After all the months that the skating shut down for summer, the first night back was great. Putting the skates on that first night was exciting. Billy wasn’t really a skater so I seemed to spend more time sitting down watching everyone else speeding around. Really the skating wasn’t enough for us, we wanted to jive, so we started going to different Village Hall Dances where you could have a good jive to local groups. I remember one Saturday night there was just four of us Mary with her boyfriend and me with Billy we went to the one in the same village that my Gran lived in. We jived, and in the break at the middle had a cup of tea and a biscuit, then jived the rest of the night. We had a smashing time there, but when it finished and we were walking to the bus stop a gang of Teddy Boys jumped on Billy and beat him up. That was a terrible time, nobody went to help him except me, I took my stiletto shoe off and started hitting them with it, one of the gang held me whilst they punched and kicked him until he was lying on the pavement rolled in a ball. We thought he was dead at first, but when they left he got up and although he was hurt he seemed to be able to walk by himself without any help. His mum was really mad at him that night for getting involved in fights again. I told her that it wasn’t his fault, and that he hadn’t done anything to provoke them, they just jumped on him and there was nothing anybody could do to help him. Billy said he thought they were the pals of the lad he was fighting with before going to Borstal. I was relieved none of my cousins were there, and prayed no one really knew me; because mum would certainly have had a message from Wells Fargo if they did, but when a week went by and no news was good news I felt relieved.
My sister Wilma was going out with someone from Bannockburn; I couldn’t make up my mind if I liked him or not, but my parents were more than pleased with her choice, and that was all that mattered. One day I came home from work and mum was crying, when I asked what was wrong mum told me my sister was really ill and had to get the doctor. When the doctor came he told mum she was pregnant and was frightened to tell mum which led to exhaustion and all she needed was peace of mind and rest. I ran upstairs to see her but she was fast asleep, so I left her in peace.
Shortly after I got the news that they were getting married, and I was to be her bridesmaid. It wasn’t going to be a big wedding never the less mum and dad never got a lot of time for arrangements. Everything in our house was in a panic, we all had to be clothed for the occasion, I wore a two-piece suit in a beige colour with a pair of high stiletto shoes that I had been pestering for ages for my mum to buy for me, so that worked out great, and at least I got a new rig out. My sister had a lovely lilac dress on and how she managed to hide her bump, I’ll never know.
When dad went to book the wedding in the church, it was too a short notice for the church so it was held in the Rectory at the side of the church. There was only the bride, groom, and best man and I standing in front of the minister that day. When we got home the living room was transformed into a wedding reception with tables ready for a wedding feast. Mum’s friends from the restaurant where she worked served the three course meal they and mum prepared in the morning. The chef at her work also made a lovely two-tier wedding cake. The wedding guests were limited which consisted of my parents and my siblings, and of course how could we forget dear old Gran, who of course was escorted with Auntie Barbara, the only aunt there. And of course the groom’s parents and siblings. When I think back my mum done well, the place really had a wedding feeling, and I was really proud of her. After the meal the women cleared all the tables away and soon the room turned into a reception with drink singing and music. It went on till midnight, and everyone had a good time and complimented my parents for the way everything turned out. I missed Billy and the rest of the group that Saturday, but I couldn’t really miss my sister’s wedding could I?
My sister and her new husband got the bedroom that had the little fireplace in and mum gave them the new bedroom suit she had recently bought, and was still paying weekly for, so they did really well for the short notice. The room was nice and cosy, it meant that we had to be careful with the coal as we now had two fires to keep going. so dad kept tell us every time we put a shovel of coal on the fire It was February one of the coldest months of the year.
We all looked forward to the new arrival, and in less than two months my sister was taken to hospital in labour, we were all excited waiting to see if it was a girl or a boy. It was a little girl, and she was beautiful. She was spoiled by us all, especially my mum, but I had a feeling that my brother-in-law George was a bit jealous of that, which is understandable being a new dad. Wilma and George went out a lot and mum used to babysit which she loved. The baby would be bathed, fed, and in her cot asleep when they got back. So all ended well.
We visited Billy’s sister in Grangemouth one Sunday. When it was time to go home that night, rather than going all the way to Kincardine just to spend another hour I got an earlier bus home from Grangemouth. When I arrived home mum was bathing the baby in her little bath at the front of the fire. Mum told me my sister was ill in bed, and she had to get the doctor out to her, he gave her something to make her sleep, and said if she was no better in the morning to call him out again. The house was unusually quiet, when I asked where everyone was, mum said dad was at a council meeting, my brother Jimmy and sister Catherine had just gone to bed before I came in. I asked where George was, and mum told me he had gone to Bannockburn to one of his pals Stag do’s in dad’s car. She had just bathed the baby and was feeding her on her knee. I took the baby bath away and emptied it, then put the kettle on to make a cup of tea for her and me. That was something in our house we all loved was our tea. When mum finished feeding the baby I gently took her and slipped upstairs to lay my sleeping niece in her cot and could see Wilma was asleep and comfortable, so I let her rest. Later on that night when everything was quiet the baby started crying so I ran upstairs and lifted her out of her cot and took her downstairs in case she woke up my sister who was in a deep sleep. I handed her to mum and went in the kitchen to put the kettle on. As I was in there my brother-in-law came in and when he looked in the living room and saw my mum with the baby, he went over to her and said in an angry tone,
‘What the hell is she still doing up she should be in bed, and where’s her mum anyway?’ I couldn’t believe how nasty he was to my mum who was doing what he should have been doing. I got angry and thought is this what he’s like when he’s alone with my mum, bullying her in her own home, who does he think he is I thought, because he’s not like that when anyone else is there especially dad. He certainly wouldn’t dare talk to her if dad was there, or my brother William who was living in a Mining College in Alloa learning to be a boiler fitter for down the pit. I walked into the living room and could see straight away he had, had a few drinks. Still holding the cups of tea in my hands I told him he had no right talking to my mum like that, and that she was doing what he should have been doing, he was a married man and shouldn’t be going out with the boys on his own anyway. He started to shout at me just the same way as he did with mum but I stood up to him straight away before he had the chance to finish his pathetic excuse saying it was nothing to do with me. I threw a cup of tea over him and shouted
‘If you don’t get out of OUR house right now, I’ll go and I wont be back until you have gone because, this is our home, not your’s.’ I said in anger
My mum was shocked she just went silent, I think she was frightened in case he would take it out of my sister or their baby. So I marched into the hall and grabbed my coat shouting, ‘OK I’ll go but don’t expect me back until he gets out of this house for good.’ I walked down the street not knowing what to do, regretting all I said for the sake of my mum, but on the other hand was still furious every time I thought of the way he treated her.
When I walked out the door I wondered where to go at ten o clock at night. I decided to visit my friend who was also called Nan who lived in the next street from us. I worked with Nan for a few weeks when I first stared at Cork and Seal works, and got ve
ry friendly with her. She was glad to see me as I hadn’t seen her for ages because we now worked in different departments. We went up to her bedroom and listened to records on her new record player. As the night was getting on I didn’t know what to do, I was getting a bit frightened to go home because I could just imagine the situation there especially if my dad had found out what had happened. I decided to confide in my friend to what had been going on. She told me I could stay there if I was too frightened to go home. We were just thinking of an excuse to tell her mum why I was staying when there was a knock at the front door. Her mum answered it and I could hear George’s voice. My friend and I just looked at one another, because we couldn’t quite tell what they were saying. When her mum shouted upstairs that I was wanted I was a bag of nerves, but I put on my I’m not scared of you face, and headed downstairs to face him. As I looked him straight in the eyes all I could think of saying to him was,
‘Aye, what do you want?’ I blurted out.
He told me he was there to say sorry and that it would never happen again, he asked me to come home that my mum was upset and he apologised for the way he spoke to her, he said he was just in an angry mood as he just had an argument with one of his pals, and that he was just upset at the time. He said he could understand me for the way I spoke to him, and that things would be better in future. I asked if my dad was home yet and he said no but mum wanted me to come home before he did. As soon as he said that I had a feeling it was him who wanted me home knowing if dad knew what had happened tonight he would be out on the street, no home, no wife, no child, and most of all no car to gallivant about in as he used the car more than dad did. I told him I would come home on one condition, that if he ever spoke to my mum like that again, my dad would certainly get to know. He agreed and promised he would respect her more. I agreed to go home and said I would follow later, as my pal and me were in the middle of doing something; which was just an excuse because I didn’t want to walk home with him, besides I had to let my pal know what was happening. After that Things seemed to settle down, especially when George’s cousin had a new girlfriend, so him and my sister went out regularly in a foursome with them. Wilma and Mina ended up as good friends and she used to come to our house regularly. I liked Mina she was so friendly and seemed a lot older than my sister but they got on very well. I was pleased for her, at least she had a reason to go out with her husband.
I adored my little niece, and wanted to take her out for the day, and when she was four months old my sister let me take her to Billy’s so I could show her off. His mum absolutely adored her. Later on that afternoon we were all in the back garden, when the next door neighbour shouted his mum over. After a few minutes chat she came over to us and laughed, we asked what she was laughing at, and she told us the neighbour just asked if that was mine and Billy’s baby. I don’t think Billy was amused but we all had a good laugh. Even his dad laughed, and that was the first and last time I ever saw him smile never mind laugh. It wasn’t because he was a miserably old sod; he was just very quiet in nature. All the time I went there I never heard him as much as say two words, but he was nice just the same, I think Billy’s younger brother Keneth was like him, he was very quiet to the extent he was over-shy. His sister; I hadn’t spent too much time with to remember what she was like, but the couple of times I met her she was very wary towards me, whether she was shy or just didn’t like me I’ll never know. I enjoyed the day with my little niece, but it meant I had to go home early that same night. I missed the night out with all my friends and Billy, especially the last hour in the little café; which I often wonder if it ever paid for itself, or if the woman who owned it dreaded us coming in, that, I’ll never know. We all smoked then, so it stank with the smell of cigarette smoke. We’d sit with a cup of tea and maybe a bag of crisps between half a dozen or so of us. The most money we spent was money for the jukebox which we all clubbed together for. We’d laugh and just chat whilst listening to the new records of the week; which was played over and over again. and if we were lucky maybe a bag of chips on the way to the bus stop for my bus.
Once home and the baby handed back over to her mummy safe and sound I went round to my pal Betty’s house. We played records in her room and reminisced about our school days and the adventures we had around the village, so it was nice to spend a couple of hours with her.
My dad decided to change his job, after all the stress from mum, the whole top and bottom of it was she didn’t want my brother to work down the pit, she thought if dad wasn’t working there he wouldn’t want to either.
Dad got a job about three miles away with a Peat Moss Company digging out peat. He loved working outside, and it coincided with all his council work. When my brother came home from the Mining College one weekend he went with dad to give him a help as it was all piecework, the more peat dug out, the more money. He also loved working outdoors with dad, and looked forward to going there at weekends. After being there for a couple of months the owner came down all the way from Carlyle because he was very impressed with dad and the way he did his time sheet. He must have known he was good at accounts. They chatted for a while getting to know each other then out of the blue he offered dad a managerial job in his Peat Moss company in England as the manager there was about to retire. Dad told him he would have to think about it, and have a look to see where it was before he would commit. The manager offered to take him there that weekend and bring him back. I’ll never forget that night when he came home from work and told us all.
My mum refused straight away, so did I, I told him I wasn’t going and that was that. His reply was a simple, we’ll see? My sister asked what would happen to them, or where would they live if they did go? He replied, with us if you want? My brother was all for it, and if truth be known I don’t think he really wanted to work in the pit anyway. That I suppose was what my mum wanted all along, so I wondered if that would make her change her mind. I couldn’t sleep for thinking about it. I was adamant that if they did decide to go, I would refuse. I had made my mind up that I would stay even if it meant living with my Gran again.
Dad went down to England with the peat moss owner the following Saturday, and when I came home from Kincardine on the Sunday night he was home. The owner stayed at our house that night, and all the talk was about the job. Dad was offered a good salary, a lot better than what he got in the pit or digging out the peat, he was offered a house with the job, but he told the owner if he did except the job he did not want a tied house, and that although we lived in a council house now he would buy his own. I just listened to what was being said, and it seemed to me that it would be an offer that would be hard for him to refuse. I felt sick, I just knew then that they were going and I’d be left behind. I was torn between my family who I had experienced living apart from and didn’t like, but I loved Billy and I didn’t want to be hundreds of miles away, the thought of not seeing him and all my friends every weekend made me feel so isolated already and made me more adamant that I just couldn’t go.
Dad decided to take it, and moved down to England to start his new job. He went ahead to buy a house before the family could move down. He lived with the old manager’s son, and spent his spare time looking for a house he could afford. He wrote letters to my mum who in return sat at night answering them. I know she missed him terribly, and although my dad had an office with a phone in, and mum working he couldn’t phone her during the day. But twice a week I would walk over to the public phone box at exactly eight o’clock and he would ring her from the public phone box there. I hated when dad wasn’t there, because mum was treading on eggshells again with my brother-in-law, who had full use of dad’s car, and he made sure he did have use of it; it was never off the road. My mum told me to keep my mouth shut because they were moving down to England with them, and she was frightened in case he changed his mind. It was a terrible time, I really missed my dad he was the only one that kept the peace in our house since my brother in law moved in. I was glad I wasn’t going with them to England
.
After six weeks dad had found a house but it was all going through the solicitors, which would take about six weeks he said. He came home for Christmas and New Year we all had a great Christmas that year, and at New Year the house was full of friends, neighbours, and relations, and of course his colleagues from the council came in to wish dad well in his new job. It was a very stressful time for me, my dad took me aside and pleaded with me to go. I could have a god job away from factory work, and in time I could work in the office with him. He said I could even ask Billy to come later on and he would give him a job digging peat, or in the bio where the bales are bagged. I wasn’t sure; I had a feeling that Billy wouldn’t leave his going out with the trawlers fishing with the men. The next time I saw Billy I told him about the offer and he was all for it. I felt so relieved and excited that I couldn’t wait to tell dad on the phone. I asked him if he was sure that there would be enough room and his reply was; Don’t you worry about that we’ll make room. I remember thinking it must be a big house. Mum was pleased as punch when I told her, but I did get the feeling that she was behind the offer in the first place.
Of Different Times Page 20