When our youngest was 2 we went to a local playgroup and met a young woman, 10 years or so younger than me, whose son was a year younger than ours.
She was absolutely captivating. No idea why. She had a fairly pretty face but not exceptional, plump, maybe 5ft 4 and I’d guess size 16. Nothing obviously extraordinary, but there was just something very special about her.
Our boy was born in winter so for his 3rd birthday we decided to have another celebration in mid-summer when we could get the kids outside splashing about in the pool and playing garden games.
We invited this lady, who by then was sadly separated from her child’s father. The birth of their child had been extremely traumatic. She decided that she couldn’t go through that again. He wanted more intimacy and more children so left.
At our party, bo-one could take their eyes off of her, mums and dads alike. She was just delightful.
I suppose that’s what charisma is. The charming thing was that she appeared to be completely oblivious to the effect that she had on people.
We were friends for a year or so then we moved away. I still think of her and her lovely little boy sometimes, years later. Her name was Michaela.
She was on the face of it completely ordinarily but for some reason, enchanting.