This is the tree that my mother (an Irish Australian Catholic) and
my father (an Irish Australian Protestant)
were forced to conduct their romance under. They met in 1946 and lived miles apart. Dad would visit mum but because of the religious difference Mum's dad would not allow them to come into the home for 'courtship" and mum had no real freedom - Dad's people were the same... it was a two way street.
My uncle recently told me about this tree and when I was home for a family funeral I found the tree right outside mum's old childhood home. It was something to consider the pair of them, both younger now than my own girls - all those years ago... sitting under this tree, earning to trust and love.
And not far from mum's house is the hall they were allowed to meet in when dances were held - here is that hall at Upper Rouchel near Aberdeen NSW Australia... the very same hall as was...
This is the view from mum's childhood home - so pleased to be able to locate the exact spot - it is a truly beautiful part of Australia
Here is the entrance to mum's old home - its all prettified these days was just an old house with no paint then during depression years - but strange to think my mum would have turned her feet down this very lane to home...
7 comments:
That's truely glorious!!!
My sister-in-law's mother had a tree planted when she was born... she was one of seven children... those seven tall pine trees in a long row still stand, down at Hartley, NSW. Yay!
Thanks for the great photos, and the lovely story too.
Cyalayta
Mal :)
team gherkin thats okay - its nice to think about our relationship with the natural world - special trees, special places etc we are not that divorced from what our ancestors aspired to...no matter what Rudd and co with their "carbon taxes" try to imtimate...
OH what a beautiful scenery....I can just picture your folks smitten over each other, giving each other slight glances and hidden smiles. The heart sings love whilst others look on disapprovingly all over the same God...how silly! (Not much has changed)
It makes you want to walk along looking for telltale signs of their love for each other like tree carvings, hidden buried love letters....
My folks were depression kids too and were married in 1946 after the war.
Cs - they were smitten till the day dad was killed and now I understand my poor mum so much better - she was 42 with four of us still at home - and theirs was a love relationship - she grieved till the day God called her home - but she got us kids through and mum and I talked and talked till the cows came home about life the universe and everything...alomg with my own kids and Don my mum was always my best friend.
Now THAT sounds like a marvellous story to write about Therese. I also dream of having such a drive way, leading to such a house, and with paddocks to the left and right, and horses and chooks :)
Cazzie - it didn't look like that when Mum lived there - I have a photo of her and her parents at the front of that just before her mum died...I might post it to show the difference
My parents met the night my father returned from WW2 duty.
Her family Roman Catholics and his were active High Orange Protestants of Scottish origin.
Their marriage alienated them from both families.
At that time it was a heinous social crime.
Isn't it stupid.
No better than honour killings or any of that other muck cultists get up to.
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