Six on Saturday – For Joy

Posted byofftheedgegardeningPosted inChez Nous, Six on SaturdayTags:, , , , ,
Aunty Joy

Today is damp and dismal yet again.  According to the Met Office, and they are quite trustworthy, Devon was the wettest county in the UK in March, being the recipients of a generous average of 192.5mm of precipitation.  Yep, a lot, unless you are reading this in the Amazon or monsoon country when I expect you are thinking “moaning minny” and I wouldn’t blame you one iota.

This morning the incoming tide carried the mist with it and then the rain began in earnest.  Oh the wonders of a maritime climate!  It is also, of course, time for our Six on Saturday contributions.  Headmaster Propagator will be expecting our homework, and he is too cute to fall for my feeble excuses anymore.  Therefore, I will not shirk my duties, but you will forgive me if I put a little twist on proceedings.

Yesterday afternoon my Aunty Joy died.  She was a couple of months short of 102 years old and had lived independently up until the last year or so of her life.  Nothing to complain about there, a long and healthy life is a blessing indeed and I am aiming for one myself.  Still, sadness is inevitable, celebration most necessary.  Don’t worry, there will be no gloom here, just beauty and devilment, which is so much more appropriate.  I believe she would have been thrilled to be written about, so this week’s Six on Saturday will be for the wonderful Joy.

It was only recently that I discovered that her real name was in fact Irene.  I was rather shocked.  Had she been a secret agent, was she in a witness protection scheme?  No, her pseudonym was given to by her doting father because she brought him such joy.  My dad called me Gin.  This is true, but not for the reason you are thinking.

My first photo is of course the lady in question aged, I would imagine, about 2 or 3 years old.  She looks like an urchin fallen straight from the pages of Dickens novel.  For those who know me, not unlike yours truly.   Dishevelled, hair in the air, mud on the pinny, looking defiantly into the camera.  And just a little bit faded.

London PrideShe was a London girl, born and bred, and proud of it.  To recognise that, we have Chas and Dave singing ….. not really, I’m not that cruel, here we have Saxifraga x urbium otherwise known as London Pride.

rosemary

Joy was very fond of Italy.  She visited frequently, took Italian lessons and recounted tales of her travels, including walking on the glorious beaches eating gelato.  This conjured up, to the little girl that I was, the most exotic images I could imagine.  Actually, sounds pretty attractive to me now!  This prostrate rosemary represents Italy.  I couldn’t find a picture of an ice cream, they don’t last long enough around here to be photographed.

pelargoniumA couple of years ago I bought her a Pelargonium called Joy.  In Joy’s later years she was quite hard of hearing and had a hate/hate relationship with her hearing aids.  I was never quite sure if she understood that the plant had the same name as herself, or not, as it comes to pass.

Fuchsia macrophyllaDriving was not Joy’s forte, I believe it took her 7 times to pass her test and then it might have been on the proviso that she only drove to the shops and not very often at that.  She drove a natty purple mini, for a while anyway.   For that reason I have included a “mini” purplish fuchsia, Fuchsia macrophylla.

roseOnce, as a wet behind the ears lass from Cornwall, I travelled across London with Joy during the rush hour.  This was Joy’s world and took the pushing, shoving and general chaos all in her stride.  A kind gentleman offered me his seat, much to her astonishment and amusement.  Apparently no one gave up seats to anyone during the rush hour, NO ONE!  I must have looked so terrified, uncomfortable, unqualified, that I melted even the hardest commuter heart.   Joy loved roses, we bought her one for a birthday and she would always report back on how well it was doing.

We will finish with another photo of our star of the day, taken at the end of 2014 with the ceramic poppy she was so proud of.  This was one from the installation at Windsor Castle, a sea of poppies, one for each of the UK fallen in the First World War.  Including Joy’s doting dad.

Shall we celebrate this strong, resilient, funny, kind woman who I was so proud of?  I think it would be wrong not to.

Thanks for keeping us all in order Mr P, could you do something about the weather for next week please.  Pretty please?

 

 

 

42 thoughts on “Six on Saturday – For Joy”

  1. Gill I am so sorry to hear that your aunt has passed away but what a way to remeber her by, one of the lovest and best blogs I have read, joy would of been proud of you

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  10. That’s a terrific piece of writing and a wonderful tribute to the special person Joy was. Sending warm thoughts….

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  11. Gill that was the most wonderful tribute, I am so sorry that Joy has died. You have written so lovingly in her memory.

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  14. Lovely, lovely post, Gill. The old photo is remarkable – you are lucky to have it; and the more recent photo, as well – she is so well turned out.

    I, too, remember seeing photos of the poppy installation at Windsor Castle – really impressive. And, yes, you’ve had a lot of rain – no need to think of yourself as a moaning minny.

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    1. Old photographs are wonderful aren’t they, even more so as there wouldn’t have been many taken, not like us snap happys these days. I could sit for hours looking at them, trying to read the people.

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  15. Your Aunty Joy was obviously a very special person and so deserving of the lovely tribute you’ve written for her, so cleverly intertwined with flowers.
    The amount of rain you’ve received is astounding. I knew our rain was going somewhere!

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  17. A moving tribute that says as much about the bonds in your family as it does about Joy. You all were lucky to’ve had each other, & for those of you left, to be together in your loss.

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  21. What a marvellous person your aunt was – and how fabulous to have lived such a long and healthy life – sounds as though she made the most of it. That was a lovely and well thought out tribute, thanks for sharing when you must be feeling her loss.

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