"Gordon H" wrote in message
...
In message , Christina Websell
writes

There is nothing but big spiders that freak me out. I blame in on my
grandfather.
When I was very small I used to accompany him everywhere when he did his
gardening. I'm sure he got fed up with it and one day when I was in the
greenhouse with him, he said to me "you see that little boiler over there?
(it was a rusty unused little stove in the greenhouse) Me: "Yes" Him
in
an evil voice "well, there is a spider as big as robin in there."
I can't remember whether it was before or after I asked him "what is that
is
that plant?" and he said "mind your own business"
I was a sensitive child and I fled back to the house, crying. My
grandmother marched down the garden to confront him - he got away with
that
one, it was called that, but I never told her about that spider that was
as
big as a robin.
Tina

I can relate to that, but Uncle Bert was kinder, and used to show us round
the garden, telling us the name of the vegetables, and the two white ducks
called Doris and Dorothy.

Some time later, we discovered that my younger sister always referred to
frogs as "Kwolliflowers" for some strange reason.

Uncle Bert burst out laughing when my parents told him, because he sussed
out that when he had been pointing at a cauliflower and saying its name,
little Sis had been looking at a frog alongside it...
--

I love these sort of childhood gardening stories!
Actually my grandfather was usually very kind, I must have got on his nerves
that day with my continual "why?" and "what is that?" and "can I do that?"
when he was pricking out. I'm sure the interest I have in plants and
wildlife is down to him.
I had a much better relationship with him than his own children had,
apparently - they were all afraid of him I found out much later. Probably
because he had to work away during the 30's depression and never got to know
them properly.
My youngest uncle (born in 1939) tells me grandfather was fascinated by me
as I called him "Drandrad", insisted on him helping me with my "nite & tort"
(knife and fork) and showed him love.
He was not a demonstrative man having had quite a harsh Edwardian upbringing
as a gamekeeper,s son when the only function for his own father in the home
was to punish his children.
It's so sad.

Tina