Pat Thistlethwaite in 2012
Pat, The Weaver of Grass, lived a long and interesting life that contained many twists and turns and much joy. For a long time she was an English teacher, rising to become the Head of English in a tough comprehensive school in the city of Wolverhampton.
She was born in the early nineteen thirties in a farming village near Lincoln and finished her days in the Yorkshire Dales where she lived with her second husband, a dairy farmer called David Thistlethwaite who was ten years her junior.
She loved to travel and had lots of interests - including crafts, local history and the creation of poetry. In retirement, nothing pleased her more than to go out to lunch with friends and have a good old chinwag.
These are the main things that I remember about her but I am sure that other bloggers and blog visitors will recall many other things about Pat and the wholesome life she lived.
Currently her blog, "The Weaver of Grass" is no longer live on the internet which is a shame because I for one would have liked to look back through her treasury of posts. They could have been an enduring online monument to her inquisitiveness, her kindness, her commonsense and her affection for other people with all their differences.
Back in August 2017 I called in on Pat at South Dyke Farm near the village of Bellerby in North Yorkshire. Sadly her "farmer" had passed away in February of that year and she was preparing to move into a bungalow in the nearby market town of Leyburn. Unfortunately, she happened to be out for the day when I called but I peered inside her house where I could see cardboard boxes packed and ready to go. I left a can of salmon on her doorstep with a note. She always said she loved salmon.
Below - the semi-detached farmhouse and the drive up to the farm near Bellerby. It had been mothballed when I visited.
Pat embraced blogging with a passion and to me she was a great example of how senior citizens can use the internet to stay connected with the world. You might be alone in a bungalow or an isolated farmhouse but you can still "speak" to the world at large and follow the blogposts of others - even making new friends. In this sense she was probably a trailblazer.
She lived a good life, a happy life, making the most of her time here. She will be remembered with genuine affection by very many bloggers. Farewell to the one and only Pat Thistlethwaite.
Pat at the age of eight
I was sad to hear she died yesterday (Thursday 6th). I spent quite some time earlier this year reading her old blog posts, and was fascinated. The blog appears now to be by invitation only.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the "invitation only" barrier will come down. I hope so.
DeleteApologies - date not quite right.
DeleteThursday October 3rd according to John Gray's post.
DeletePat was the first person to welcome me into this blogging community when I took my initial tentative steps as a fledgling blogger. She was kind and supportive. A true lady.
ReplyDeleteShe went to the end of her life so bravely.
DeleteLovely tribute YP.
ReplyDeleteKind of you to say so Dave.
DeleteThank you so much for this post. I came late to reading The Weaver of Grass, but I'm glad I got to read her for about a year. She seemed like an amazing woman. What I especially liked about her, was that she never lost her curiosity, or her sense of wonder of the world. She gave me hope that growing old did not have to awful.
ReplyDeleteI am thankful that she slipped away without pain, at a very old age. Can we ask for more?
"She gave me hope that growing old did not have to awful"... I entirely get why you said that Pixie.
DeleteThis is so lovely. I enjoyed reading Pat's blog so much. Was glad I had read it all through/kept current. I didn't realize it was going to become by invitation only. Her last post (her "good-bye") I think was also lovely. Very plainly written but beautiful nonetheless. A live well lived indeed.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your input Elle.
DeleteIf she lived a good happy life and left many people who ;loved, liked, or admired her, she was quite a successful person.
ReplyDeleteRIP Pat
It wasn't something she especially strove for, it was just in her.
DeleteThank you for your post. I wanted a little more from Weaver and you filled that need. My mother set me on to Pat several years ago. She admired her determination to get the most out of life even as mobility issues made her world smaller. After my mother passed, reading Pat's blog helped me miss my mother "a little" less.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely connection Melinda.
DeleteA thoughtful and eloquent tribute to Pat. She reminds me to stay interested in 'the world' whatever age I reach.
ReplyDeleteNot giving up and staying interested might well extend many people's lives.
DeleteI echo the thanks of others to you for this heartfelt tribute. I'm one who stumbled across Pat's blog only a year or two ago and how glad I am. We can all pause and think about living our last years so well. I will remember her.
ReplyDeleteShe never felt sorry for herself.
DeletePhotos I’ve never seen before YP , I’m very moved seeing them
ReplyDeleteShe would have hated this post though xx
She was indeed humble.
DeleteIf I'm lucky enough to grow very old, I hope to have a smidgen of Pat's common-sense, courage and good cheer as I approach death. She stayed interested in the world up till the very end and that's one of the things I loved about her. Her blog was a gift.
ReplyDeleteRIP dear Weaver
It's good to have examples, role models, even though we all must follow our own paths.
DeletePat told us that she was finished writing her blog when she became too ill. I received one comment after that and then heard nothing. I knew that she was not going to last very long but had heard nothing about her. Thanks for letting us know that Pat is gone and giving a small eulogy. She was certainly an influence in the blog world.
ReplyDeleteYou seem like her in some ways Red. You also come across as young at heart.
DeleteA lovely tribute - she always had something very interesting to say and she will be missed.
ReplyDeleteSome people seem half asleep but she always seemed awake. Should that be "woke"?
DeleteI only ever read a handful of Pat's posts, I just never seemed to have time for more. I'm a slow reader and even more so now the cataracts are advancing. I'm sorry she has moved on and I won't get the chance to read more.
ReplyDeleteWe can only read a tiny number of all the blogs that are available to us. Sorry to hear about the cataracts Elsie. Will it be possible to get them "done"?
DeleteYes, making an appointment next week, though probably there will be a waiting list.
DeletePat's blog was one I always looked forward to. She wrote about so many things - never shy of a topic that could lead to (sometimes heated) discussions among her readers. More than once she said how much she would enjoy it if we could all sit together in her front room and discuss the matter face to face.
ReplyDeleteShe was an example to me in many ways, showing me how to age with dignity, accept the inevitable and still keep one's sense of humour.
Her sharp wit was a match for many much younger people. She was a good friend, and had good friends in return - people she could rely on for help, and for just popping in for a cup of tea, something she really loved.
She was a great observer of nature, too, and knew a lot about animals, plants and the seasons.
I miss her.
Lovely extra words to add to mine. She seemed to have a soft spot for you Meike. I noticed that,
DeleteThat's a very nice tribute to someone who seems to be very widely admired.
ReplyDeleteUnlike you and me Andrew!
DeleteOh yes, it is sad that her blog isn't live, whatever that means. No longer online? The Wayback Machine seems to have a good record of her Weaver of Grass.
ReplyDeleteThe Wayback Machine? Is it near The Outback Machine?
DeleteI miss her warmth and gentleness. But often as I go through my blog I come across her comments and it reminds me of a beautiful soul. And as a blogger Pat set a high standard.
ReplyDeleteThe two of you seemed to have special bond. I noticed that.
DeleteSuch sad news. I wasn't a regular follower of Pat's blog, but know that she will be very much missed.
ReplyDeleteSuch a lovely lady.
In a troubled, fast-moving world she was an island of serenity.
DeleteI was never a reader of Pat's but I saw her comments here and there. She was well loved and I'm glad her end was peaceful
ReplyDeleteWe cannot be regular readers of every blog that catches our fancy. There's just not enough time.
DeleteThis was such a moving post. From reading all of the comments, I wish I would have stumbled upon her blog. She sounded like such a dear person with a determination to live a good and kind life. As I prepare to fly home for my mother's 90th, your words really resonated with me. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that this valedictory post gave you pause for thought Michael.
DeleteI am a fan of Pat's blog, too. I did send a comment to her son to see if he can open her blog again. I would like to be able to read her words and go back to the years before I found her blog. I understand if he isn't able to, tho. I don't know how Blogger works.
ReplyDeleteShe's a great example for us and I like your tribute about her, Neil.
Another blogger I followed was much younger than Pat when she died in 2015 and her blog is still up on the internet. The blog is titled "The Many Musings of Molly Printemps" but the very last post was by her sister.
DeleteI don't think I ever read Pat's blog but I'm nonetheless sorry to hear she's gone, as I know she was important to many in our blogging community. It's a shame her blog has come down. I hope mine stays up after I go! (I should put words to that effect in my will, though of course Google will have the final say.)
ReplyDeleteSee the comment I wrote above for Ellen D.
DeleteOne of the things about blogging is that we can only follow a small sample of the blogs we come across.
I read Pat's blog for many years. I was also married to a farmer, and I loved reading about her life in North Yorkshire. When she posted her final blog post, I wondered how we would come to know when she did eventually pass away. When her blog was converted to "private/by invitation only", I knew she must have passed away. As a former hospice nurse, it eased my mind to see how she was accepting of the final stage in her life. Her writing was a gift to her readers, and I am so glad that she chose to share her thoughts with us for so many years. Pat died on my birthday, October 3, 2024. Here is her obituary. https://www.darlingtonandstocktontimes.co.uk/memorials/death-notices/death/30637214.pat-thistlethwaite/
ReplyDelete