Have told you about the men I have met over my lifetime , but have never told any stories about the women who I respect, and have also given me at times a good laugh and the older ones a story or two of their lives.
One who immediately comes to mind is ”OLD MARGE” who was in her late sixties when I was introduced to her, and lived a good but hard life, always had a smile on her dial, could give as much as she got and became a true great friend indeed to me and my family.
She was one of those who are always there when you needed a hand or advice, and boy oh boy some of the advice would make a sailor blush. One who had reared a big family of her own with little help, her husband being away out bush most of the time, and her home being little more than a shack, no mod cons like today, the old trusty wood stove and kerosene fridge, wood copper the washing board and clothes ringer, run out of kero and the “Koolgardie Safe”took over , 100 plus deg in the shade you just put up with and rainwater was like gold.
They owned a couple of acres on the outskirts of the town back then, with one or two horses and a heap of derelict cars left behind when her sons married and moved away.--- Marge loved that home to her it was a mansion, with a lifetime of memories. As the town grew larger the local council was always finding something to complain about, some thought it an eyesore and should be pulled down.
Her younger sons were around my age and I got to know them, as well as the youngest daughter Tracy who often called in home with her latest boyfriend which Marge kept an eagle eye on.
When her husband died. He had made a will leaving the property 50% to Marge and the rest to be divided amongst the children . She came to our home very distressed telling us that the kids had had a meeting and decided they wanted their share immediately and wanted to sell the property, Tracy being the only dissenter.
Was down my local watering hole a bit later when one of her sons I worked with at the time came in and and we started talking, seems that they were trying to get young Tracy on side so they could sell the property and set mum up in a better home in town , but with Tracy sticking up for mum it was causing big rows in the family.
Marge never mentioned that the kids wanted her to move to a better place to live , she was determined to stay where she was, and I thought at the time it was a bit rough of them wanting their share.
Eventually she came around when Tracy said she was going to marry the boyfriend , put a house as well as a flat on a block that he owned for Madge, but Madge told us afterwards how she missed the place.