Grandad – Ethel went to Sheila’s with D Johnson. Then on to Park Lane to start decorating for the Festival. She came back & went to her meeting. At night 3 of them went & gathered narciss.
Mum – Took mum to St P to arrange her backup for flower festival. Hair set in aft. Neck bit better. Alan P/T evening – excellent reports all the time. Alan read passage from “My family & other animals” in Festival (not practised it enough). ?? 2nd Class. Went to Guild at Avril’s – very nice – same atmosphere as at Overstrand. Malcolm Carter told me in a.m. that he’d just found out about Roy. He was sorry & offered an ear anytime. FR rang teatime.
Notes
Grandma Was Keeping Grandad’s Diary at This Point
Grandad (Gordon) was not very well at this time, see Chapter 116. I think this means that grandma filled in his diary for him. The evidence for this is the change of handwriting but also that, the previous day, she referred to him as Gordon and not as “I“. Grandma completed grandad’s diary quite a lot when he was sick, see Chapter 113. However, she was not always consistent. Sometimes, she referred to herself in the first person and grandad in the third person while, at other times, it was vice versa.
Grandma Went to St Peter’s Park Lane to Arrange Flowers for the Festival
Ethel refers to my grandmother Ethel May Cecilia Parkin. Sheila refers to my mother Sheila May Drew née Parkin. David (D) Johnson was someone grandma knew from Drayton Methodist Church who sometimes gave her lifts. On this occasion, he brought her to ours.
Mum then took her to St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church, see Chapter 124. Grandma referred to this as Park Lane and mum as St P’s. Grandma noted that she was decorating for the Festival. Mum referred to her arranging a backup for the Festival. I am not completely sure what mum meant by “back up“.
Methodist Festival
I believe the festival in question was Norwich Methodist Festival 75. Mum had produced 400 brochures for this the previous month. St Peter’s Choir and Spotsoc had performed in the Festival the previous day. I don’t have any more details. However, among mum’s papers was a certificate of award for knitting from that festival. It sounds as if it was similar to a festival held in 1972 about which I do have a little more detail, see Chapter 107. Various kinds of skills and talents were presented in the festival and it appears these were judged and graded.
Grandma Came Back for Her Meeting
I am not sure how grandma got back, possibly by bus. The meeting in question was a weekly women’s meeting that grandma attended at Drayton Methodist Church,see Chapter 124. Grandad usually referred to it as DLM for Drayton Ladies’ Meeting.
Collecting Narcissi
I assume that “3 of them” refers to three women from the women’s meeting, possibly including grandma or possibly not. Also, I assume they were collecting narcissi for their flower display, see Chapter 124.
I am no expert (!) but my understanding is that the terms narcissi and daffodils are interchangeable. However, I recall as a child that they were distinguished although I am not sure I know what the difference was! Possibly the difference was that the term daffodil was used for the classic all yellow variety whereas other types, e.g. white and yellow were called narcissi.
Mum Had Her Hair Set
Mum noted that she had her hair set in the afternoon (aft).
Mum’s Neck Pain Was Better
Mum noted that her neck was a bit better. She had complained of pain in it the previous day, see Chapter 116.
Mum Went to Alan’s Parent Teacher Evening
Mum went to my younger brother Alan’s parent teacher (P/T) evening at Earlham School, see Chapter 118. She noted that all Alan’s reports were excellent.
Alan Read at the Methodist Festival
Mum noted that Alan read a passage from “My Family and Other Animals” at the Methodist Festival, see Chapter 124. He appears to have been graded as second class and it is clear mum was not happy! She commented that he had not practised it enough.
“My Family and Other Animals” is a well-known biographical book by naturalist Gerald Durrell concerning his early family life in Corfu.
St Peter’s Guild at Avril’s
St Peter’s Guild was essentially a fellowhsip meeting based at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Chucth, see Chapter 124. Meetings were held at people’s houses in rotation. Avril was someone who mum knew through church and her surname may have been Butler, see Chapter 115. Mum commented that it was very nice and there was the same atmosphere as at Overstrand, which was a reference to a Women’s Fellowship Conference held there the previous weekend.
Malcolm Carter
Rev Malcolm Carter was a Methodist Minister who became mum’s friend and confidant, see Chapter 114. From Merseyside, he served in the ministry there and in Darlington and East Anglia. He was Minister at Court Hey Methodist Church from 1978 to 1986. He was the Methodist chaplain to Walton Prison, now HM Prison Liverpool, for 20 years. I found a YouTube video of him taking a service at Wonford Methodist Church in Exeter in July 2024. When he was in Norwich, I believe he was mainly based at Bowthorpe Road Methodist Church. He told mum in the morning (a.m.) that he had just found out about Roy, my father. I assume this refers to mum and dad splitting up although this had happened almost two years earlier, see Chapter 99.
Rev Dowson
FR refers to Rev F R Dowson. Frederick Rodham Dowson entered the Methodist ministry in 1936. He was born in Haxby, York on 5 August 1912 and he died in Selsey on 4 September 2011, aged 99. I believe he was superintendent Minister for the Park Lane circuit from 1968 to 1974. He and mum were close and they spoke and corresponded frequently, see Chapter 114. On this occasion, Rev Dowson phoned at teatime.
