In life, you don't often come across a complete stranger who leaves a mark on your life which will last a lifetime, fortunately for me, Hilda Wood, or 'Lizzy' as we called her, was one such person.
Liz and Ted were the elderly couple neighbours i had the pleasure to live next to for around 10 years since my emigration to England. Ted was a World War II veteran who was sent to serve Britain in countries such as India, South Africa and France. In 1939, the war broke out and at the tender age of 15, Lizzy started working as a nurse at Chase Farm Hospital and walked the 2 and a half miles to and from her house to the hospital everyday for six years, till the war ended in 1945.
In my eyes, Ted and Liz were a perfect example of a 'British couple'. The kind of Brits that were respected throughout the Commonwealth even during the British Empire. They were a couple with strong values, spoke the English language like it is supposed to be spoken, unlike the slang and street language it has deteriorated to now, innit?
Until Ted passed away, Liz was the quiet one, i had very rarely had a proper conversation with her.
Ted was the main character, always poking his head over the back fence when i'd be fixing cars with my dad and often saying that "British cars were better" and calling me a frog!
Ted was a wonderful character, who obviously was a Playboy in his heyday, i've lost count of the amount of times i heard him make comments about women half his age, it was hilarious! Every time he'd catch me either going out, or coming home late, he would accuse of me going 'courting'.
Following his death, Lizzy was left home alone, as all her kids had moved out and had their own families and troubles. In fact, she had an extremely wealthy daughter who lived in Jersey, another who lived in Hastings and a son (who came to visit her the most) who lived in Hitchin.
At the beginning, i started to simply visit her as often as i could, once a day if i had the chance, just to keep her company, as although she was 89 and had trouble walking, i admired her for her strength and strong will, she still managed to cook for herself, wash herself and dress herself until her last breath.
It was at these visits that i started to learn a lot more about her character, and her life story. She worked full time from the age of 15 until she was forced to retire at the age of 81. She brought up her kids wonderfully, giving them everything she had, in fact she often mentioned that the only reason she never got her driving license was because "everytime i saved enough for lessons, the kids needed something so i gave them my savings".
That's the kind of character she was, bubbly, sweet and very determined. She told me stories about how soldiers hurt in the hospital would often flirt with her whilst she was nursing them, but she was too polite and innocent to take them seriously.
We grew closer and closer during Ted's final days as he was in hospital for 2 weeks, and i would drive her up to Chase Farm everyday to go visit Ted, she'd always take him the same thing, a bottle of apple Lucozade and his newspaper, without fail. On the odd occasion, she would make him a sandwich, but Ted would always shout at her, "Are you trying to make me fat Liz?!".
On weekends, following Ted's death, she would look forward to our shopping trips to Morrissons, i would take push her in her wheelchair up and down each aisle, she appreciated being out of "the 4 walls" of her living room. We'd always go for lunch at the cafe in the store, where she would always order the same thing, a Kids meal of fish fingers and chips, with peas. She was only 4 foot something, so the kids meal suited her perfectly!
By the time she passed away, we had grown so close that she would call me her son, and i in return considered her as a grandmother to me, as unfortunately i lost my actual grandparents at a very early age. Everytime i park my car outside my house, and see the new tenants in her house, i only imagine what Liz and Ted would think, i mean Ted loved his front lawn and patio, the new tenants have completely destroyed it.
I guess to draw a line under this post, all i really wanted to say is, we should appreciate the good people in our lives, the ones with the good hearts and the ones who leave a mark on us. Lizzy certainly did so with me, she taught me a lot about appreciating the things i have in life instead of complaining about the things i don't have.
So thank you Lizzy, Rest In Peace.
Au revoir!
89 JUNE 6TH 1924
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