Holidays at Home Omnibus

by Wait Till Summer; Swingboats On the Sand; Waiting for Yesterday; Day Trippers; Unwise Promises; Street Parties (retail) (epub)

  It was still early and Bleddyn looked down at the beach, where a few people were already settling on the sands, spreading their belongings, building banks of sand, unfolding deck chairs, draping towels around as meagre protection against the unkind wind. They were determined to enjoy their day out whatever the weather.

  On the promenade, Sarah, the gypsy fortune-teller, had set up her tent with its mysterious symbols adorning the sides, her several shawls worn for warmth as well as effect. The beach photographer was prowling around in the hope of an early patron. He wasn’t very hopeful and wouldn’t have been out so early if his landlady hadn’t discouraged him dallying in the warmth of the breakfast room. Her impatient movements had left him in no doubt that he was in the way of important work.

  Two men were spreading out deckchairs for hire, their ticket machines hanging over their shoulders, their eyes — like those of the photographer — looking for a prospective customer. The people working the stalls and rides were decorating their walls with flags, windmills and a few balloons.

  Bleddyn sighed. There were few men to be seen and he thought of his two sons, Taff who had been killed and his other son, Johnny, for whom he feared. This war was a long way from finished and every day the town heard of yet more of its sons being lost for ever. He turned to his brother, trying to shake off melancholy thoughts.

  ‘It’s going to be difficult to find staff again this year,’ he reminded Huw. ‘With Alice sent to the factory, and your Beth running the market café, we’ll have to employ strangers again.’

  ‘Who’d have thought it, eh? With your two boys and my four, we believed we were set up for all the help we needed. But there’s our Lilly as useless as ever, and Ronnie and Beth working in the market. Pity your stepdaughter turned out to be such a wonderful singer, or we might have persuaded her to help. Wonderful voice she’s got, your Shirley.’

  ‘Shirley’s talented all right, but thank goodness for her mother. Hetty has been a godsend.’

  ‘Lucky devil you are, our Bleddyn, a lovely wife and a talented stepdaughter.‘

  ‘Lucky beyond.’ Bleddyn agreed, turning away as his thoughts returned to his dead son. ‘Now, what are we going to do about staff?’

  ‘I’d like to employ young Stanley Love. What d’you think? He came here from London yet you’d think he’d lived in St David’s Well all his life. He loves helping on the stalls and he’s good at it.’

  ‘I know we shouldn’t ask him knowing that if he gives up the shop he’ll be out of work once September comes, but it’s tempting.’

  ‘I think he’ll complain about being too sick to go to work more and more as the summer progresses, and we might as well make it legal!’

  Before the war, with their six children, the Castles had coped well with their various activities, as everyone had helped, with the exception of Lilly, who had never taken to the family firm and found days on the beach utterly boring. With the war causing the departure of their children from the family business, the brothers were faced with the problem of staff every summer. Finding help was difficult. Everything closed down at the end of September and didn’t reopen until the following summer. Most of their summer staff found something permanent at the end of the season and were not available to help after their first year. Now, with Beth running the market café and Ronnie having a market stall too, and Lilly as idle as ever, the situation was worse than last year.

  * * *

  As the month of May brought warmth and longer days, the activities in the seaside town increased and the holiday season expanded in importance to involve the whole town. Small hotels and guest houses offered full board, or room and breakfast only, some families moving out of their bedrooms to sleep in ancient caravans or even their kitchens, to pack more paying visitors into their homes.

  Buses and trains brought excited families: mothers, children and grannies, often plus a couple of dogs and mountains of luggage. The shops searched the warehouses to find items to sell to them, while landladies scurried about trying to find something to fill their plates. Marged saw queues stretching out of sight along the cliff path as customers waited to be served with trays for on the beach, or a sit-down meal in the small café. She knew there were too few family members to cope. Something had to be done.

  To sort out some of the logistical problems, Marged called a family conference. She and Huw ran the café at the beach and the stalls and rides on the sand but it was Bleddyn who dealt with the fish and chip shop and restaurant that was open throughout the year. He was assisted by his wife, Hetty, and, along with Shirley, they came to the meeting called for Sunday evening at Audrey’s house.

  The Castle family business had been started by Marged and Audrey’s grandparents and, until Huw and Bleddyn had insisted, the café and the other businesses had been called Piper’s. When it was pointed out that most of the work was being done by Huw and Bleddyn, both Castles, an argument ensued after which the name had been changed. On occasions such as this first meeting of the new season, Marged sometimes found it difficult to remember that the business belonged to them all. She rustled papers and prepared to open the discussion, but Bleddyn ignored her obvious intention to take the meeting and stood to address them all himself.

  ‘Right, then,‘ he began. ‘No seaside sweet and rock shop this year because of sweet rationing, but everything else the same as last year. Now, any suggestions about what we do with the sweet shop?’

  Audrey had always taken responsibility for the sweet shop and everyone looked at her for her opinion.

  ‘I’d like to take it on full-time instead of me doing what hours I can between all the other chores and having to find someone to do the rest. Now Alice is no longer free, having been called up to work at that factory, it might be difficult to find someone to help out, but I want to work in the shop and only the shop this year.’ Allowing no time for the objections to be raised, she went on quickly, ‘We ended last season selling postcards and small gifts. Shall we try that this year? It’s still possible to get those and visitors are always looking for something to take back as a memento of their holiday.’ Aware of the shock registering on her sister’s face she looked at Huw for support. He nodded approval.

  ‘What d’you mean, work in the shop full-time? How can you? Your job is dealing with the laundry and cooking, as you’ve always done,’ Marged said. ‘Now Alice’s been sent to work in a factory, we have to find someone else. You can’t be spared from what you always do.’

  ‘We can advertise for someone to run the shop for us,’ Huw said. ‘It shouldn’t be too difficult to find someone. Easier than finding people to run the stalls.’

  ‘Of course it’s difficult,’ Marged snapped. ‘It’s bad enough if we all pull our weight, but…’ She glared at Audrey.

  There was the usual groan. Whereas before the war, the whole Castle family was involved, and few outsiders were needed, the prospects for a family run season looked bleak.

  ‘All right,’ continued Marged, ‘if we let the shop out to rent, you’d be able to stay home and do what you’ve always done.’ Marged suggested, ‘Rent instead of sales wouldn’t be too bad.’

  It seemed a fair answer, but to everyone’s surprise the normally compliant Audrey looked adamant. ‘It’s someone else’s turn to do the housekeeping. I want to run the shop. I want to open it at ten every morning and find someone to take over at three so Wilf and I can go out sometimes. I’ve had years of being tied to the house cooking and cleaning, plus filling in at the shop when there was no one else, as well as spending hours every week helping in the beach café for six months of every year. I’ve had enough. It’s time Wilf and I had a bit of freedom.’

  ‘But you’re a Piper,’ Marged said, proudly reminding her of their maiden name.

  ‘Not anymore. I married Wilf Thomas, remember? And I want to spend more time with him. I think I’m owed it.’ The gentle, unassuming Audrey had never once complained and now they stared at her as though she had accused one of them of murder.
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br />   ‘You what?’ Marged said with a glimmer of anger. ‘Are you saying we’ve taken advantage of you all these years?’

  ‘No, not really,’ Audrey replied quietly. ‘Wilf and I haven’t been married very long and we want to enjoy some time together, instead of being tied up with the beach activities all through the summer. Is that unreasonable?’

  Huw and Bleddyn muttered that it was not, but Marged said, ‘Yes, it is! This is a family business and we all have to do what we can.’

  ‘Of course, Marged. And I will run the shop on the promenade. On most days, that is. There will be times when Wilf and I will need a few days off. We’re going to defy the govemment’s request to avoid using transport and travel a little, while we can.’

  ‘There’s nothing wrong, is there?’ Marged looked concerned. ‘You aren’t ill or anything?’

  ‘I’m fine, but I am past fifty and Wilf’s getting to an age where he’ll have to slow down. It’s time we had a bit of freedom. I looked after Mam until she died and Wilf looked after his mother. Now it’s time for us.’

  Bleddyn glanced down at the notes he had made before coming to the meeting and said. ‘Right then,’ — his usual opening remark — ‘if Audrey takes on the shop we’ll need someone for the housekeeping and cooking, plus some lads to help on the beach. Any suggestions?‘ He glanced at Audrey and she gave him a grateful smile.

  ‘We were thinking that young Stanley Love might help some evenings and at weekends; he’s energetic and full of cheeky patter, just what we need.’ Huw suggested. ‘In fact we wondered whether to offer him a full-time job.’

  Marged said very little. She stared at her sister, looking away when Audrey tried to meet her gaze. She was upset and wanted Audrey to know it. After a few more suggestions and a discussion of the few who had applied for work, they moved from Audrey’s front room into the more cosy living room. Wilf was there and the kettle was simmering on the side of the coalfire. He was five feet six inches tall and as round as a barrel, and with a white beard and overlong white hair, his face rosy in the glow from the fire, he looked like Father Christmas, a nickname he was often awarded by the local children. He got up and began to spread out cups and saucers, and uncover the snacks Audrey and he had previously prepared, his bright blue eyes crinkling into a huge smile as he looked at Audrey.

  ‘Everything sorted?’ he asked cheerfully.

  ‘Some might think so,’ Marged sniffed. ‘I don’t know how we’re going to manage now Audrey is refusing to do her share.’

  ‘Refusing to do my share?’ Audrey said, her voice louder than usual. ‘I—’

  ‘What say I try again to talk to the doctor about getting Maude back full-time?’ Bleddyn interrupted, aware of the danger that the disagreement could break into an argument.

  ‘It’s clear that factory work doesn’t suit her and a job out of doors is obviously what she needs. If we count up the days she’s been sick this winter, that might convince them.’

  ‘I’ve tried and they won’t release her from war work to help on the sands; you know that,’ Marged told him.

  ‘Then let’s try again,’ Huw said. ‘This time Bleddyn and I will go. Perhaps they’ll listen to us.’ Marged shrugged making it clear that if she couldn’t persuade them, she didn’t think Huw had any chance at all. Huw pointed to her handbag and said, ‘Letters, Marged?’

  Marged opened her handbag and took out the letters they had received that week. With a son and a nephew plus friends serving in the forces home and overseas, reading letters were treasured moments. Within the family and often among neighbours too, letters were shared, read out for everyone to enjoy. When news was slow coming through, it helped to hear the news of much loved absent friends and family. Even someone else’s news helped to ease away the feelings of dread that the lack of contact brought.

  Marged and Huw had received letters from their son Eynon and Bleddyn’s son, Johnny. The letters were read and the minimal amount of news they contained was dissected. A general discussion on the progress of the war went on for a while. Only Marged and her sister Audrey were silent, animosity darting from one to the other as resentment and defiance battled in the air around them.

  Marged had always been the strong one, dominating her sister and making sure Audrey did what she wanted. Only twice had Audrey surprised her by digging her heels in over something Marged wanted. The first time was two years ago when she had married Wilf Thomas without even telling her. When Lilly did the same thing, ten months later, Marged blamed Audrey for giving her daughter the idea. She was convinced that Lilly wouldn’t have come up with the plan if Audrey hadn’t shown her how. Now this refusal to run the housekeeping side of the Castle business. It was a large, unwieldy business, and with few of the family able to help, and so many restrictions, life was difficult enough without Audrey being uncooperative. It was so unfair.

  Needing someone to blame, she accused Wilf, but not to Audrey’s face; she knew that wouldn’t go down very well. Instead, she complained to Huw and Bleddyn. To her surprise they supported Audrey. Defeated, she sat down to decide on the best way of using the staff they had and work out how many more people they needed.

  Her and Huw’s son, Eynon, and Bleddyn’s Johnny, had always enjoyed the beach. They had been involved since they were small. Eynon’s wife, Alice, would have helped but she had been called up to work in a factory making the instruments of war. Johnny’s wife, Hannah, was a dressmaker with two little girls, so although both daughters-in-law wanted to help, neither was able to do more than an occasional hour or two. Marged wondered how they could keep it all going. And now Audrey was making things worse.

  * * *

  Audrey and Wilf went for a walk the following morning, and without discussion their feet took them to the cemetery. There, against an ivy-clad wall, they stopped and replaced the bedraggled flowers with a fresh posy of bluebells and primroses they had gathered on their way. The tiny grave belonged to their son who had died in November 1910 when he was only ten weeks old.

  ‘Why was I so obedient, Wilf? ‘Audrey asked softly. ‘Why didn’t I defy Mam and Marged and marry you all those years ago? I did what Marged and Mam said I should, even though I knew they were wrong. I put obedience to the family before my love for you.’

  ‘With today’s attitude and the knowledge we have now, it’s impossible to understand how we were then, or why we did what we did. Everything was different. We were young, too young to walk away from the family and take hold of our own life.’

  ‘It was such a waste.’

  ‘Not a complete waste, dear. We’ve had a lifetime of friendship and love. We’re still together and we’ve had a couple of happy years as man and wife with many more to come.’

  ‘It was a terrible time,’ she said trying to pull a piece of ivy away from hiding Bobbie’s name. ‘That was when my mother made me promise never to leave Marged to cope on her own. Foolishly, so wracked with guilt, I gave that promise willingly, hoping that if I did the recriminations would cease.’

  ‘Promises like that should never be taken literally, but at the time we didn’t know that, dear.’ He knelt down and with a pocket knife teased the colonizing ivy and grass from around the grave. ‘Now,’ he said briskly, ‘where shall we go for our first little holiday?’

  They wandered off hand in hand through the peaceful cemetery and planned their future travels, their laughter ringing out occasionally as Wilf made more and more outrageous suggestions. When they went to the beach café for a cup of tea, Audrey’s face was glowing and Wilf’s eyes were bright with laughter in his handsome face, and Marged felt a pinch of envy at the happiness they showed. Guilt made her turn away in case they recognized the unpleasant emotion.

  * * *

  Myrtle had arranged to meet Stanley Love and go for a walk. He had promised to show her where a blackbird was nesting. Myrtle said nothing to her sister: telling her she was going to see Shirley Downs to ask about the concert in which she had performed the previous week.

>   ‘It was a Worker’s Playtime programme and was on the wireless,’ she told Maude. ‘Dying to hear all about it, I am. Imagine, Shirley Downs singing on the wireless. She’ll be famous soon and we’re sort of related. There’s exciting!’

  ‘I’ll come with you, if you like,’ Maude offered and at once Myrtle shook her head.

  ‘No, best you sit and rest. Working in that smelly ol’ factory, what you need is a quiet afternoon listening to the wireless. I’ll make you a cup of tea before I go and I’ll tell you all about it when I get back.’ She dashed out of the room before Maude insisted.

  She went first to Brook Lane to call on Shirley. She was not a natural liar, but had quickly learned that the closer to the truth you stayed, the less chance there was of being caught out. Shirley was there alone, Bleddyn and her mother Hetty were at the beach, manning the helter-skelter since it was Sunday and the chip shop was closed.

  ‘Such a busy family, the Castles.’ Myrtle said as she was invited in. ‘I bet they wake up some mornings unable to remember where they’re supposed to be! Beach cafés, shops, rides and stalls. Wonderful, isn’t it?’

  Shirley had been involved in an accident but with determination and a great deal of help from both family and doctors she was now able to walk short distances unaided.

  ‘If I weren’t so busy I’d like to have helped. It must be fun sharing the pleasures of the beach with the visitors.’

  ‘That’s exactly what it is, sharing the fun. There’s clever you are to realize that. Why don’t you come over sometimes and sit and watch? Marged will find you something to do, mind, she never misses a chance of some help, and will have you buttering bread then scraping it off again like a good ’un. Expert, you’ll be in no time. Come and see us, you’d love it.’

  ‘Perhaps later on. I’m busy with rehearsals this week. I’ve been asked to sing a couple of solos in a concert next week, and I’m going to sing at the school. I’ll show you my new dress, shall I? Not new, of course. It’s second hand, altered to fit by Hannah.’ They admired the midnight blue dress to which the clever Hannah had added sequins and some lace. They sat discussing which of her shoes she should wear. ‘I usually wear sensible strong shoes as I’m afraid of falling with my legs still so weak. But I might be tempted to wear a little heel. What d’you think?’