A - Z Challenge - M is for Mother

My theme for this challenge is family and relations.

Mother “a female parent of a child”

I was very lucky with my mother.  She was also my friend.  Born in 1922 in the East End of London, the eldest of four daughters she didn’t always have it easy.  I think she was quite put upon by her mum.  She was accepted at the local grammar school but her parents didn’t want her to go – the uniform was expensive for them.  Mum ended up with only one shirt which she would wash out and dry each day.  When they were first married my parents lived with my grandparents and I think Mum ended up with the lion’s share of the housework.

She met and married my Dad during the Second World War and they were a good example of a happy marriage.  As I said in earlier blogs she was a very caring person.  She was also a very friendly person.  She could strike up a conversation with most people.  When my children were young she would visit most days and was a great help in many ways but in particular with my ironing, especially when I had four people in shirts Monday to Friday.  She didn’t interfere, at least not very often – and if she did it was usually because I needed to listen! 

I think losing my Dad at an early age (I was only 22, Mum was only 59) brought us closer together.  I was still living at home at the time and some things were a steep learning curve for my Mum.  She’d never written a cheque up until then – my Dad had always taken care of the financial side of things so I had to step in and help Mum out.  But she was a quick learner and never wanted to be a burden to anyone.

 
My kids loved her and they were a great support to me during Mum’s later years when she succumbed to Alzheimer’s and she spent her final years in a nursing home.  She died in 2012 just short of her 90th birthday.  She was named Ada after her mum so she was always known by her middle name of Gladys, usually shortened to Glad and I’m sure everyone who knew her was glad to have done so, especially me!