Grandad – Had Doctor Eve. He said 4 days rest but I did feel ill. E just went to chapel in the aft while I slept. S & fam came for tea.
Mum – Dad not very well at all. Service at 8.15pm. Church full. Lots of people came to flower festival. I took full film of slides. Malcolm Carter good at 6.30pm. Spoke on being lukewarm Christians. Neck very painful in am. Rang Dr – Carver – said to take analgesics & see doctor next week. Either slipped disc or pulled ligament!!
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, sometimes, 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. On this occasion she referred to grandad in the first person and to herself in the third person (as E).
Dr Eve Came to See Grandad
Dr Julian Eve was one of the Drayton GPs, see Chapter 116. He joined the practice in 1956 and retired in 1986. He saw grandad and recommended four days rest. Mum also noted that grandad (dad) was “not very well at all“.
Grandma Only Went to Church in the Afternoon
Grandma attended Drayton Methodist Church and usually went twice on a Sunday, in the morning and in the afternoon, see Chapter 124. On this occasion, she only went in the afternoon (aft), while grandad slept, presumably because grandad was not well and the doctor came in the morning.
We Went to Grandma and Grandad’s for Tea
S refers to my mother Sheila May Drew née Parkin. As a family, we went to grandma and grandad’s for tea as was our usual practice on a Sunday, see Chapter 122.
There was a Flower Festival at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church as Part of a Wider Methodist Festival
Mum noted that a lot of people came to the flower festival at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church which was part of a wider Methodist Festival, see Chapter 124. Mum noted that she took a full film of slides.
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 Wednesday. 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.
There Was an Extra Service at 8.15pm
Mum noted that there was a service at 8.15pm and the church was full. I assume this related to the flower festival and the wider Methodist Festival, see Chapter 124.
Malcolm Carter Spoke at the 6.30 Service
It seems that there was the normal evening service at 6.30pm. Rev Malcolm Carter spoke at that on the topic of being lukewarm Christians. Mum noted this was good, see Chapter 124.
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.
Mum Had a Painful Neck
Mum had been complaiing of neck pain for a few days. Although it had got better, it was worse again, see Chapter 116. On this day, her neck had been very painful in the morning (am). She spoke to Dr Carver who advised her to take painkillers and to see the doctor the following week. He thought it was either a slipped disc or a pulled ligament.
Dr P H Carver
Based on a letterhead I have, Dr P H Carver was one of the GPs at the Mile End Road Surgery in 1978. Apart from that, I don’t know any more details.
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