Thursday

Interview with my Grandma part 2


Yesterday, I posted the first half of my interview with my Grandma, in which we talked about her childhood during the war, her education and her love life as a teenager. Catch up on that post if you haven't already, then come back here to read the second part.

Married life
As Grandma was married, she couldn't go back to work in Charters Bank, so instead she found a job at El Vino, an exclusive drinking club on Fleet Street where she would eavesdrop on prominent journalists, such as Malcolm Muggeridge. 

My grandparents moved into a flat in Wandsworth, paying rent of 16 and fourpence a week (around 80p). In 1957, my Auntie Judith was born: "I remember driving home from the hospital, looking at her and thinking 'What on earth am I going to do with this little scrap?'". My Uncle Ian was born in 1959, and two weeks later, my grandparents moved to a house in Surrey. It cost £2300, with mortgage repayments of £12 a month. Two years after the move, my dad, Jeremy, was born. 

Motherhood
"They were lovely years". Grandma continued to work odd days at El Vino, and then went to work in National Westminster in Sunningdale for a few months. When the children started school, she volunteered and the headteacher recommended she train as a teacher.

Teaching
In 1964, Grandma secured a place at Reading University for a condensed 2 year teaching course, based in a local junior school. It was hard work studying as a mum but, as Grandma had always been academic, she didn't struggle with the studying side.

She started working as a year 3 teacher in the school that she had been based in.  She taught there for 2 years, before moving to another school that wasn't right for her and left her feeling anxious. She moved on from there and ended up in a school teaching a class of 42 children! The teacher in the class next door is still a very good friend of Grandma's. 

Career progression
As she was always very ambitious, Grandma started by becoming a specialist in reading, science and maths and then began looking for deputy headships. Her first interview was successful and later her first interview for headteacher of a small infant school was also successful. In the early 80s, she moved on to become headteacher of the school I would later attend: "I was so proud of the way I ran that school because it was such a happy place". 

At this point, I asked: "What was it like having your grandchildren at your school?"
"It was lovely! I didn't interfere at all".

"So you don't think you in anyway gave us any preferential treatment?"
"No!"
"What about when I used to eat lunch in your office?"
(Sheepishly) "Oh yes, perhaps a little bit". 


Influence on my upbringing
My parents divorced when I was 8 and Grandma was determined that my brother and I "shouldn't suffer by being left without two parents". We spent a lot of time with our grandparents, who took us on trips around the country to castles and museums, took us on holidays around Europe and generally nurtured our cultural and creative development: "I love the arts so much that I wanted you to enjoy them as well". 

Regrets in life
"I can't think of anything much that I would have wanted to have done. I consider I had the perfect life". The only things Grandma regrets are circumstances that are out of her control: "I regret that Grandad didn't live to see you being married and to see Jamie graduating, but you can't control that. I suppose most people regret something they can't control".

Like me, Grandma loves clothes and is always buying new ones. "Can you look back on your life and think 'I wish I hadn't bought so many clothes'?", I ask. The answer, of course, is no! "I have a bulging wardrobe in a care home: You can put that in!" 

Grandma believes that you should never regret anything you've done in life "because everything makes you you". This is a philosophy I very firmly believe in too. 

Advice for young people today
"Never underestimate the power of being a woman because you can do anything you want to, if you want to do it badly enough".

"Always talk to a tree if you want to say something nasty". It doesn't have to be a tree, but the idea is to get the negativity out of your system without hurting anybody. 

"Always take care of your skin".

Style advice
"I always try to dress every day as if I'm going out somewhere special".

"I think you find your own style. Experiment. You have to make mistakes".

"Never think you're too old to wear anything- You can always make it suitable".

My favourite piece of advice? "If I like it, I buy it". 

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It was so wonderful talking to Grandma about her past. I learned so much: I had no idea that she'd spoken fluent French, or that she had a motorcyclist boyfriend! It was very interesting to discover the parallels in our lives. I highly recommend that everyone interviews a member of their family to find out about their past- It might surprise you! 

14 comments :

  1. This is the best idea for a post!! I was just saying to my friend the other day that I would love to have a proper sit down with my grandparents soon because their both turning 70 this year and I missed the chance to have a real talk with my other granny which I really regret! Even to have one with my parents, I'm so interested to see what they were like when they were my age. I might have to get my aunties drunk so they can spill the beans on my mummy haha. Makes you see them more as a person than a parent, love it! Thanks for the inspiration! xxx
    Beyond Bally.

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  2. Really enjoyed reading these 2 posts :)! It’s very inspiring and makes me want to discover more about my family whilst I still have the chance. Your grandma is beautiful and seems like she has had a really good life with loads of experiences and I am pleased you’ve had the chance to discover these :) x

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  3. Your grandma is so inspiring, she sounds like a very special lady indeed!

    Sophie x

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  4. I adore the philosophy that you should never regret anything you've done in life "because everything makes you you".I think oftentimes people focus too much on the negative and wishing certain things hadn't happened and fail to see how many positives came from it and how it brought them to be the person they are today. Amazing!
    ~ Samantha

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  5. I love your Grandma! Especially her advice. She obviously knows her stuff! x

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  6. Aw, your Grandma is so awesome! I had to interview my Nana for my History A Level about whether she went she did for leisure and holidays, and she ended up telling me about how she had a huge rivalry with Cilla Black and burned half of her dresses because Cilla wore them - so surreal! x

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  7. I love chatting with my gramps about his old days too :)
    www.faithfullymarissa.blogspot.co.uk

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  8. Your grandma sounds absolutely awesome; her philosophies and advice are fantastic! I especially like "If I like it, I buy it"...I do that too! Sounds like a good happy life, and she sounds like an amazing lady. :)

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  9. (My previous comment didn't post I think so I will write it again) So many things I loved about this interview:

    "I remember driving home from the hospital, looking at her and thinking 'What on earth am I going to do with this little scrap?'"

    With all of this pressure for people to act like being parents is an easy thing and everything is perfect throughout the decades, I like this bit because really, when you have your first baby, pretty much everyone is thinking this but don't want to admit it.

    "Can you look back on your life and think 'I wish I hadn't bought so many clothes'?", I ask. The answer, of course, is no! "I have a bulging wardrobe in a care home: You can put that in!"

    I want to be like that if/when I get to that age. You can't regret some material things.

    "I always try to dress every day as if I'm going out somewhere special".

    Love this. I try to live by this too. Thank you for sharing your grandma with us, it's such a brilliant read

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  10. Your Grandma is awesome! You're a lucky lucky lady :)

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  11. She sounds like a very inspiring lady (: Some good advice - I like that she doesn't believe in regrets!

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  12. Your Grandma sounds like an amazing lady! This post was really lovely

    ellenunderwater.blogspot.co.uk

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  13. I like your grandma already :)

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