 Anyway, I can imagine Candy couldn’t stop showing off her sweet smile to Albert. This reminds me of the images of a man serenading to a woman underneath the moonlight or outside her balcony. If you like, you can read the funny but sweet answers on this page about why it makes you smile when your man sings to you. 🙂
To me, the highlights of this letter are the loving embrace between Candy and Albert (see A memorable embrace or A hug so tight) and the return of her diary as discussed in More than Words (Part 1) and More than Words (Part 2).
As explained in Susanna and Candy (Part 2), Terry was still with Susanna around that time, and Candy had evidently moved on in her life, as she had promised Terry (remember his last words to her as discussed in Her happiness?). Come on, the breakup had taken place about five years ago (if not longer) by then, and how could Candy possibly predict Susanna’s death some years later? 😕
Hence, the fact that Candy asked Albert to keep her diary for her was her proclamation that she had already closed the chapter with Terry.
Not only that, just as Albert had given Candy his badge, she gave him her diary. It was an exchange of personal items, meaning that they owned these items together from now on. That is, the badge and the diary belonged to them both.
As though this is not enough to show Candy’s commitment to Albert, Candy added (CCFS Vol 2, P. 321):
わたしはーーーわたしをポニーの家に捨てた両親に、とても感謝しています。
そのおかげで、アルバートさんと出会うことができたんですもの！
To translate the above, Candy said,
I… to my parents who abandoned me at Pony’s Home, I’m extremely grateful.
Thanks to them, I was able to meet Albert-san, that’s why!
Candy must be very glad to have met Albert, so much so that she was extremely grateful to the parents whom she had never met. 🙂 😀 Come to think of it, do you suppose Candy would have said this without meaning it wholeheartedly? 🙄
I believe Candy meant every single word, not flirting with Albert. Being abandoned was unfortunate no matter how one looks at it; it wasn’t something to be proud of, even though Candy was a very cheerful and optimistic person. Not to mention that saying “I’m glad to have met you” is essentially one way to express your strong affection to another. (Candy said she was happy to meet Anthony too in her mental letter to him.) If you disagree, just ask yourself how many times you have said “I’m glad to have met you” to someone in your life. 😉 You won’t say it casually just to anyone, will you? 🙂
Now, put yourself in Albert’s shoes. How would you react to Candy’s statements about her gratitude to her parents for abandoning her such that she could meet you? 🙄
Do you know that this picture (Candy & Prince) was one of the posters in the last volume of the Candy Candy manga? Please click here for the other images in this manga volume. 🙂
Therefore, Candy must have pondered the consequences of her words before writing that an unfortunate event in her life had turned out to be a blessing in disguise — meeting Prince on the Hill. I’m 100% sure Albert would melt upon reading these words, and Candy might actually hope that to happen too. 🙂 😉 Remember, she wrote this almost right after she announced the fate of her diary. Albert would be keeping it for her (for the rest of her life? 😛 ), which implies she had chosen not to live in the past. Hence, I have reasons to believe that Candy was letting Albert know that she belonged to her prince now. ❤❤
So why had Candy waited before writing this letter to Albert? I think she needed time to contemplate before making a big decision in life. There are more in this letter, but I’ll continue in Part 6. 🙂