Oh Dear isn't she so sweet.

In Her Memory

Did you have a little old lady living in your street, when you were growing up?

When your Mother and the other Mothers in the street stopped to talk with her,
she would touch your hair and face and give you sweeties and remember your name.

In fact she remembered all the children's names in the street.
when you got older and played in the street,she would stand and watch over you,
When you came out to play, you would shout your greeting to her and shout good night when your Mother called you in for the night.

When you were upset she would calm you, wipe your eyes with her wee hankie, that smelled of lavender and had a flower sown into its corner  and send you back to play.

When you had all gone into your homes for the night, she would stay for a while looking up and down the street, both ways,
as if expecting someone? or she was looking for a memory?

Then she would retire into her house closing the door.
She was often invited to tea and cakes and a chat, at our Mothers homes and listened to their stories, and she told hers.
Then she would  returned to her home before school  was out,
to await us children and do what she must have thought as her duty.

So that was the way it went, as the children got older so did she,
as they passed her as teenagers, they had grown out their street, some forgot to say hello, some even forgot her name, most of them didn't notice! when she wasn't there, leaning at her gate!

For one day a hearse arrived to take her away.
There didn't seem to be any of her family there, only a few Mothers from the street,
Then her memory, just seemed to fade away.

But this lady had a life, when she was young, she also played in the street and there was a little old lady there as well!
She went to school and learnt to read and write,
and had boyfriends with good times.
She went on and got married, and had a union with her partner for many a happy years.
She would waited for him to come home from work at night and take his hand in a loving greeting and they would go into their home together.

They raised their children and were very happy.
Her children played in the street, until they also grew out of it, and moved on with there own lives,
Holidays were spent visiting their children and grandchildren, good times.
She stayed in her home with her love until he passed  away!
Can you just imagine her pain? when she realised she would not ever greet her man again.

She had visits from her children over the years,
but they seemed to just stop for whatever reason ?
That's when her leaning on her front gate seemed to start.

Some might say she was a  quaint old relic of days gone bye!
But not me! for me, she was a sweet lady that gave back all the love,
she had received in her life, to us kids who lived in her street.
She was truly, our streets Guardian Angel.

Oh Dear!  Isn't she so sweet that little lady from our street.
I for one will never forget you.

Agman