Meet my Granny!
Hi there,
As many of you know, last week I asked Kiran and our readers to write in with questions to ask my Granny. You came up with some brilliant questions but I’m afraid I couldn’t ask her all of them so instead I chose eight of them which I thought covered the main topics that people seemed to be interested in.
My Granny, Peggy May Lightfoot (neé Stevens) was born in the little fishing village of Polperro on July 8th 1922. When I was little, she pointed out that my name has the same letters in it as her middle name and ever since then I’ve always thought we have a special connection :-)
My Granny’s family ran a dairy in the village and she used to help out when she was young. As well as supplying the village with their produce, they sent cream by post all over the country. My Granny married William Lightfoot (my Grampy) on New Year’s Eve, 1943. Sadly he passed away in 2002. She lives in a village a few miles from Polperro, where my parents now live. So without further ado let’s have a little photo…
And now for her answers to your questions:
1. What was the best and worst of the Second World War?
The worst was the anxious concern for those who were serving in the forces, never knowing where they were or if we would see them again. Referring to those in the navy, when or where they were at sea or which part they would return to. For all, the dread of a telegram being delivered to inform of their loss or injury. The fear of being invaded via the coast, which had barbed wire fences & the Home Guard patrolling at night. Also, the fear of bombs being dropped as they severely bombed Plymouth [a nearby city].
The best must have been when they came on leave! In some areas where neighbourhoods gathered into underground air raid shelters it my have brought people close in a spirit of community.
2. What was the most unforgettable day of your life?
The day of my marriage. We had waited for the ship to come in for servicing from August to late December, then I got a telegram saying he, my late husband, had four days leave & I must decide whether the wedding took place next day or we waited for a longer leave. He didn't know the decision until reaching Polperro late evening. What a contrast to the time preparations take now!
3. How do you spend your time now?
Some housework, food preparation, shopping, knitting, reading, church once a week, a little TV & family visits.
4. What does the sea mean to people in Polperro today, and what did it use to mean?
Some people enjoy going down to the harbour or a cliff walk with a view of the sea & some have boats to use for pleasure, or commercially, whereas years ago the harbour would have been more filled with fishing boats which would provide 'livings' for families. A lot of pilchards [a type of fish] being packed into barrels & exported to Italy.
5. Is there anything you would like to reintroduce from the past which you really miss in today's world?
The habit of people attending places of worship which provided guidance - this appears to be lacking now & we see the results.
6. Have you changed the way you dress over the years and, if so, do you like it more now or in the past?
It has become more casual. We used to have complete outfits which comprised hat, suit or coat, dress or blouse in matching or toning colours, with shoes, gloves & handbag. Sometimes now it is untidy & exposing too much flesh.
7. What tricks did you use to keep the dairy produce fresh for a long time?
Apart from the dairy shop, the dairy was under ground level with a stone floor, & slate shelves. When the churns of milk arrived on a trolley from the cow house, some would go into pans to be sold from there or delivered in the village (sometimes twice daily) in bottles. The surplus would go into pans & was carried down to the dairy for the cream to set on top before being scalded some yards away in the kitchen, back to the dairy to cool, resulting in a crust cream which would be skimmed off & the remaining milk mostly went to the pigs. We had a fridge in the shop for the bowls of cream. People brought their own dishes for 2, 4 or 8 oz. to take home & we posted tins to all parts. Visitors would send it to their friends; printed labels were provided for the address, they were tied on around the tin & had to be at the post office for the morning collection.
8. What is the biggest difference between these days and when you were growing up?
Mainly traffic, travel, communications, use of money & standard of living.
Well I hope we managed to talk about most of the topics you had raised. I found it very interesting and I hope you did too! Being able to see more of my Granny is one of the reasons why I’m happy to be back in England :-)
It’s time for me to be heading off to bed now as I’m absolutely shattered.
Hope to hear from you soon Kiran!
Amy
Last post’s definitions:
To spill the beans - to tell the truth or admit something
Resurgence - an increase in activity or interest
Green movement - a group of people who care about the environment and take action to improve it
To be long gone - to have disappeared a long time ago
To make do - to manage despite not having everything you need
To keep themselves to themselves - to not talk to many people and remain private
The sense of community - the feeling that people care about each other and are willing to help one another
Vocabulary and phrases from today:
To come up with
Née
Without further ado
Flesh
To scald
Shattered
Comments
Hi Amy! I´ve really enjoyed reading the interview with your lovely granny :-). Oh... let me have a go in the vocabulary: To come up with: to suggest or think of an idea; Née: the name that a woman use before she gets married; Without further ado: without wasting time; Flesh: body ( part of the body wich is between skin and bone); To scald: to heat a liquid till it almost boils; Shattered: to be extremelly exausted. Phew! It´s quite late here. I have to go to bed now :-). Good night Amy, Ana Paula.
HI Amy! I was reading the interview you did to your Grandma and let me tell you that this is a very interesting piece of information and I really enjoy history so for me was really great. I think I'm new here I just wanted to say that this is very interesting.
Hi Amy! Wow! It’s such a great pleasure to meet your Granny! I’m really lucky to have a chance to meet such an elderly person who’s seen “The making of History” with her own eyes! Which I’d read on my history book at school. I think you’ve done excellent job. I’ve got almost all answers of those questions I’d asked. And what’s more, one of the question you’ve chosen for this interview was only asked by me :-) I really didn’t expect that. Down to homework:- 1. to suggest or think of an idea or plan. 2. used after a woman's married name to introduce the family name by which she was known before she married. 3. without wasting more time. 4. the human body when considering its physical and sexual needs, rather than the mind or soul. 5. to heat a liquid until it almost boils. 6. extremely tired. Thank you very much for sharing these excellent blogs and pictures continuously! Oh yes, Louie looks so cute as usual :-) My graceful bow to your Granny. With kind regards, Pritam.
Dear Amy! Thank you so much for the interview with your Granny. It was really interesting. What a sweet picture! Your Granny is a nice person and Louie is so cute. Reading the interview and seeing the picture make my day! Thanks! Have a nice weekend! Best wishes,
Congratulations!!!!!! Your granny interview it's being really interesting.
Amy, how very interesting it was to read your blog today, no wonder you feel shattered, you must have done an enormous amount of work to complete your entry. Our heartfelt thanks to your Granny, Mrs Peggy May Lightfoot also. Everything she told was fascinating to read, I was also personally pleased to have reassurance from her that my memories of Polperro were right. I loved walking by the seaside; wind and the smell of fish in the air, rain beating the face. Best wishes to Polperro.
Dear Amy! What a wonderful meet your Granny Peggy May! I remember that lovely family photo you have showed in the past blog.I like your conviction concerning that special connection between you both, e.g. both seem to like go into blue, don´t you? When I was a child about ten I liked to explore my mother warderobe. There were precisely those complete outfits in toning colours with incredibly nice, yet then ´oldfashioned but well made´ shoes, gloves and handbags from times before her marriage. She was a seller in a fabrick shop that time and a skilled sewer. Most of nights she sewed clothes for her three daughters and most of the fashion fads as pants, miniskirts I had the first on, sooner that something such appeared in magazines. Even now without being able to move she order to put on her best clothes and to comb her hair to look well in some good moments. I´ll tell her all I do know about your Granny to remember of those hard but better or nicer times.
Hi Amy, I've just posted my comments in your previous blog too. Hope both of my posts will be appeared. I've enjoyed the answers of your granny. We can feel how she is missing all those beautiful days of her past. I pray God, He will add more years to her life, Ameen. Now, here is my HW: Flesh= The parts of the body. Scalded= To move it to next place(from the context), without further ado = Without further delay, Came up with= to have a good idea, nee= family name of a married woman. Have a nice weekend! Mahjabeen
Hello Amy! What a great picture of people who are divided by two generations, but still are watching in the same direction! What a coincidence! My granny and grandpa are the same ages as your granny. They are still alive even in not good health. I have always been convinced that people who had survived the Second World War are very brave and strong persons. They are highly motivated and even now, when no one expects something from them they have plan for every day. We should definitely take a lesson from them. I enjoyed your post very much. Best wishes!
Hi Amy, I loved your granny. She has such a gentle face. No wonder you feel so close to her. She looks lide the kind of grandma everyone would like to have. I lost mine some years ago. I felt very much connected to her too. I also enjoyed reading her answers to our questions very much. It's always good to hear what older and wiser people have to tell us. The interview was a great idea. Perhaps you can include some others in your blog later on. Send Mrs. Lightfoot my regards and tell her we all loved to know her. Best wishes, Mauricio.
Hello Amy I dont know why, but your granny looks absolutly british. Tell her thanks for the interesting answers. Louie looks very handsome too. Their photo show me also how grandparents and children are natural allies. I wish them many more years of health and happy life. Have a nice weekend.
Hi Amy!, you go fast in your blog, that's good, I'm going slow down, it's very interesting your Granny's interview, I like the history and red with interest about the second world war time. I liked talk a lot with my Granny,I had always a lot of question to her. Sadly She passed away a long time ago. best wishes
Dear Amy, Your granny looks sweet and charming! I love grannies who look like grannies with grey hair,rosy cheeks and a nice freshing smell! And all that things about real grannies that are in our imaginary!Lucky you who still have yours. They are like a live history as we could notice from the rich account given by yours!So much interesting things from the past can be brought up to the surface with the their help! I do have fond memories of all two grannies and granpas! One of them was English from Mersyside (I don´t know if this is how you write it, waht I know it that it´s in Liverpool)he was fond of his gin tonic, another was a great story teller who would entertain me at bedtime, there was one who was a skillfull dressmaker who would make us beautiful dresses and another one who was a great cook and kept us all well-fed. What called my attention in your grannies´ account was the description of the cream production! This rang the bell!My childhhod was spent on a farm and there we also milked the cows, red pool cattle. Part of the milk was used to make butter which was produced from the crust cream skimmed off! There was a special machine to beat it up, in a barn in our garden! Then the butter was weighed and cut into bars of 1/2 kilo to be wrapped up with a special paper and sold in a village nearby called Pontes Gestal! The farm butter was very popular and it used to sell like hot cakes!I remember that once the profit was so good that we managed to travel to England! A trip sponsored by butter and at the time there was not such a thing as inspection stamp on the products! Fond memories! Well, I loved meeting your granny and hearing some of her fond memories! Love, Monica
it s the first time I know about your blog.your interview is interesting.i learn a lot from it.
Hello amy Thanks for sharing with us the interview with your grammy. It's really interesting to read the views of some one experienced. All the best in you coming blogs.
Hi Amy - please,thank your Granny for her interesting answers. Mrs.Peggy and Louie are very loving: Wisdom and Innocence.Have a nice weekend.
Hi Amy, thank you for invaluable answers. These answers remind me of my granny who live far from me. She is so graceful, happy and talkative. Her personality make me enjoy when I drop by her; I love to talk with her whenever I face problem. This opportunity teachs me how to go to the point as well as appling her answer in the reality situation. I am so proud of having her. Bye
Hi Amy Thank you very much for your interesting interwev.I didn't meet my grannies.When I was a child I was a bit envious of my friends who has their grannies. Your granny's replies are very interesting especially comparatives between past and today.Most of old people miss their past in spite of having difficulties in the past. The thing which is missed might be youthfull not that period. Let me have a look in the vocabulary 1.having an idea 2. surname before being married (Most of married women in Turkiye for last ten years are used both of surnames.3.without wasting time 4.the part of body which is soft (in the context) Dresses which is choosen by women don't cover their body. 5.boiling 6.being upset Thank you again. By for now
Oh! Amy, it was fantastic to read all the answers your Granny gave us. She must be a brave woman. Send a big hug to her. Thank you for the blog. Best wishes, Cris
Hi Amy, what an interesting interview you had with your granny. Thank you. I can feel how much you love her.
Hello Amy, At the age of 80, your granny does some house work, food preparation and knitting etc... She does not want to keep herself to herself and makes family visits now and then. It is good to keep her busy. Is someone helping her to do other thing? Your parents must have been helping her as they there in the same place. Some of the aged people do not want the help of their children. They want to live independently. I have come across these kinds of cases in my life. They are very stubborn. As your granny pointed out there is tremendous improvement in communication, transport and infrastructure facilities but how the younger generation follows and practices the principles of the religion. How they respect the elders. How about your marriage? How long the preparation was going on? What a contrast.
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