This and That: Auntie Mary
...Sometimes Auntie Mary would come to stay with us in Huddersfield. She was a very sharp-tongued woman who would not hesitate to speak her mind. Sometimes, she would upset my mother within half an hour of her arrival...
Elsie Eva tells of her Auntie Mary, an enigmatic character.
Auntie Mary was one of only two sisters of my mother's to live to adulthood, although there had been three other sisters, as well as eight brothers.
As children, we visited Liverpool to see our relatives and sometimes Auntie Mary would come to stay with us in Huddersfield. She was a very sharp-tongued woman who would not hesitate to speak her mind. Sometimes, she would upset my mother within half an hour of her arrival.
Auntie Mary had very thick, dark curly hair and I believe that she was something of a beauty in her younger days. My mother did not wear make-up or jewellery and so I welcomed Auntie Mary's visits. When she went out for a walk, or sometimes for a bottle of Guinness in the pub, I took a delight in going for a mooch in her bedroom. There I could have a lovely time inspecting all these delights.
Although Auntie Mary never married, I think that she would have had many offers from admirers, but I should imagine that, in spite of her flamboyant style, she would frighten the men off with her sharp tongue.
At Christmas time and birthdays, when we were young children, there would be a parcel from Auntie Mary. Although she had no children of her own, it was amazing that she always knew what sort of presents to send us and we loved them.
What an enigma Auntie Mary was. I believe that she was good-hearted and generous, but always a strong and forbidding character, and, I suppose, I was always a little afraid of her.
