Growing up, I saw a lot of my auntie Mavis and Uncle Pat. They lived in the Welsh border town of Oswestry, and we lived in the big city of Manchester. Mavis is my mother’s sister and always lived close to her parents, so as children, we made the seventy-plus mile journey regularly to visit them.
Mavis and Mum were nothing alike in looks, you wouldn’t believe they were sisters at first glance but once you got to know them; the resemblance was clear with their character and actions. They were always close as sisters, and Mavis and Pat would come on holiday with us or we would go with them.
As they got older, Mavis and Mum grew more alike in looks and when Mum was in her sixties and seventies, they were definitely no mistaking them for sisters!
One story about auntie Mavis has always stayed with me, and when I mentioned it, she doesn’t remember it. I was probably under ten, and at her house sitting on the couch watching her ironing clothes. I don’t know how we got onto the subject of honeymoons, but she told me they were for making babies.
I was horrified, but not for the obvious reason. It didn’t occur to me how babies were made, my immature mind hadn’t got that far. No, I was far more terrified of sleeping in the same bed as a strange man!
This thought kept me awake for a long time until eventually, I realised that he wouldn’t be strange, and I wouldn’t always be that child!
In 2012, Auntie Mavis and Uncle Pat came to the wedding of my daughter. It had been two years since my beloved Mum had passed away. Apart from being so conscious of her not being there to celebrate the day, Mavis walked in and she was so like Mum it brought tears to my eyes.
These days, I love being around her because she makes me feel close to Mum. Unfortunately with COVID being around; we haven’t seen them for six months.
Everyone has a favorite aunt, and even though I was lucky enough to have had four, Mavis has been a constant in my life and the one I have felt the closest to.
Not to mention she wrote a book, and reading about her growing up with Mum, makes me love her all the more!
Do you have a favorite aunt?
