Bradford Lad: Trends And Relations
Mike Coatesworth learns a lesson in friendship from his Aunt Chrissie.
When I was a lad I went with my Aunt Chrissie and my brother to the shops when the sales were on. My aunt always took advantage of the sales to buy new clothes and shoes.
As we went from shop to shop I saw lots of clothes that I would have liked to buy and wear. But Aunt Chrissie was a practical person. She wanted good quality for the money she spent. She always gave my brother and I a shilling as a reward for being on our best behaviour, telling us we could buy something that we really liked.
My brother would dive into a newsagent's to buy a comic and sweets. I placed my shilling in my pocket.
When my aunt asked why I wasn't spending the money I told her that I was saving up to buy a pair of bumpers, the equivalent of a pair of today's high-class trainers.
She asked me what was so special about bumpers that I should want a pair so much. I told her that all my friends had them, that they wore them to play out in instead of ordinary shoes.
While we were waiting for my brother to emerge from a shop a couple of my friends came by, along with some other lads. We chatted for a while. My aunt asked me which of them was wearing bumpers. She wanted to check the quality and practicallity of the footwear.
I told her that not none of the lads I was talking to was wearing bumpers.
‘So do you really want the bumpers because all your friends have them?'' she enquired. "Or do you want them so that you can show off in front of your friends and make them envious?''
I thought long and hard about what my aunt said. I knew exactly what she was getting at. I wanted to go swaggering into school wearing the bumpers, showing off.
I took the shilling from my pocket and bought myself a comic and some sweets.
Once again my aunt was right. It was better to have friends who took me for what I was, rather than acquantances who envied me for what I wore.
My Aunt Chrissie was very wise lady. She knew that anyone can have so-called friends when they are seen to have money to throw around. True friends are more valuable than diamonds.
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