(This is the same birching as Part 1, but written from Miss Grimes’s perspective.)
I was not aware that there had been any lapse in my duties until Mr. Randall pointed out the obvious issue of the fixtures, which had not been dusted for so long that a cadre of spiders had taken up residence and made it their business to cover them with cobwebs. I am not sure how such a thing would have escaped my notice, as I am usually quite fastidious about my household tasks.
But in all honesty perhaps I do know the answer to this. Something had arisen recently which had pulled my attention from the duties of the house. You see some weeks ago, on one of my days off, I had gone to the village to purchase for myself some fabric, and while I was there by pure circumstance I was introduced to a young clerk at the pharmacy. Mr. Benjamin–or Paul as I have come to know him–was not so very tall, but boyishly handsome in his own way. We spent only a few moments together, and although I was amused by him, I thought I should not see him again for some time seeing that he resided in the village and I some several miles away. So I promptly made to put him out of my mind.