Today is all about my memories of grandma, as I will be attending her funeral.
Me with my grandma on the left, and great grandma on the right
She would have been 101 at the end of this month!
Due to the rift created in the family by my mother, I haven’t seen my grandma in many years. After I learned of my mother’s death, I never renewed contact with grandma as she had dementia and wouldn’t even have recognised me. I thought it might be upsetting for her; and for me! I didn’t hold anything against her; it was just the way things were, all of us victims of my mother’s mental illness.
My Memories of Grandma
I’m looking forward to the eulogy today and hearing about my grandmother’s life, perhaps adding some new stories to my own memories of grandma.
So many thoughts stream into my head, full of memories of grandma. Her awesome jam tart (how I wish I had the recipe!), and how she would make roast dinners for our birthdays when we were kids. She made the best chocolate fudge and coconut ice ever, and always wore an apron when she cooked – I’m pretty sure she called it a pinny.
My sister’s 5th birthday, 1974
There was a little step ladder in the pantry to help her reach items up high, as she was barely 5 ft tall! She was also quite cuddly and round – no need to wonder where I got my own apple shape from 😉 . Yet despite all I’ve heard about carrying weight around your middle being bad for your health – she didn’t do too bad, did she, almost making it to 101!
I remember her taking me to Toombul shoppingtown (as it was known back then), and buying me donuts or a bag of Jelly Tots as a treat.
Visits to grandma’s house meant collecting and cracking nuts from her macadamia nut tree, in a vise on grandpa’s tool bench under the house – or else trying to smash them with a hammer out on the driveway. Or, plinking out a tune on the organ (with the headphones in so we didn’t drive everybody else mad). When I was small, Grandma had a jar full of old beads and buttons, and we spent many happy hours stringing them into necklaces. As I grew older, I loved reading all her old copies of women’s magazines – especially the English ones.
We children would squabble over who got to sit in the two luxurious recliners in the lounge. Watching TV there was a real treat too – seeing our favourite shows in COLOUR!
How we loved these recliners!
If we were really lucky, we would be allowed to play in the caravan in the backyard and use it as a cubby house.
My grandma was a gifted seamstress, working fulltime as a dressmaker even after her children were born – unusual for the forties and fifties. She made clothes for us when we were children, and knitted our school jumpers for high school out of soft acrylic instead of scratchy wool. Having lived through the Great Depression, she couldn’t bear to throw anything out, so I remember cupboards jammed full of clothes and shoes from decades past. Sometimes she would make some of them over for us.
Both of my grandparents played lawn bowls, and grandma was even “Madam President” for her club at one stage. I still have vivid memories of grandma wearing her bowls whites.
She wore glasses – at first, the cat’s eye glasses so popular in the 60’s. As I got older, Grandma grew her hair really long and wore it in a bun, sometimes letting us brush and play with it. She never seemed to have enough room on her fingers for all the rings she wore on her heavily-veined hands. These days when I look at my own hands, my veins are starting to look the same …
The caravan and macadamia tree in the background
We used to joke that grandma could talk under concrete (hmm wonder where I got that from!). She liked to doodle while she was on the phone, creating intricate, heavy patterns with a biro – something I also seem to do, quite unconsciously!
And when we were naughty or cheeky, she used to playfully call us “you little houssenchaiser” (I’ve spelt it how it sounded) – I’m told it was a German swear word, along the lines of “you little pooper in your trousers”. I still use that word today when admonishing my kids … perhaps one day they will use it with their children. Memories of grandma will live on!
Farewell grandma, I’m remembering the good times.
Do you have any similar memories of your grandma?
How wonderful. I’d forgotten about the recliners, the organ but the macadamia tree, roast dinners & jam (drool) tarts are strong memories for me. I can never forget their inside staircase (steepest and narrowest staircase ever, or the painting of the Polynesian lady in Grandmas room! love you, your Sis Jus
LOL I’d forgotten about that painting, we used to snicker and giggle over it!
Sorry to hear about your loss. Yesterday was the anniversary of my Grandma’s passing. She also suffered with dementia in her later years but I’m glad fo all the time we had up until then as both my maternal grandparents died well before I was born and my grandfather when I was 2 so she was the only one I ever knew. She was a funny, sassy lady, well-travelled and with it (which made the dementia even crueller). In memory of them both.
And there’s… the home-grown passionfruit and paw paw, sherry for the adults after dinner but also in her famous trifle, an old game of tiddly-winks and the little white dog that my dad owned as child, yes those stairs – with the safety gate at the top and she was so fond of the saying, “pink makes the boys wink”. Quite a hoarder, the garage sale she held when moving from Northgate was an event!
Oh yes, I remember the pawpaw and passionfruit, grandma’s trifle and the game of tiddly-winks!!!
Thanks for sharing your happy memories at the funeral, Janet. Your anecdotes reminded me of all sorts of things I had forgotten. It is interesting that something that sticks in my mind is that she introduced me to crumpets – a trivial little thing but not trivial in the warmth of the memory!
Thanks for stopping by, and all that you have done to help mend the rift in the family! I was so fearful when you first reached out via email several years ago …
I quite enjoyed your memories of your grandmother. I adored both my grandmothers but my mother’s mother was the one with whom I was closest. She has made several appearances on my blog. 🙂 I’m glad you have so many good memories to cherish.
Whilst offering my 3 year old son a snack earlier today it became apparent that Grandma’s language from my childhood is alive and well… He announced can I please have some Custpoop? Which is still what I call Custard!
I recall Grandma Flo’s driving technique of the steering wheel shuffle, mostly the sound due to her numerous rings clinking as she made her manoeuvre.
Cape Gooseberry harvesting/feasting in their backyard. Has anyone seen these berries since?
Visits to Jack the Slashers…. Who?!
Rest in peace, Grandma.
Haha you made me laugh out loud with the custpoop comment! Yes her driving was certainly interesting 🙂 . And if you remember Jack the Slasher, I hate to tell you Al, but you must be middle aged – try my quiz here: https://middleagedmama.com.au/are-you-middle-aged-quiz/. 😉
I didn’t know the answer to all the questions but unfortunately I’m definitely hitting my middle aged straps! Ollie keeps asking: “Are you getting old Dadda?” God love him. ?
Reading about the Nikko pen use at Jacks the Slashers bought the memories flooding back! I seriousiously have scent association with that.
Love you Sis and am happy to have found your blog…. Don’t know about your YouTube puppetry tho? X