9 September 1958
 
My dear Len + Margaret
 
This is Wed. A.M. I will just jot a few lines on this letter, if I don’t I may not be able to have it ready for Friday A.M. because lately I have been very much bothered with my writing. My Canadian letters should have been mailed yesterday, but they were not ready. I am trying not to take any chances with this one.
 
Before I go further I want to thank you very much for the box of lovely shortbread I found on an armchair when I returned from St Peters yesterday afternoon, I am very fond of shortbread and so is Doreen. It was most kind of you both to send it. I had not seen this kind before, the ones I have always had were in biscuit form, this one is in cake shape. I opened it for tea, it’s very good. Dad was not there so he has not had any yet, he will have some this evening, again many thanks.
 
I also want to thank Len for telephoning on Saturday, but Len you did make a fool of Doreen by pretending it was Uncle Frank talking. She says you spoke just like him, anyway I guess you could hear the din that was going on here. I feel sure that Margaret & yourself would have enjoyed being with us, we would have also enjoyed having you.
 
As you know we had only the family except for Nick’s mother. She is a very nice homely person, she had on a lovely frock of a nice shade of blue, with fancy designs of white on, she has lovely white hair which is permed, she made herself quite at home with us, even Arthur says she is quite a nice sort. To me she struck me as if she had had trouble. I find she carries that on her face, well the poor soul has had some trouble, she lost her husband when he was only 40 years old. He wasn’t long ill so Nick tells me. He had thrombosis then a stroke after which caused his death. She has married twice she had six children & a stepson, she had a lot to do. Then she has undergone two operations, so that she isn’t as strong as she might be, with it all, she’s very nice. It appears that she thinks we are a nice family. She thinks Doreen is quite suitable for Nick, so far so good.
 
Len, on the phone seemed surprised to hear that I had picked my roses for this occasion. Well I wanted a few flowers in the room + as they are very expensive to buy + often they are not fresh so I thought that the roses are now getting past + dropping I decided to pick the best ones. Of course the family was most surprised at me to have cut my roses, anyway I did, the room looked lovely with five vases of red roses. I put a big one in the centre of the room on a table, two small ones on the mantle shelf. One on the T.V. + one on the china cabinet. I did them on Saturday A.M. It took all my time to arrange + pick those roses, they were very much admired. Doreen did not know anything about them until she came home with Nick in the eve. I had closed the door of the front room for the lunch hour so that she could not see them when she came back. When she saw them in the evening she could not believe they were from my garden, they are still quite nice.
 

The young lovers & the mother arrived just before 9 o/clock, they had got engaged by then. I met them in the hall, Doreen showed me her ring which is a three diamond bar, very nice.

I then congratulated them, had my first kiss from Nick. We all got in the lounge where the family were waiting. After all the congratulations the health of the young pair was drunk. My drink, in case you would like to know Len, was a glass of orangeade. After that the talk & excitement began. I was very quiet myself. I am pleased to say that Dad was most quiet, he kept a good ‘boy’ all evening. I told him afterwards that he had been very good, so no reproaches on that score.
 
Then came the time when we presented them with a little engagement gift. Dad gave them ½ dozen soup plates, I gave ½ dozen dinner plates to match, they are cream with a red band. They are very pretty, they were delighted with them. Roselle gave a pair of lovely weighing scales cream & red, Kay + Arthur gave a very nice dust pan & two brushes. The dust pan is yellow to match Doreen’s kitchen, Margaret gave a set of red + cream jugs. When that was done, as a bit of fun, we each gave Nick a little gift to make him see what duties he will have to perform when he is married. Roselle gave him a scourer, Kay an apron, Margaret a wooden spoon, myself a dish mop with a handle. Nick was thrilled at this little thought, his mother being amused too. The party ended at 12.45, it was then high time to get to bed. What did you think of Nicks voice over the phone?
 
Now your nice holiday is over, I guess you all found it much too short, still it was a nice break for you all. (British Rail camping coach in Benderloch, near Oban) Margaret seemed to like that part of the country where you were, she said it reminded her of Jersey. I am very pleased you all enjoyed yourselves so well. Margaret, I think that now you have a few friends you will like it where you are much better. It’s good for you to have friends, you are so much alone during the day, you will be pleased to have someone to talk with you. You will both be able to go out sometimes in the evening when your mother is with you next month. I am sure Susan will be delighted to have Elisabeth (cousin from Stockport) with her. Will the children be on their holidays when your mother comes? I think they should be.
 
Thurs. A.M
How far will I get with this letter this A.M. it’s now 11 o/clock. Before I forget to tell you Aunt B. told me to thank you very much for the postcard you sent them. I then told her she ought to write herself to thank you. But you know what it is with her, she hasn’t got her liberties as other people have, in this way she is excusable. So please accept their thanks from me.
 
Margaret & Charles have invested in a T.V. it’s a cabinet one. I think it’s a console, they had it fixed in on Monday. Mig is pleased to have it. If it had been left to Charles I am not sure he would have bothered. I think they will both be pleased with it in the long winter evenings. They had a chance of buying this one. It’s through Nick that they have bought one now. It is a second hand in a way it has had very little use. I believe it was 80 pounds new. They have had it for 25 pounds. Of course there is the expense of fixing the aerial. This set belonged to rather good people. I don’t know who they are, but these people could not pay their way out so they are having their things sold up by a solicitor. This T.V. & an electric cooker were sent at the Electricity (Board) to be sold.
 
We have given the cooker to Doreen + Nick, they have it at the flat now.It’s a very nice cooker, we have not seen it of course. Doreen goes to the flat now & has been doing some cooking, she is delighted with this cooker. The oven is at the top, so there is no stooping when using the oven. It was an expensive one, we had it for 25 pounds. They are lucky to have such a nice one.
 
You remember me telling you that we were invited to Mr + Mrs. Rossignol’s golden wedding which was to be held at the Grand Hotel & having a little dinner there. This was to be on Monday 14th. I am sorry to say it is all off now, instead poor Mrs. Le R. will be spending the day in a nursing home “Bon Air”. She went there yesterday, I think she is having an operation to day. I think she has something very similar to what I had, of course she is in my thoughts today, she is such a nervous person, her husband is not much better. Dad + I went to see her on Monday afternoon, try to cheer her up before she went, she was very pleased to see us. I hope the operation will be successful. She is having the same surgeon as I had that is Mr. Burt he is very good & nice.
 
I feel quite relieved to have finished this letter this A.M. Again many thanks for shortbread which is being very much enjoyed. Love from us all.

 

Lovingly, Mother xxxx