1957 in the gardens of Holyrood House, Edinburgh with our mother
Four brothers and I was the third. Now there are only two of us. Paul was born in 1947, less than two years after World War II ended. Robin arrived in 1951 and I came along in the autumn of 1953. Simon was born in 1956.
1958 in the schoolyard in East Yorkshire
We had safe and happy childhoods in our village. We lived next door to the village school where our father was the headmaster. Our parents were involved in numerous aspects of village life. Mum formed the first Women's Institute and Dad led the campaign to establish village playing fields. He was also a church warden and the poll clerk on election days.
1960 - Half way up The Eiffel Tower in Paris
In spite of our common upbringing, the four brothers developed differently. Paul was drawn to science and music. From an early age, Robin showed a gift for working with engines and all things mechanical. I showed strength with words, geography, singing and rugby. Simon was a good footballer and a skilful guitarist but he didn't apply himself at secondary school and his underachievement affected the following fifty years of his life.
It was good to grow up with my four brothers though I have often wished that I had also had a sister. Having sisters must surely help boys to better understand how girls might experience the world. It would also help those boys to be better prepared for romance or simply for developing solid friendships with members of the so-called "opposite sex".
1967 - In the schoolyard with our Sprite Alpine caravan and Robin's Lambretta scooter
A nice tribute to brothers and growing up.
ReplyDeleteIt seems so long ago now.
DeleteYou look like you were a cheeky youngster. I guess you never outgrew that characteristic.
ReplyDeleteI still wear shorts, have almost permanent scabs on my knees and like to have the crusts cut off my sandwiches. I also cry if I get shampoo in my eyes.
DeleteGreat photos of the four of you and I like your musings on the varied talents of the siblings. I grew up with three brothers, then had two daughters. I never understood the girl drama very well, not having experienced that. Now my older daughter has two sons and she struggles at understanding the toddler boy mind. She was into dance, literature and art--not construction equipment and dinosaurs. But she's learning.
ReplyDeleteHow strange that the dice rolled differently in your family.
DeleteA good looking lively family of boys. there are 4 boys in my family as well. We'll never know what it would have ben like to have a sister's influence.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we wouldn't have been such brutes!
DeleteYou look too big for that tricycle, you needed a bigger bike. I rarely look at older family photos these days.
ReplyDeleteI rarely look at old family photos either.
DeleteIt is good for children to have siblings. Even better if there are boys and girls together. My sister and I were born only 14 months apart, went to the same schools and had an almost perfectly congruent set of friends. And yet we were (and still are) very different from each other. Anything to do with words and language has always been my forte. My sister has always been much quieter than I, never looking for attention the way I did (and sometimes still do).
ReplyDeleteThe bunch of four in the Pudding Senior household must have been very lively at times. In the last picture, the one of you standing to the far left looks like a very young Rowan Atkinson.
I can always make you out in pictures, you have not changed much!
No I have not changed much. I still like playing football with the other lads and having caterpillar races up the window. It's funny how siblings can be so different isn't it?
DeleteLovely photographs YP, It looks a happy childhood. Janx
ReplyDeleteWe were very fortunate.
DeleteFour was quite a large family then. Were there four of you because your parents wanted a girl? A family near here had 7 girls before a boy came along. Maybe if if one of your elder siblings had been a girl you would not be here. We you a disappointment?
ReplyDeleteNo - I was not a disappointment all. I was cherished and loved. But once my mother told me that Simon - my younger brother - was a mistake.
DeleteGreat family history, I have two brothers and a sister.
ReplyDeleteYou are lucky to have had a sister Mr Penguin.
DeleteNice photos and memories this morning, Neil.
ReplyDeleteIt seems so long ago and yet just yesterday.
DeletePhotos capture the now of that time. I don't like looking at old family photographs. Life is so short.
ReplyDeleteIs life too short for remembering?
DeleteYour mother had a pack of boys! She must have been quite the woman.
ReplyDeleteShe really was. Raised in poverty before WWII she found herself in India after enrolling with the women's branch of The Royal Air Force. She insisted upon her equality and no one would dare refuse her it. As well as her four boys she had a stillborn girl. She could sing and she could dance and she was skilled in various handicrafts.
DeleteThank you for sharing your family photos. I always enjoy a peek into the pasts of others.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if boys struggle more with the opposite sex if they haven't had the benefit of a sister education. It's an interesting question.
I think I know the answer. A sister would have also brought her girl friends home.
DeleteHow nice to hear about your family and see photos of you all together.
ReplyDeleteWe had four in my family - 2 boys and 2 girls. Oldest boy, Marty, was smart. Then me - I was funny. Peggy was musical and baby boy, Red, was everyone's sweetheart. My siblings and I all live in the same city.
I had 4 boys and then 1 girl. When she was little, she would carry a little purse but it would be filled with GI Joes and Hot Wheel cars!
It must be great to have siblings - I'm an only child and wish I had a brother or sister. Because of that, like you, I was nervous how to approach the opposite sex when I was younger. They might as well have been from Mars. It reminded me of this funny video. I love this comedian - I think it's his accent, but he is hilarious, if you get time to watch some of the others.
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/Sd4bSJJu7hc
I had one of each. They were born two years apart but I was not born until almost ten years later so they had left home for university when I was still at primary school. That said we became closer in adulthood and still are.
ReplyDeleteAs an "only" child, it's interesting to hear about families with more than one child. All my cousins were only children too, as was my husband. We're not a prolific generation either - only three of seven cousins had children.
ReplyDeleteI had just one brother, 7 years older than me. Growing up in a small town had many advantages. We were quite close when I was a wee one but once he got to high school age he found many reasons to ignore his "kid brother". But there were many youngsters of about my age that I grew up with, played with and occasionally fought with. It wasn't an ideal childhood but it was far better than many had.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely picture, you and your beautiful family, hope it's ok and not let, have a good day
ReplyDeleteGreat photos! Your mother must have had her hands full!
ReplyDelete