Grandpa

I just wanted to say quickly some thing about Grandpa. There is a lot to say about him of course. Les says that if he had the capacity he would write a book about him. We talk about Grandpa when we drive from Stansted to Marlow and back again. We never tire talking about him.

Grandpa used to like to tell me about his childhood and his beloved mother and sisters. He would always say what a hard time they had, what a horrible century he had lived in. The big fear for his generation of children was TB (Tuberculosis), caused by the damp living conditions. He said when he heard his mother talking about TB in hushed tones he thought for a long time it meant TWO BABIES.

He liked telling me that. I think for him to think of all these people having 2 babies was far nicer!!

Uncle Peter and I were children when the National Health service was at it s height. We had free milk every morning at school to  make our bones grow strong, free orange juice and vitamin C, free dentist, free optician and free education. We had vaccinations to prevent us getting horrible diseases like polio and diphtheria. I remember my Auntie Peggy bursting through the back door and telling Grandma that there was a smallpox epidemic and we were rushed off to get a jab for that too.
Now I'm not going to go on about the past all the time like some old  fogy, Grandpa and Grandma wouldn't approve at all. This is just to get me started.