i'm looking for a catholic to marry. because i want to get married here.


today i had cause to go to st mary of the angels on boulcott st. my thoughts of a wedding venue were unfortunate. because today was maureen's funeral. maureen was a contemporary of my grandparents. they all grew up together in aro valley. holloway road really. back in the late 20s. and early 30s. when my grandmother would walk to the basin reserve and back after dinner because hello: they didn't have gossip girls to watch. and my grandfather was probably an awkward young man. tall and, if the dimentia years are anything to go by, inappropriate. it was a different age.

maureen outlived my grandparents by many years. and would tell me which traits i'd picked up from my ancestors. curly hair mostly. although i'd beg to differ. my grandmother's hair was wavy. not curly. and my grandfather was all about the brylcreem so who'd know. she also used to give me a crisp dollar to buy icecreams for my brother and sister after visits. and hers was the only house i'd accept a glass of milk instead of raro. because it went so well with her date scones. which were quite possibly the best date scones of all time. they probably had lard in them. or crack.

plus she had the best dolls of all time in her bedroom and as a child i would be allowed to look (but not touch) as they lay in their immaculate outfits in their cots ]. and she decorated her home, which she shared with her brother, and before that her father, in photos, cards and crocheted rugs. a powerful design aesthetic.

maureen cared about us because of her dedication to my grandparents. which is how she felt about nearly every family who ever lived nearby. patel's superette got special mention at her funeral. which kind of summed it up for me.

she was heading for ninety. and she had a happy life with her family. so, unlike recent other funerals, it didn't feel tragic. it seemed sad but natural to say goodbye.

so i said goodbye. observed the communion and mouthed the lord's prayer. and went back to work sombre. and a bit cloudy headed. but with a new top (there is a sale at stable if you're feeling like a millonaire or if you're just feeling sad) and thinking of how my high school principal was (shockingly) right. friendships of your adolescence can last a lifetime.