Mother’s Family After
Mother’s brother John became a Roman Catholic priest. Mary entered the civil service, and followed her father into the Customs House, remaining a spinster all her life. Monica entered the religious life and became a nun. Jimmy, brother James, failed in a vocation in the priesthood. He appears not to have made much of his life. After marriage and failing to have children, he and his wife adopted a boy, but that ended also in failure him causing them no end of trouble.
Caring Family to Us Children
Aunts and uncles on either side of the family were mostly kind to me and my brother and sister when children, obviously understanding how difficult things were at home. This kindness that sustained us, and made a difficult situation better was not provided by aunt Mary who had a very sharp tongue that she retained all her life. Toward mother and us children, she was always critical and demanding. Apart from uncle John, and aunt Monica all aunts and uncles lived in Liverpool for the rest of their lives.
Father and the First World War
Father despite serving in a Liverpool infantry regiment – cannon fodder – was to survive the Great War, but he was incapacitated by German poison gas, captured and became a prisoner of war in Italy. Strangely, this gassing was a blessing because it probably saved his life, preventing his return to the trenches. Eventually with the war’s end he returned to Eileen. On that return he and mother took up married life in Tuebrook in reduced circumstances, and he endeavored to set up his own business as a decorator and painter.
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