Grandad – Barber came. I was still asleep. Felt better for a good night. Caroline had a puppy. E still with her. S R & A came for tea.
Mum – Terrible service in am WGBR. Favourite hymn service at night (KFE). Went to Drayton for tea. Dad much better. Wrote letter to Leslie Dye about St Peter’s & Mr R. Did not post it or deliver it.
Notes
Change in Handwriting
There had been a change in handwriting at the end of June. Based on this, it seems likely that this, and subsequent entries, were made by grandma even though this is not stated explicitly. If indeed this entry was made by grandma, she writes about grandad in the first person as “I“.
Grandad’s Health
Grandad had had an operation to stretch his bladder neck early in July, see Chapter 116. However, this had not been very successful and he had been sent home with a catheter in place. Since then, he had not been well but, it seems he was improving slowly. On this occasion, he had had a good night’s sleep and felt better for it so much so that he was still asleep when the barber came presumably to cut his hair. Mum also noted that he was much better.
Caroline Douglas
Caroline refers to Caroline Douglas who lived next-door to grandma and grandad at 168 Drayton High Road. It seems that she had just got a dog. Caroline and my younger sister Liz (Elizabeth), referred to here as E, were about the same age and were friends. Liz was staying with Caroline for the weekend, see Chapter 122.
Sunday Afternoon Tea
It was our usual practice to go to grandma and grandad’s in Drayton for tea on a Sunday afternoon and mum noted that we did that, see Chapter 122. Liz was already there staying with Caroline Douglas. My older sister Tricia (Patricia) was away on guide camp so did not go with us. This meant that it was only my mother (S for Sheila), my younger brother (A for Alan) and me (R for Roger) who actually went for tea that day.
Sunday Services
Mum attended morning and evening services at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church, see Chapter 124. She noted that the morning (am) service had been terrible although she did not explain why. She did note that the service had been taken by the then senior Minister Rev Ream (WGBR). Rather, she preferred the evening service which was taken by the junior Minister Ken Elworthy (KFE). This took the form of a favourite hymn service which mum considered “nice“.
Letter to Leslie Dye
Mum noted that she wrote a letter to Leslie Dye about the church and the senior Minister, see Chapter 124. I believe Leslie Dye was a member of St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church but I am not sure why she wrote to him specifically. I assume he was the holder of a relevant office, perhaps senior steward. She did not send the letter that day but she did deliver it the following week. I don’t know the content of that letter but I expect it was pretty critical of the church and of Rev Ream in particular.
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