On the short road that led to the beach  

Five white houses were built in a row

The area thanks to the war had been derelict

It had suffered the many scars of the conflict 

About twenty years ago these houses were built 

To take full advantage of the coastal location 

My name is Gillian and I live with my aunt and cousin 

We used to live in Deauville where Guy and I were raised   

The other four houses leading towards to sea are holiday homes

Which are owned by Parisians who we rarely meet 

They are nice families and tend to come down in the summer

My cousin who is five years my senior works in a garage 

He is a talented mechanic and plans to start his own business 

I am planning to become a teacher after I travel to Chile 

My mother who divorced my father lives in Santiago with William 

He is a important journalist and is much respected 

Sometimes I hide in the old gun emplacements to watch the sea 

I also take this as an opportunity to enjoy a cigarette 

Which my aunt dislikes as she hates the smell of smoke in the house 

Each summer I decide to quit but realise that I have not even started to acquire a habit