What just happened to the last ten years?! "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans” said some scouser!
When I inherited the ‘McCormack Archive’ I didn’t really know what to do with it but soon realised that it belonged to all of us namely Keith, Rob, Anne and myself. So that’s why I created this blog and I think it has been a great success.
But life does happen, and since my last post in 2015, Mum & Dad’s lovely old black & white photos and letters have been sitting in a box for over a decade not seeing the light of day. I want to put that right.
Anne recently asked me for any photos that may give a clue to the location of Joville (the home where Mum was born) as one of her daughters is considering a trip to India. Opening the box for the first time in ten years and seeing a disordered heap of photos and letters, it was clear I was not being a very good custodian of these precious memories. And, more importantly, these precious memories not only belong to the four of us, but also to Rob and Anne’s children and grandchildren, the future generations!
The time has come to organise, to identify, to clarify and classify, scramble in the summer sky… sorry, those are the lyrics to 99 Red Balloons by Nena! I just need to sort everything out and get things in order! I want to scan all of the old black & white photos and letters and create a true archive. This will also involve making sure they are preserved in the best way possible which will include storing them in conservation sleeves. In the meantime, I’ll also sort out the more recent colour photos (post 1970s) and get those sent to both Rob and Anne some time soon.
As I undertake the huge, but enjoyable, task of sorting through all the photos and letters I will post on here anything that grabs me as being interesting or needs clarifying as to who is in the photo or where and when it was taken.
To start with I have just been reading this letter written by Dad to his Mum in 1946. It is September 22nd and Harry and Nancy are now husband and wife and Dad is calling Mum’s Dad, Dad! The following caught my eye when I read the words Nancy and gun in the same sentence!
“We haven’t caught the tiger yet but the other day we had a six foot snake on the steps. Dad and I surrounded it but by the time Nancy brought the gun it had disappeared.”
Mum with a gun!
I’ll leave that thought with you!
Dave.
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| 22nd September 1946 |
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| 22nd September 1946 |
