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[Page 68]
would kiss each other. One day they were in the middle of our street standing there just kissing each other. His mother and I saw them as we were watching cross over and no matter whose place they went to Jimmy's or our place and whatever either of us two mothers gave, cake, biscuit, piece of fruit no matter what or who the other would say one for Jimmy or one for Yvonne. They were really sweet the pair of them, but that was truly puppy love.
Well the house was sold and a returned solider bought and he came to see and said "don't worry I am not ready to take over but your rent will have to go up", well that was fine and we could breath again but the rent went up to £3.00 (three pounds) per week. Now we are in 1946 and the children are already another year older and Beryl being 14 leaves school and starts work at the hairdressers and when she was good enough we apprenticed and her indenture papers were all signed up, she was very good and very popular, and my neighbours used to say to me "how do you do it with that family to look after and you never have a hair out of place". Beryl used to do my hair every morning even before she left school and in those days the hair used to be rolled up on top and a roll around the back. But that has all changed now while I write this. I have a very short cut it is straight and very grey.
Merle is still working at the woollen mills in Marrickville. Albert is now 13 and we have trouble with him at EarIwood school as he was such a sick boy when he was younger and he was not a very good speller. He was always getting into trouble with the headmaster, a Mr Saint-Smith who lived in our street. Now Betty was very bright at school and she caught up to Albert in this year. They had had dictation and of course Albert would have mistakes. So the books were collected to be checked and because the books the Master was correcting he said "come out here Wood's, nearly all wrong" and as the Master closed the book he saw that it was not Alberts book at all and all he said was go back to your seat, no apology. So when Betty came home that day she told me that Albert got roused on and it was not his book. So next morning I went to the school with Albert and saw Saint-Smith myself and believe me I had quite a lot to say. He said "he is nothing like his brother, he is younger and he has the answer out before I am finished with the question". So I said "O.K. that's fine, now you just write me a transfer to Campsie school immediately", so he did and poor Albert was not allowed to play sport for punishment. So off Albert and I go to Campsie. It was not far but one had to catch a bus. Well we saw the headmaster and he was so lovely to Albert I will not forget it. When I told him the whole story he said to me look Mrs Wood, it would not do for everyone to be the same as that way we would have no blue collar workers so we will put him in his class and he will not be punished by stopping him from sports. Well my boy went very well at Campsie and they had carpentry there and he loved it and was very good at it and also his football and was a monitor for the class and Campsie was his school after that till he left.
Betty was an early riser and she would get up and bring her shoes with her to be cleaned. She would go to the bathroom and get dressed then do her homework. She was very methodical, always did her homework early morning while her brain was fresh and she is still like that. She is a lot like me in that respect, gets