Yesterday was a strange day weather wise. We had quite a lot of snow from dark overcast skies but at regular intervals it turned to sleet so barely settled. It was cold though and I was glad to be inside. Tom was watching sport in the afternoon so I took myself up into the loft to sort out some toys for Scarlett. Everyone laughed at me when I packed up the toys carefully years ago but I said we would be glad of them one day. We have so many, there are new ones for her all the time, without spending any money and I get so much pleasure knowing that all these toys are having a second lease of life and being recycled. I found a little Easter bag with a rabbit on the side that my Mum gave to my eldest daughter with little Easter gifts in probably thirty years ago. I'm going to clean it up and fill it with new Easter gifts. It will feel as if it is partly a present from my Mum to Scarlett too.
I keep all these little things as I am always taken back to an exact moment and I love remembering it. There was an incident that happened yesterday, that we really laughed about that reminded me of one of these precious items. In the afternoon, in the middle of one of the heaviest snowstorms, youngest daughter came downstairs and exclaimed "Can you hear that!" When we listened, we could hear it too, that wonderful sound that I love, the melodic chimes of an ice cream van! After birdsong I think it is one of my favourite sounds in the world. I think this ice cream van driver was being a bit hopeful though, I hope he managed to sell a few ice creams.
When I was a little girl in the 1960s the ice cream van seemed to call all the time. I would listen for the tinkling music of The Teddy Bears Picnic and ask for an ice cream. As soon as I sat down to eat my breakfast I would be asking "What time is the ice cream van coming?" There was an incident that happened in my childhood that has made me remember these old ice cream vans very clearly.
I was three years old, the same age as Scarlett, my Grandparents had come to stay and I was so excited I ran upstairs to get a new toy I wanted to show them. I'm not sure what I fell on, but I just remember the blood everywhere and the worried faces looking down at me. An ambulance was called and I remember sitting in it, wrapped in a blanket looking out at my sister and my grandparents as we drove away. My main worry at the time was my little slippers that had horses on and were covered in blood!
After what seemed like hours of hospital staff, stitches to my forehead and being separated from my Mum, who wasn't allowed in with me, we arrived home in a taxi. Then the final trauma was my bloodied slippers being thrown in the fire! I was lying in the dining room on a little bed they had made up for me and my Dad came home from work. He gave me this little ice cream van and I was so thrilled, all of a sudden the whole day didn't matter. Today it is on a shelf in our living room and I still smile when I look at it. I almost remember the day as a happy memory when I look back all these years later!
We've had more snow over night and my Dad was on the phone at the crack of dawn saying he was going to cancel his doctor's appointment as it wasn't safe going out. The snow is always quite bad where he lives and with less traffic on the road because of lockdown the side roads seem to stay icy longer. So it looks like another day inside for me. I hope everyone has a lovely day staying safe and warm. xx
