Sunday 1 May 2011

Storytelling Sunday

You know what it's like when you're three and you're on holiday.  You've had an overnight drive from darkest Essex to glorious Cornwall, fighting for prime position on the back seat of a Humber Super Snipe with your sister.  You've got a bucket and spade, and a pack of flags to stick on the top of your sandcastles.  You wake up in the morning and you're wide awake and ready to go.  You're sharing a strange bedroom with your big sister.  She seems to still be asleep.  But is she?  Better check to make sure.
"Gillian" .... "are you awake?" {whispered}
"Gill.I.An.... are you A.W.A.K.E?" {not quite such a whisper}
"Gillian, can we get up now?"  probably shouted and accompanied by a shake of the shoulder.  From a sleeping 11 year old's point of view, it might possibly have become annoying after a while but she was nothing if not a good actress and not so much of an eyelid would flicker.
Hmmm - wonder if Mum and Dad were up?
And so started the holiday ritual of poor old Dad having to get up early every holiday morning to keep the pesky youngest daughter quiet.  We would get dressed quietly, buckle up my sandals, put on my cardi and possibly anorak depending on the weather and walk down to the seafront.  Down the cobbled streets, in time for the newsagent to open and buy a daily paper and walk down to the sand.  My dad would then do his expert weather prediction.  Now, Britain isn't known for it's balmy weather normally, but no matter what the weather was at that time of day, he would find a way to see a sign that at some point in the day, the sun would break through the clouds and we would have fun on the beach. 
'Ah, you see those shapes of clouds there?  That is a sign that probably after lunch, the sun will come out'.  'Look where the tide has brought the sea weed in, that's a sign of good weather later on.' 
' See the white tips to the waves?  A sure sign of a sunny day.'
Now at this tender age, I didn't realise that in the UK you can have every kind of weather at some point during the day so his predictions were normally right, and so Super Dad-Hero status was maintained.
A slow walk back up the hill, stopping to stroke random cats and dogs or admire people's flowers (probably under the instructions to keep me out the holiday cottage as long as possible so everyone could wake up in their own good time) and back in time for breakfast. 
This is how I remember all my young holidays - and how I loved those precious hours of having my dad to myself first thing in the morning, with our secret routines and conversations.
A little while ago I posted a photo of me showing the beach fashions of 1961 in this post , then on Friday another post with a hat theme, so just to complete the set, here's another
Pop over to Sian's for more stories on a Sunday!

25 comments:

Amy said...

We used to do EXACTLY the same thing! Except, I was the big sister being woken up .. nothing like undivided attention from your Dad, however, most of mine I remember around washing the dishes! ;-)

Denise said...

What a lovely story which stirred so many memories for me too- and what a little cherub you look in that photo ! x x

Cheri said...

What a sweet memory and a darling photo.

Heather said...

What lovely memories! I can't remember a thing from my early childhood which is a real shame. How lovely to have that precious time with your Dad xx

Anonymous said...

Love this story Deb and I too was a daddy's girl, loving the times we spent together.

JO SOWERBY said...

aw bless you look so cute. i remember driving my dad to distraction on car journeys. we were good once we got there thought honest,
Jo xxx

Rachel Brett said...

Lovely story Deb and beautifully told, you look such a cutie in that pic :)

Miriam said...

Oh such a lovely picture and a great memory. I remember early morning starts and piling us into the back of the car for the marathon journey to Cornwall or Wales or the longest one, to Anglesey! I am sure it was overnight from deepest Buckinghamshire .. lovely memories.

Jen said...

Wonderful story - I too remember travelling to Cornwall - we alwaydhad to stop off overnight - usually around the Warwick area. And I remember going for the paper with my dad too - happy days. Love your photo such a sweetie. Jx

Anonymous said...

What a sweet memory and adorble photo.

Sian said...

Oh, what a truly evocative story this is! Your introductions always pull me right into your story, you get them so right every time. And I love the image of you and your dad together - I have such fond memories of walks out with my own dad, just the two of us. I love this story.

Thanks for joining in Storytelling Sunday Deb. I always know I'm in for a treat when I see your name on the list.

angelfish said...

What a lovely memory of childhood holidays:)

Maria Ontiveros said...

Thanks for emphasizing the father-daughter bond. It truly is special, isn't it?
Rinda

scrappyjacky said...

What lovely memories,Deb.....and such a gorgeous photo.

Wanda said...

It's wonderful that you have those special superhero memories of your dad. Those will keep you warm and brighten your days in a way nothing and no one else can!

Alison said...

Love that pic, Deb and you have brought back lots of memories of the interminably long car journeys we had to take to get to our holiday destinations, back in the day!
Alison xx

furrypig said...

I have quite an awful memory which is why I really want to scrapbok to help me remember things in the yars to come. I think I will ask my sister about childhood holidays as she has a much better memory! thanks for making me think about it xxx

Becky said...

Great photo Deb and wonderful story! I was lucky, I was the older sister, but my little sister slept in late all the time, so I used to wake up and read in bed - luxury!

alexa said...

Oh, your story, Deb, have left me feeling very moved - what a wonderful dad. You told it so well, it was as if I was eavesdropping...

Jimjams said...

Fab story, wonderfully woven. You obviously had a warm and loving family. TFS

Gem's Crafts said...

What a lovely story :)

Ruth said...

Great story, loved it! My Dad was also a great one for weather forecasting ~ every single morning, when he opened the curtains!

Jennifer Grace said...

Great story. We used to travel to st. ives in cornwall from clacton on sea in essex so I remember those long drives too! Luckily though my brother was always just as keen as me to wake up early, so we'd get up and play until mum and dad dragged themselves out of bed. I remember being very impatient to get to the beach though! x

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

Hi Deb ~ I'm a little late to the party, but I just read your sweet story and wanted to say how much I enjoyed it! What sweet memories you have of being with your dad as a young girl ~ and I'm so happy that you shared them. Your writing is lovely and I loved reading this! Well done! xo

Susanne said...

Oh I could relate to a couple of things in your story. Thanks for sharing.