www.tipperaryhouse.co.uk a story from the heart and beyond THE CHRISTENING

This is a private creative project from Dr. Michael G Millett outside of his main work as a psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, meta physicist and counsellor now based in Grantham in Lincolnshire.
Everything here carries full copyright © by Dr. Michael G Millett, Elevated Therapy ®. All rights reserved. 
May not be used, copied or redistributed by anyone in any manner whatsoever.

Monday August 13th, 1894

Take me "Home"

Didn`t sleep very well last night, it was too humid and was still feeling tired, I was. 

Looking forward to me afternoon off tomorrow, I am.

Wearing me blue dress today.
 
Down back stairs into the kitchen, pulled up the blind and opened the window. Today is going to be a hot one, I`d say.

Put on me dark apron for the dirty jobs over me blue dress.

Got water from the pump in the new bucket. Domestic bliss and glory again, I say !

Kettle on the range and clean the fireplace.

Wasn`t expecting Master James to be up so early. He never said. He just had some bread this morning in the dining room. 

He talked about the new Duke and Duchess of York, Prince George and May`s new baby Prince Edward over in Norfolk, and the baptising of him last month, he did. Master James told me Queen Victoria wanted May as bride for the Duke last year he did, and said Queen Victoria was very fond of her. I didn`t know that !!

Made me think of when Master James was a little babe and the christening in Lincoln at the old St. Swithin's Church near Sheep Square, it did. I was real young then. I was. Fouteeen perhaps.
Same age as Archibald now, it is
But the church fell into neglect and it was taken down, it was. Some people don`t look after things the way they should perhaps. I say folks should never first neglect their family, friends or business, but there`s plenty folk that do and would these days, I say. That`s sad ! But true worship comes from the inside out, it does, and does not depend one wit on externals like buildings, I say.
And Old Master Chapman always said too, it was a greatly proportioned church, he did. He knew about proportions did Old Master Chapman, so he did. 
I think I do too, know about proportions and in different ways. Yes, it was a greatly proportioned church like he said, but true God and worship lives within us, where many and most sometimes would never think to look, and see the real right proportion, which is from the inside out, I say. Deeds are better than words in life any day. But it was grand to be at the full dedication of the new St. Swithin's Church at Broadgate, in `88 it were, with all the Chapman family and me cousin Edna Wennell from up Rotherham way. Aye, but that earlier christening in the old church were a grander day though, yes - it were.

This brought me back to remembering that old Mrs Chapman hand-wrote the response and christening announcements instead of engraving them, she did.
Ooh, and they were inserted in those pretty white envelopes with her visiting-card, they were. People were impressed. Everyone was impressed. I was impressed too, I was.
Oooh, she did have nimble fingers, did old Mrs Chapman, she did. The nimblest in Lincoln. Others thought it too, they did.

The way she tied those white baby ribbons into those tiny neat bows and attached them, were grand, they were.
She`d only see visitors in the afternoon, and always dressed to receive them in her pretty dainty house-gown, she did. I liked that gown. 
I always made sure to have Master James in his clean fresh white robe too, the one his father was christened in before him, she liked that she did, did Mrs. Chapman. Took me ages to get right with the flat-iron. 
I recall, Baby Master James was such a tiny little thing, he could have fitted inside a quart mug, he could. Bless him !
She knew I was thoughtful about things, and I am. We had a rich plum cake that I was allowed to make, a secret recipe from me mam Hannah, ooh I were right proud of that cake when they took every bite.
She was a grand lady was old Mrs Chapman, she were. I miss her, I do.

Baby Master James, got a silver baby`s rattle in a pretty case with red lining in it, and a silver and ivory teething ring from his two godfathers, and his grandfather gave him a shiny gold sovereign. 
What a lucky lad !

Old Master Chapman was always busy receiving the gentlemen paying him their respects after Master James` birth, but they always asked after Mrs Chapman and baby Master James, they did. Nice !
They showed respect, they did. I like respect, I do. I always think that folk cannot take away self-respect if we don`t hand it over like some folk do, and they do ! 
Like the Baxter`s in Dysart Road. But saying that, we are all something, but none of us are everything, mind. None of us are everything, that`s right.
We had loads of flowers and fruits too, we had that day. I remember the nuts were good to eat, and wholesome to digest, they were, but your stomach shouldn`t rule your mind, I always say.

Prepared breakfast for Mrs. Chapman and the boys. Some bacon and cold meat, I did.

Edmund came down from St. Peter`s Hill with the fresh bread in the basket. Victor was late with the milk on the cart as usual, poor man. I don`t like when he comes late.

Went out to buy some meat and fish and visited the greengrocers up Dudley Road near Granville Street, I did. I did`t forget the yeast today, I did last week though. 
Met Mrs. Woodhouse up Swinegate later, I did. Nice lass, she is. She was talking about that Baxter family again over in Dysart Road, no more said, I said. 
Least said soonest mended is the best way to be. A wild goose never laid a tame egg as me mam always said. She said the poor do penance for the follies of their superiors, she was right. 
Me mam, Hannah Wennell was right again, she was. Mrs. Woodhouse howled, she did.

12:00pm – Cold chicken and greens for lunch for young Tim and Archibald. I told them to eat their greens or they`ll get warts, I said. 
Well, they looked at me quite startled, poor mites, it was hard to hold a straight face, it was. Then young Tim started calling me Polly Wolly Doodle again and we all started to sing it along, we did.

 

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well my fairy Fay for I'm off to Lou'siana for to see my Susyanna sing Polly wolly doodle all the day

 

He is a Cheeky Monkey !

Brought Mrs. Chapman`s lunch to her on a tray in her chamber. She was in good spirits today with her shiny face and writing a lot of letters, she was.

6:00pm –Master James gets home from Nottingham and I brought him hot water up to his chamber.

7:00pm –The Skipworths arrived for dinner, they did. Got Molly, our "daily girl" over from College Street to help me earlier and she stayed, she did. She`s a good girl, she is, is our Molly. Bless her. 
The dinner seemed to go well, I`d say. I was pleased with how the roast pork turned out too, I was. They ended up doing charades and riddles in the front parlour, they did.  

10:30pm – Had a quick kitchen supper of bread and cheese and cleaned the boys shoes for tomorrow`s trip to Boston and the new docks, I hope that they will have a good day, I do. 
Had a little read from me book "The Heart of Midlothian" by that nice Mr. Scott, I did, and closed the book at page 39 for sleep.

POLLY`S DIARIES RECIPE ( Guess, it`s not a secret anymore !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! )

ST. SWITHIN`S CHURCH, LINCOLN St. Swithin's Church, Lincoln which was once described as "the finest of Lincoln's modern churches".  Acknowledged to be James Fowler's finest work. The original was ruined by a fire in 1644, rebuilt in stone in 1801 and this building was a replacement to that church and had it`s final dedication in 1888. There is an interesting original `spiritual` altar prior to Christianity there, which was discovered during excavations for the tower, and which is kept on display.

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© by Dr. Michael G Millett, Elevated Therapy ®. All rights reserved. 

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