I Remember You
31st March 1962
Well, I remember being in the way all morning! Being in the way and with all these people around. I’m sure I didn’t really know who half of them were! I remember getting all dressed up in my little blue nylon dress, I think there was a bolero involved, lacy gloves, silky soft ankle socks with a double blue stripe round the top and darling pearlised shoes with a button on the side. I was very chuffed with those. Of course there was the compulsory hat, with elastic to go round your chin, ostensibly so it wouldn’t blow off, but I think hat-elastic was actually a form of torture!
Plus I had to sit beside Mammy – and keep still – and behave in church. Where were the sweets? I don’t remember any sweets! Keeping still was only bearable with sweets!!
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| The dress |
After the ceremony, which took aeons by the way, there were photos. Lots and lots of photos! I think they must have used an entire roll – cameras in those days required rolls. Margaret of course, looked very beautiful. Her dress was a gorgeous cloud of lacy white wonderfulness! Bouquet bigger than her head! Raymond looked impossibly tall and handsome in his uniform.
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| Our nephew Robin who was four at the time |
Later I remember waiting, on the pavement outside Davison’s Cafe – we waited – and waited -- and waited, and an icy wind blew from the direction of Church Street, straight up our nylon dresses. That wind wasn’t taking prisoners! My knees were bluer than my dress. A few flakes of snow began to fall on our straw hats. Our pearl shoes froze to the pavement and I heartily wished I was wearing my school vest, liberty bodice, cotton blouse, chunky knitted cardy, blazer, box pleat skirt, blue bobby socks and industrial strength navy knickers. They knew how to dress you for school in those days! Weddings were a different matter. I tell you, if there was a bolero involved, it didn’t earn its keep.
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| Signing the Register |
At last, when the door opened, we still had to wait – for the bride and groom to arrive and go in first, as is tradition. Traditions are very over-rated if you ask me!
From upstairs wafted the irresistible aroma of good vegetable soup – warm, comforting, yummy vegetable soup! Torture I tell you!! But in the end we got in, and got fed, and all was bliss for both the wedded and the hungry.
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| Aunt Georgie Bell, Mrs Hinks, Mammy, Christine, me and Esme. Uncle Sammy gave the bride away. |
I remember 31st March 1962. I was seven. And Frank Ifield’s ‘I Remember You’, is the song I associate with Margaret and Ray. But most of all I remember that delicious smell that wafted down, as if from heaven above to the poor souls below, in their elasticated hats, with their wee frozen legs.
They do say, “Give me a child ‘til he is seven….” Well can I vouch for it; it’s true! I haven’t changed that much in all these decades. Given the choice between moments of high romance and vegetable soup, I’ll still take the soup any day!
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| All the close family |
Margaret and Ray,
Congratulations on your 60 years together.
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