I knew Denise half a century ago. Already a macho terror, it must be said she was suspicious in the eyes of more than one woman.
Today, and perhaps thanks to her, machos are fewer and most Quebec women see them as friendly allies rather than rivals to be kept at bay. The news of his sudden death on Tuesday morning came as a huge blow.
I last saw Denise when she and Jim came to the house for dinner on May 16th. That evening, Denise barely dipped her lips into her glass of champagne. She said champagne didn’t suit her so well anymore. No more than the wine, which she drank in measured gulps. Denise, who still had a good fork, left asparagus on her plate. She feared a gout attack and at the same time told me that asparagus could be an accomplice to this catastrophe. As always, we also ate the next one. Which we have always digested well.
A QUARTER CENTURY AGO
About 25 years ago today Denise and I started a love affair. i was free They also. After a few weeks I put the brakes on. Maybe I was afraid of everyday life with her. We ended this romantic relationship by mutual consent, preserving the friendship we always had for each other. Life is going well, I started happy days with Maryse that are still going on and Denise experienced the same happiness with her “English”. She called him with a hint of mischievousness, as if avenging Montcalm’s defeat on the Plains of Abraham in her own way! James Jackson, whom she simply called “Jim” à la française, treated her with as much affection as deference.
Thanks to him, the more than Francophile Denise knew all about the British royal family, and we, who hardly went to church, listened devotedly before every meal together as he sang hymns of grace in his beautiful voice.
How would I describe my long friendship with Denise? I do not really know. She had started with Claude Sylvestre, her first and second husband, having married him twice. Denise didn’t do anything halfway! Perhaps she and I had a friendship similar to that of Elena and Lila in Elena Ferrante’s fabulous novel. A friendship woven from sometimes violent contradictions, long silences, intense approaches, knowing looks, disapproving looks, a friendship animated by the same irrepressible propensity for provocation, sharp comments and undeniable criticism.
DENISE, THE INCOMPARABLE
What a pleasure I had to visit this volcanic Denise, clever, vivacious, as capable of humorous answers as deadly anathemas, this curious Denise, as capable of shocking opinions as of mystical reflections, who wields the reed fish with the same mastery as With the lever of casino mugs, this Denise feels just as at home in diplomatic pharmacies as in the back alleys of Miami-Dade County branches. Incredible Denise.
James, Guillaume, his son, Annie, his daughter-in-law, Danielle, his sister and the only little Rose, whose smallest gesture Denise watched and reminded everyone of the smallest subtleties, be assured of my sincere condolences. as well as that of Maryse. Your Denise, who was also ours, will always remain a wonderful friend to me.
