I was musing about mothering today. My own late mother wound me up so much in my teens and twenties but sadly died before I could appreciate her. So I have anointed my memory of her and turned her into a saint against which I compare my efforts and (of course) fail to make the mark. I frequently wish I could go back to the kids’ younger years with the wisdom, but more importantly, the calmness I have now. Just hope I’m around to make it up to mine by being a fabulous granny! Lovely post xx
You know I think you're an amazing mum, and I'm so sorry your mum isn't around to tell you that too. I love the idea of you being a fabulous granny, turning up with a stack of books and soup and cakes––the dream! Thanks for reading Renie, I always appreciate it––I never take it for granted that anyone takes the time to xx
Thanks for this Claire, what a lovely idea for Mothers Day. Even though I'm reading this past the date it very much resonated with me. Mothers and different styles of mothering have been featuring a lot in books I've read recently, maybe because I've been choosing to read only women, I don't know? Always raises interesting questions for me. Reading Man At The Helm this week has made me reflect on how different parenting was in the 70's when I was a child. The three children in the novel are left to their own devices a lot of the time which was really how it was then. Your parents would go to the pub and leave you outside with a lemonade and a bag of crisps. In the holidays you'd go out and play all day and you only came back home for your tea. They wouldn't have any idea where we were and we didn't have any phones either! 🤣 Unbelievable really when I think how I brought my children up, ferried them around everywhere, knew their every movement, they were the centre of my existence! Still are .. much to their annoyance probably. 🤣They are 23 and 25...
Wonderful post, Claire! I found my copy of Mothering Sunday in a charity shop and have treasured it ever since. It’s such a poignant tale and was beautifully adapted to screen.
A book about mothers that I read many years ago, and has stayed with me, is The Joy Luck Club .. have you read it? Xx
Thanks Kathryn 😘 I think I’ll be returning to both book and film for years to come. And thanks for the recommendation, I’ve never read The Joy Luck Club, but coincidentally spotted an Amy Tan documentary on Netflix last night xx
I saw Mothering Sunday on Netflix and fell in love immediately , so I bought the dvd and the book (both secondhand). I love Graham Swift's writing and Jane is such a wonderful character, and Odessa Young is a stunning young actress. Love your fine write-up of a real favourite book and film :) x
Oh that's made me so happy that you're a fellow Mothering Sunday fan. I think it's one you can go back to over and over––so well-written and then such a rare treat for the film to capture the feel of the book so well. Jane is a great character and I loved that the film got to show us more of her life. It was so sad when she lost Donald too. And I loved all the scenes of her remembering words and phrases and playing around with them. Definitely a real favourite x
Thanks Luisa! And thanks for putting Mother Mother on my radar––it sounds excellent and has great reviews. I hope you get that quiet reading time over the weekend and let me know what you think of it x
I was musing about mothering today. My own late mother wound me up so much in my teens and twenties but sadly died before I could appreciate her. So I have anointed my memory of her and turned her into a saint against which I compare my efforts and (of course) fail to make the mark. I frequently wish I could go back to the kids’ younger years with the wisdom, but more importantly, the calmness I have now. Just hope I’m around to make it up to mine by being a fabulous granny! Lovely post xx
You know I think you're an amazing mum, and I'm so sorry your mum isn't around to tell you that too. I love the idea of you being a fabulous granny, turning up with a stack of books and soup and cakes––the dream! Thanks for reading Renie, I always appreciate it––I never take it for granted that anyone takes the time to xx
Thanks for this Claire, what a lovely idea for Mothers Day. Even though I'm reading this past the date it very much resonated with me. Mothers and different styles of mothering have been featuring a lot in books I've read recently, maybe because I've been choosing to read only women, I don't know? Always raises interesting questions for me. Reading Man At The Helm this week has made me reflect on how different parenting was in the 70's when I was a child. The three children in the novel are left to their own devices a lot of the time which was really how it was then. Your parents would go to the pub and leave you outside with a lemonade and a bag of crisps. In the holidays you'd go out and play all day and you only came back home for your tea. They wouldn't have any idea where we were and we didn't have any phones either! 🤣 Unbelievable really when I think how I brought my children up, ferried them around everywhere, knew their every movement, they were the centre of my existence! Still are .. much to their annoyance probably. 🤣They are 23 and 25...
God, yes! I remember the Mum in Man at the Helm 😬 I remember crisps and lemonade outside the pub too ... brought out on a Castlemaine XXXX tin tray! 😂
Wonderful post, Claire! I found my copy of Mothering Sunday in a charity shop and have treasured it ever since. It’s such a poignant tale and was beautifully adapted to screen.
A book about mothers that I read many years ago, and has stayed with me, is The Joy Luck Club .. have you read it? Xx
Thanks Kathryn 😘 I think I’ll be returning to both book and film for years to come. And thanks for the recommendation, I’ve never read The Joy Luck Club, but coincidentally spotted an Amy Tan documentary on Netflix last night xx
I saw Mothering Sunday on Netflix and fell in love immediately , so I bought the dvd and the book (both secondhand). I love Graham Swift's writing and Jane is such a wonderful character, and Odessa Young is a stunning young actress. Love your fine write-up of a real favourite book and film :) x
Oh that's made me so happy that you're a fellow Mothering Sunday fan. I think it's one you can go back to over and over––so well-written and then such a rare treat for the film to capture the feel of the book so well. Jane is a great character and I loved that the film got to show us more of her life. It was so sad when she lost Donald too. And I loved all the scenes of her remembering words and phrases and playing around with them. Definitely a real favourite x
Thanks Luisa! And thanks for putting Mother Mother on my radar––it sounds excellent and has great reviews. I hope you get that quiet reading time over the weekend and let me know what you think of it x