Grandad – Ethel went twice to DMC. She also went to Elizabeth birthday party. She also took Caroline & Sheila brought them home.
Mum – Altered clocks. Very tired. E had party 3-6 (5 girls). R & A did games. P&I food. Reception of members & adult baptism in evening. V nice service. Very depressed in evening. 1 Trypt at night.
Notes
Grandma Went to Drayton Methodist Church (DMC) Twice
Ethel refers to my grandmother Ethel May Cecilia Parkin. DMC refers to Drayton Methodist Church. services were held there twice on a Sunday, in the morning and afternoon, see Chapter 124.
Liz Had a Birthday Party
Grandad refers to my sister Liz by her full name Elizabeth. Mum refers to her as E. It was her tenth birthday and she had a party from 3-6pm, see Chapter 122.
Five girls attended. One of them was Caroline Douglas who lived next door to my grandparents at 168 Drayton High Road. She went to the party with grandma, possibly by bus but mum (Sheila) brought them home.
R refers to me and A to my younger brother Alan. We organised games. P refers to my older sister Tricia (Patricia). She and mum did food for the party.
British Summer Time
Mum noted altering the clocks as we switched from Greenwich Mean Time to British Summer Time. Grandad had noted this the previous day as it is something that is done overnight between a Saturday and a Sunday.
Mum Was Depressed
Mum noted that she was very tired and also, in the evening, was very depressed, see Chapter 116. While mum had longstanding struggles with anxiety and depression, I do not recall her ever talking about these particularly openly.
Mum Was on Antidepressants
Mum sometimes noted taking Tryptizol or Lentizol, which are both forms of amitryptilline. On this day, she noted that she took one Tryptizol (Trypt) at night. I am not sure if she was meant to be taking them regularly or as required, see Chapter 116.
Membership and Baptism
Mum noted that the evening service involved “reception of members and adult baptism“. She considered it a very nice service, see Chapter 124. However, the website of the Methodist Church describes the practice as both confirmation and acceptance into membership saying “in Confirmation, those who have been baptized declare their faith in Christ and are Strengthened by the Holy Spirit for continuing discipleship. Confirmation reminds us that we are baptized and that God continues to be at work in our lives: we respond by affirming that we belong to Christ and to the whole People of God. At a Service of Confirmation, baptized Christians are also received into membership of the Methodist Church and take their place as such in a local congregation.”
While the Methodist Church does baptise adults, this can only be done if they have not been baptised as children. Previously, this was uncommon as most people had been baptised as children. I suspect it is still pretty uncommon as very few people are joining the Methodist Church who do not have a Methodist background. Where they do and have not been baptised as a child, they can be baptised as adults. However, this is done by “sprinkling” rather than by total immersion as practised by Baptists and others.
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