Turning points in your life - name 5

My background was loving but quite grim really no encouragement at all. I was told to get a job get married have children don’t have ambition. It actually taught me to aim higher than I thought possible.
Divorcing the father of my children
University degree in Politics and other studies
Marrying my husband
Working hard and now enjoying retirement
My grandchildren and life with family and friends

1. Stupidly - giving up my Grammar School place to go to
Drama School.
2. Going to first YCND meeting and then joining Young
Socialists
3, Getting Married
4. Birth of each of my children.
5. Commencing involvement (first as an administrator, later
as coach & tutor/examiner, etc,) in Gymnastics.

Leaving school to go to university, after being at the same school for 12 years. A big change.

Moving south to London to do my second degree, in the swinging sixties. Meeting fascinating people there. That was when I really grew up

Getting married and having my two sons.

My husband dying from cancer at the age of 40, so bringing up the boys on my own.

Children leaving home to go to university, then marrying and providing me with grandchildren. That gives me a feeling of completion..

In 1967, at 17, death of my Mum from cancer. Ghastly, she was only 44.

Meeting DH a year later, marrying at 21 and being able to buy our first home, with our Fathers standing as guarantors to raise the necessary mortgage!

The arrival of our two darling daughters, safe and well.

On retirement of DH, moving from suburban Surrey, 145 miles north, 18 years ago.

The arrival of our 5 DGC, now between 5 and 13, and realising how very fortunate and lucky I have been.

And, as a little bonus, Tim on Classic, has jut played our wedding march this morning, Widor’ s Toccata, such a happy day 51 years ago this month!

Leaving home at 18.
Getting married and moving to Scotland.
Moving to London.
Having first child and immediately moving to Holland.
Moving back to UK after 18 years.

Age 17; meeting my soulmate

realising that I really was not cut out to be a nurse, despite having pursued that childhood ambition to SRN qualification

realising that my children would have school holidays! I retrained as a teacher so I would be around to enjoy them with them

moving house' each time opened up a new vista

in retirement - volunteering

Meeting my husband who taught me so much about living without chaos.
Having my children; every one of them has taught me so much.
Losing my baby girl at 20 weeks; if we could get through that together, we could get through anything.
Nearly dying on 2 separate occasions, it makes you appreciate the life you have.
Looking after a dementia patient until their death. Shoot me if I get into that state.

Becoming a Christian in my late teens.
We had a piano so l had lessons and loved it, also learned recorder but fancied learning the flute at school as well. There was not one available to borrow so l had the choice between a violin and cello. I chose the violin and it became apparent very quickly that it was my instrument just as much as the piano. As a footnote, my daughter is a flautist and I have never been able to produce a note on the flute!
Getting a music degree.
Getting married.
Having three children.
The oldest child being autistic and entering a completely different world including special schools. His special school was one of my jobs for many years and l have taught music to several children and adults with special needs.
Knowing when it was time to stop peripatetic teaching in schools.
Deciding (recently) that it was time to cut down on the number of music pupils in order to ease into semi-retirement.
Getting hearing aids.

As a child from a very poor family passing my 11 plus and going to a very good grammar school.
Going to Cornwall for a holiday and being asked by a girl working there if we would let her friend stay in our caravan. Through her I met my future husband: strangely enough they posted a photo of themselves on Facebook today which made me think what a turning point in my life that was.
Hitching a lift in Cornwall a few months later and being picked up by a man in a Bentley who said ‘ I’ve just bought a Manor House: would you like a flat there for £4 a week’.
Packing in my local government job and moving to Cornwall.
Meeting my future husband there.
Everything else in my life just stemmed from those events.

Moving from Wales to England age 10
Going to art school. Age 16
Married age 21
Two children.
Move back to Wales

Getting married It also meant moving to a different part of the country.

Having my 3 lovely daughters

Losing my wonderful Mum before she had a chance to see her Grandchildren grow up.

Realising that I didn’t have to believe in ‘God’.

Working on a hospital ward as a health care assistant and later in a school as teaching support. I certainly saw life from all angles!

Getting Married
Having my wonderful 3 children
My grandson born
Being diagnosed with osteoporosis and coeliac disease
My grandson being seriously ill and autistic.

Marrying
Births of my children.
DH dying at age 51
Births of my grandchildren.
Buying my house on my own.

Marrying DH
Having 3 wonderful children
Finding a job I loved
Grandchildren /great grand children
Being given a terminal health diagnosis.

Marrying the love of my life
Giving birth to my 2 children
Passing my driving test
Getting over a terrible illness
Cuddling my grandchildren when they were born.

1)) When I was finally taken home after being ill-treated by nuns in 1930s from which I still bear the scars
2)) Living through the horrors of the London Blitz after being bombed out twice and machine gunned twice.
3)) Going through the war years after being evacuated.
4)) Meeting my lovely hubby at the age of 15 in 1945 and married to him in 1949.
5)) Having my lovely family and learning how to use a computer 20 years ago when I was 72 and finding many lovely cyber friends from worldwide when I put my WW2 website up.

Marrying a decent man
Having our daughter
Having our granddaughter
Losing my hair to alopecia sent my life in a direction I neither expected nor wanted
Retiring

A dreadful motorcycle accident when I was 18.
My father dying at the age of 48 - I was 25 when he died
The birth of my first child, a daughter
A miscarriage before second child was born
Getting my OU degree twenty years after starting it! (I did other things in between!)

Getting married to a lovely man.

Having our children - MOnica, whilst I think your mother was right to a degree, our own children are very special.

Being estranged from my mother and, consequently, my brothers.

Volunteering

DH Retiring.

Getting married
Having our 2 boys
Getting my degree
Being estranged by youngest son
Moving to a new home to begin a new life following our estrangement

Becoming a Christian (in my 30s)
Marrying
Having children
Health deteriorating
Divorcing

Leaving home in Wales at 18 to live in London - a whole new world full of new experiences
Realising in my 50s that no matter how successful I was or how well I succeeded at whatever I was doing I would never make my mother proud of me - freed me from years of feeling like a failure
Working with people with mental impairments - dementias, brain damage, PTDS - helped me appreciate what I have
Finally understanding that our three grown children were settled and happy in their families and would let me know if they needed me - gave me license to start a new adventure and spend more time away
Lockdown - plenty of time to think and rest and plan

Marrying and having 2 great sons
Divorce and new partner
Buying my own house outright
My grandmother dying
Retirement

Having kids
Going to university for the first time in my 30s
Going to university for the third time in my 40s in a different country
Changing career (and countries again) at 50
My other half’s terminal illness diagnosis

Being adopted.
Getting married and having two children
Getting divorced.
Meeting love of my life.
Losing love of my life.