The CBB :: View topic - Ailie Begins to Grow Up

#1: Ailie Begins to Grow Up Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:13 pm

I really didn't want to have to write this, but my plot bunnies are too insistent.

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It wasn't until we'd all been back at School for a few weeks that a remark that I overheard one of the Mistresses making to another made it really begin to sink in.

I'd had such a brilliant time over the summer that I hadn't bothered to think about it, but when we were having our after-lunch rest, I finally began to consider what had happened.

I knew from various little things that had been written in letters from home that there had been a problem over Sybil's wedding. Josette had let various things slip, including how much she hated her bridesmaid's dress, and how Sybs had been determined to have the wedding day that she wanted. Then there was the fact that Sybs and Hugh were living in London. I'd thought that they were going to be living in Melbourne. When Mummy wrote to tell me that they were getting married, she said that she was glad that she'd be there in Australia to keep an eye on Syb's marriage for the first couple of years. I honestly don't know if that's a normal thing to do.

Then, instead of staying with Aunt Jo for the summer, or going to the Quadrant, I was told that I'd be going to Guernsey for the holidays, and staying with Janice Chester and sharing her room. Kevin and Kester would be coming too, but staying with the Ozannes. Then we found out that Josette was going to be staying with the Lucys and helping to look after us. And Sybs and Hugh came to stay for a week, and we had a lot of fun.

You might think that all that was perfectly normal, but I can see that it wasn't. When I put everything together, it was odd, definitely unusual. I began to realise that something was happening that I hadn't been told about. And when I came to think about it, the silence from Aunt Jo was positively deafening. She hadn't had a single tea party that term, and we hardly saw anything of her in school.

The trouble was, I didn't dare to write to ask my father what was going on, and I didn't know if Sybs or Josette would tell me anything if I wrote to ask them. That's the problem with a spread-out family like ours. My oldest brother, David, he's a medical student, he's more like an uncle than a brother, and I know Kevin and Kester think that as well. And as I'm the youngest girl, no-one ever tells me anything. I suppose they think I'm too young to know, and I often get the feeling that they think I'm too stupid to be able to understand things.

But I was sure that I needed to know what was going on in my family and why I hadn't been told. In some ways, Mrs Lucy was more motherly to me than my own mother ever has been. She certainly spends more time with her children than Mummy ever did with me.

The first thing I need to do in sorting all this out is to write down some of the things about me.

My name is Aline Elizabeth. I'm the fourth child in my family and the third daughter. My father is Sir James Russell, a distinguished TB specialist. My mother is Lady Russell, nee Margaret Daphne Bettany. She founded the original Chalet School in the Austrian Tyrol, she was its headmistress until she married Daddy. I have two younger brothers, twins called Kevin and Kester, they were born whilst we were out in Canada. I was very small then when they were born. Sybil and David didn't come out to Canada with us as they were at school in England. When we came back, I'd almost forgotten them. They were big people, more like grown-ups than my brother and sister, and I felt too shy to get to know them.

I suppose that that's where the family began to split up.

Last edited by Jennie on Sat Nov 26, 2005 9:41 am; edited 4 times in total

#2: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:17 pm

Thanks Jennie. Really glad that you've decided to write another Russell story after all. I think that if EBD hadn't sadly died when she did then we might have seen Ailie and Judy and Janice and co come to the fore, but as it was we don't really see that much of Ailie, so I'm really looking forward to reading more of this. Very Happy

#3: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:48 pm

Yay!! I'm very excited to see a continuation of this. I always think Ailie is rather nice but, as Alison has pointed out, rather overlooked. I've also never really thought about the trip to Canada from the point of view of those who went rather than stayed behind. Thanks very much for this Very Happy

Kathryn

#4: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:56 pm

Thanks, Jennie. It will be good to hear Ailie's story and what she really thought of everything that went on in her family.

#5: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 3:03 pm

How lovely to get another installment of this. It will be fascinating to hear Ailie's view of everything. Hooray for insistent plot bunnies!

#6: Author: LadyGuinevere, Location: Leicester

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 3:32 pm

I'm sure we're all most happy your ploy bunnies are so persistent!

Thanks Jennie... I love the way you've delved into this universe.

#7: Author: Lyanne, Location: Ipswich, England

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 3:56 pm

Thank you for letting us have more, Jennie.

#8: Author: JustJen, Location: Dorval, Quebec

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 4:18 pm

I'm so glad that you're writing more

#9: Author: aitchemelle, Location: West Sussex

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 5:34 pm

YAY thank you Jennie for writing this (and thank you Nagging Bunnies!)

#10: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 8:46 pm

Thank you Jennie - I'm sorry the bunnies are so annoying but it is rather brilliant for us!

#11: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 8:48 pm

I was alone in the nursery because Josette was over four years older than I am, so it was as though I were an only child for an awful long time. I saw more of my nurse than I did of my parents when I was small. Mummy was always busy with something or other and I didn't see Daddy for weeks on end. However, I was always being told that I had to be good because Daddy was an important man, a doctor, and Mummy was the owner of a school.

When my brother and sisters were at home, they didn't play with me, they were too big to be interested in me apart from a few minutes now and then. I did have a bigger cousin, Stephen, but I didn't really see much of him. We were supposed to be friends because we were cousins, but we weren't, not really. My older cousins were all at school.

Sometimes, Aunt Jo used to bring her children to our house and they would come into the nursery, but I didn't like it very much. Margot always wanted to have everything her own way, and kick up a fuss, so it wasn't very nice for any of us. Aunt Jo always used to say that she wanted to see us, but she didn't seem very interested in any of us when she did. I was sometimes allowed to play quietly in the drawing room when she was there having tea with Mummy, but Aunt Jo did most of the talking, and it was mostly about her triplets and what she'd been doing at the school, so I wasn't very interested in what she talked about.

The best time of my life was when we were out in Canada. We went on a ship, and I saw Mummy and Daddy every day. Daddy even took me for walks round the deck, when I wasn't with the other children in the ship's nursery. When we got to Canada, I was too young to go to school, so I spent my days with Mummy, and she started to teach me to read and write. I enjoyed my lessons, but Mummy started to get very fat so they had to stop.

Then one morning, I woke up and Daddy told me that I had two little brothers who had arrived in the night. I didn't know where they had come from. They needed a lot of looking after, so Mummy didn't have much time to spend with me after that.

#12: Author: aitchemelle, Location: West Sussex

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 8:49 pm

Poor Ailie Sad

#13: Author: LadyGuinevere, Location: Leicester

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 8:54 pm

Jennie wrote:

but Mummy started to get very fat so they had to stop.

Inspired!

Thanks Jennie

#14: Author: Ally, Location: Jack Maynard's Dressing Room!!

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 9:05 pm

Poor Ailie, she really was stuck in the middle of her family, with no one to support her. Thanks Jennie

#15: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 9:37 pm

Thanks, Jennie. Ailie was very observant to notice her Mother getting larger when she was little when the rest of the family never seemed to notice!

#16: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 9:48 pm

Lovely to see this Jennie - Ailie's view of her family is really rather sad.

Thanks.

#17: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 10:21 pm

Hooray for Jennie's bunnies! I should think Ailie is one very confused little girl. Poor little thing!

thank you Jennie.

#18: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2005 11:09 pm

Thank you Jennie - this is great!

#19: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2005 12:52 pm

Thanks Jennie

Liz

#20: Author: keren, Location: Israel

Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2005 1:03 pm

I do hope she will write to one of her sisters to hear what happened, or maybe Jossette will take it upon herself to write to her.

#21: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2005 2:18 pm

Thanks Jennie

#22: Author: Sarah_G-G, Location: Sheffield (termtime), ? any other time!

Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2005 6:19 pm

Yay!

A new instalment of the Russel Family Saga, promising to be just as inspired as the last!

#23: Author: Miss Di, Location: Newcastle, NSW

Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2005 1:51 am

Those poor Russell children, they certainly had a dreadful upbringing.

I am glad, however, that you are telling us more!

#24: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 11:48 am

What I do remember of my childhood is being lonely for most of the time. Josette was too old for me and she went to school before I could really remember it, and the twins were too small. besides, being twins, they were sort of bound up in each other, they even had their own sort of language, so they could talk together without anyone else understanding them.

When the others came home, they didn't have much time for me. Sybil was kind to me and often took me for walks, but that was it. I suppose that what made Sybil and David so distant from me was that we went to Canada and they didn't. I've worked it out, I didn't see my brother and sister for nearly eighteen months.

I often heard Mummy and Aunt Jo talking, and Aunt Jo would tell Mummy that she had been a perfect mother to all her children. Mummy would look pleased at that, but what I can't understand is why Sybil couldn't come out to Canada when Aunt Jo and her family came over. That was becouse it would be so good for the triplets' French. Why wouldn't it have been good for Sybil's French?

When Uncle Jack, Aunt Jo and all her family came out to Canada our life was very different. It seemed that Aunt Jo had to be the centre of attention, especially when she had her twins out there. We had to keep quiet in the Nursery in case her babies woke up, and she seemed to dominate our lives. Whenever I saw Daddy he had an odd look on his face, as if he were being very sad about something. But Mummy loved having Aunt Jo and her small children there, so that was that.

I think it's time I put down some of my feelings about Aunt Jo. I don't really like her. I was brought up to think that she was wonderful, the First Chalet School pupil, and still a good Chalet School girl. She used to be over at the school often enough, and inviting girls over for tea. I can tell you, not everyone liked or appreciated those English teas. A lot of the girls weren't fascinated by sitting looking at all those old photos, and listening to Aunt Jo explaining them.

The questions that I really need to think about are:
Why hasn't Aunt Jo ever grown up properly?
Why does she still pretend to be a schoolgirl when she has eleven children?
Why does she claim to be able to be a good mother when everyone knows that Anna and Rosli do all the work?
Why does she think that other women should give up their jobs when they get married, when she hasn't?

I think I need to write some letters to my sisters, and tell them that I need to know what is going on. It's hard, sometimes, being labelled the heedless member of the family. If I'm heedless, it's because no-one has ever really thought I'm of any importance. I'm just the third girl, and here at school, I'm just a naughty Middle.

I wish someone would realise that I'm me, Ailie, not just Madame's youngest daughter.

#25: Author: Amanda M, Location: Wakefield

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:04 pm

Poor Ailie. It must have been hard for her being the middle-ish child of a big family with no-one her age to bond with.

I'm looking forward to reading more of Ailie's story. I hope that she'll get answers to her questions.

Thanks Jennie.

Star Wars

#26: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:14 pm

Thanks Jennie. It's great seeing what the kids really think of Perfect Mrs Maynard!

#27: Author: LadyGuinevere, Location: Leicester

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:31 pm

It's no wonder she's so confused, when everything is so contradictory!

Thanks Jennie

#28: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:02 pm

Thanks for that Jennie. I'm really looking forward to the answers to those questions of Ailie's!

#29: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:06 pm

Poor Ailie! Thanks Jennie

#30: Author: Helen P, Location: Crewe, Cheshire

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 2:07 pm

Quote:

A lot of the girls weren't fascinated by sitting looking at all those old photos, and listening to Aunt Jo explaining them.

I bet they weren't! Very Happy

Thank you for this, Jennie. I'm so glad you're carrying on with the Russell universe!

#31: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 3:45 pm

Thanks, Ailie. I'm sorry she felt so lonely so I'm even more glad she had such good friends in Janice and Judy.

#32: Author: aitchemelle, Location: West Sussex

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 5:07 pm

I just want to give the poor girl a big hug! I hope she gets the answers to her questions! Very Happy

#33: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 5:59 pm

Jennie wrote:

It's hard, sometimes, being labelled the heedless member of the family. If I'm heedless, it's because no-one has ever really thought I'm of any importance. I'm just the third girl, and here at school, I'm just a naughty Middle.

I wish someone would realise that I'm me, Ailie, not just Madame's youngest daughter.

Poor Ailie - it must have been so hard to establish her own identity.

Thanks Jennie

Liz

#34: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:11 pm

Thank Jennie - echoing everyone else in wanting to know more of Ailie's thoughts.

#35: Author: BethC, Location: Worcester, UK

Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2005 11:59 pm

Good to see the Russell universe back, Jennie - thank you! Poor Ailie - we rarely see her as a real person (rather than "Madame's youngest daughter") in the series. Looking forward to more...

#36: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 12:43 pm

If I didn't have Janice and Judy as my friends, I'd be very lonely. I wish I could go to Guernsey again for the Christmas holidays, it must be fun, and I'd be with Janice. But I have to go to the Quadrant.

When I'm there, there will be some of those conversations again, you know, the sort that stop the moment you hove into view. Then one of the grown-ups will ask me a question in a voice that's just full of false jollity and heartiness. I really hate that. I'm almost fifteen now, not five months.

I don't know if my parents ever thought about me when they accepted the invitation to go out to Australia. I know there was a problem about Sybil and Josette, it was so obvious a blind man could have seen it. There were raised voices about promises, and then about careers, then both my sisters walked around for a couple of weeks with red eyes, so it was clear that they'd been crying. But I don't think they gave me a thought. I know lots of girls at school have parents who are away working for years on end, then the parents come back and expect their daughters to be small children still. Why couln't I have gone to Australia and gone to school in Melbourne? I'm sure there must be good schools out there,a nd I could have gone to one of them. But no, it's just easier to dump us like parcels, the way they did with sybil and David when they went out to Canada.

I have another question to ask. How can I be expected to love and respect my parents when I don't even know them? They'll be different when they get back, and I'll be different, far more grown up. They'll have missed two whole years of my growing up, but I bet they'll treat me just the same.

And another thing. The school is always telling us that it it's bringing us up to be strong, independent women, but they also expect instant obedience. How do they go together? There are so many questions about this life of mine. I'm going to find out the answers, I'm sure of that.

I've written to Sybil and to Josette, asking them about things that I want to know. I've pointed out that I'm unhappy because I don't see much of my family, and I don't know what's going on. I wonder if they'll tell me the truth, or if they'll behave like the other grown-ups and say that I'm too young to understand.

#37: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 12:49 pm

I hope Sybil and Josette help her!

Thanks Jennie!

#38: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 1:02 pm

Oh so do I - this is terribly sad. Sad

#39: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 1:11 pm

Poor Ailie - agree with everything she says about the contradictions in the Chalet School ethos. & I hated it when I was 14 or 15 and "grown ups" spoke down to me!

#40: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 5:42 pm

Thanks, Ailie. My piano teacher, who is also a family friend, used to pass on messages to my Mum 'to tell Mummy... ' even when I was about 15! I do get on better with her though since I stopped having piano lessons.

It was interesting to read Ailie's comments about the CS. I had always assumed that she would have preferred to stay at the CS.

#41: Author: LadyGuinevere, Location: Leicester

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:08 pm

Thanks Jennie

#42: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:47 pm

As an only child of older parents, I longed for brothers and sisters, preferably older (might as well wish for the impossible while your about it, hey Rolling Eyes

).

The problem with the scenario EBD was writing was that it was normal for 'professional' families to send their children off to boarding school and leave them with Nanny or some other retainer when they were at home, obviously aping the aristocracy - you've only got to read some of the autobiographies to see that the children were unhappy.

Does this explain the decline of the aristocracy and later the professions? We don't seem to think very highly of a lot of them.

Rant over Wink

Thank you Jennie. In this universe everyone seems to be hard done by one way or another and I really feel sorry for each one in turn and then lose sympathy when I hear the next point of view.

#43: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 7:51 pm

Thank you Jennie - another fascinating angle on the story. Feel very sorry for Allie - being treated like a child, being told nothing is wrong, when you KNOW it is can be so frustrating.

#44: Author: Carolyn P, Location: Lancaster, England

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 9:42 pm

Just caught up with this, thanks Jennie. I suppose while everything was blowing up at home, Ailie was watching from school and feeling very confused. I love her insights into Joey.

#45: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 11:34 pm

Poor Ailie. She always was the forgotten girl of the mbr clan.

#46: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2005 11:10 am

Poor Ailie Sad

I hope Sybil and/or Josette (preferably both) take her seriously and answer her questions.

Thanks Jennie

Liz

#47: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 12:25 pm

Well, I've been very busy. I decided that if I was going to be someone or something, I'd better start doing well in my lessons. I was talking it over one day with Janice and Judy, and it seems that their parents have had a few things to say about their reports, so the three of us have decided to knuckle under and start doing better in our lessons. Imagine if we were the only ones in our families not to be made Prefects. It would definitely be letting the clans down. So, we've reformed. Not that we can win! It seems that this present crop of Prees is looking on us with deep suspicion: they all seem to imagine that we're going to break out in some way and do something dreadful. It's hard being a middle with a reputation.

I wrote to Sybil and Josette, and I've had some answers. I think they must have got together before they wrote to me, because they both said more or less the same thing. They've given me an outline of what happened, and what is going on now. But they've both told me that I'll be getting fuller explanations later when I'm in London.

Apparently they've been doing some phoning and writing. I'm going to stay in London at Sybil's for a few days. The excuse for that is that Josette will need to stay in London to finish her term's work, then she'll be able to escort me to the Quadrant as she'll be there for Christmas too. Of course, that's the sort of thing that Uncle Dick and Auntie Mollie understand. And Sybil is supposed to be sorting out any new uniform that I need and buying me some new clothes for the holidays. Bettanys understand that sort of thing. Janice won't be able to stay with me in London, because she has to get the boat to Guernsey. The sailings at this time of year are often difficult, and her parents don't want her to miss Christmas at home. I suppose that's fair enough, though I'll miss her.

Now I can think about the news from home.

Mummy, it seems, was drinking more than she should before they went to Australia. She started to drink more on the liner going out there, and even more when they started to live in Melbourne. It got so bad that Daddy had to have her put into a clinic so she can't get any more alcohol and she can have some treatment. I don't really know how I feel about that. It seems odd, Mummy was always such a controlled sort of person, and she was always in charge of our lives, so it seems odd that she should let something else take charge of her.

Then, Sybil told me about the problems she had before she got married, including not wanting Aunt Jo and the trips at the wedding. She and Hugh sailed for England on their wedding night so they could escape from Mummy and Daddy. She and Hugh are very happy, and Hugh would like me to go to stay with them for the Easter holidays, that's if Daddy says I can.

Josette told me something about her problems, being expected to give up her degree course at LSE and being dragged out to Australia. That was why she and Sybs went round with red eyes, they'd both been promised their courses, and had to give them up. Josette got engaged, but her fiance wasn't nice to her when he heard about Mummy, so she sent the ring back. Apparently, Daddy has changed and she can actually talk to him now. And she's very happy in London, doing her degree in Economics.

The news that I don't really understand is about David. It seems that he never wanted to be a doctor, but he was brought up to think that he had to learn to be one. That's why he was reading Medicine so he could take over the San. But he really wanted to be an artist. He inherited some money when he was twenty-one and he's bought a house in the South of France and is learning to paint. He's living with a man called Tim, who's finishing his training as a doctor. I'm not sure I understand it, and I'm not sure what I think or feel about it.

But, and I can share this, or some of it, with Janice and Judy. When Aunt Jo found out about Mummy having to go into the clinic, she thought that Daddy had put Mummy in there so he could find another woman. She flew out there and tried to get Mummy out of the clinic. She also tried to interfere in Josette's life, but Daddy wouldn't let her. Then, when Aunt Jo flew home, she found that Anna had had a heart attack and would never be well enough to work again. Rosli, their Nursery maid gave in her notice
to Uncle Jack and went to work for Mrs Graves and Mme. Courvoisier, looking after their children so they can come back to work at the Chalet School. That meant that Aunt Jo has to do everything, but they have help from a laundry and a cleaning firm and an au pair girl. I've finally found out how to spell that! That's why we don't see much of her and she doesn't give tea parties any more. She has enough problems with looking after her children without having to prepare huge teas for schoolgirls. I suppose it's hard for her because she's never had to do all that before, she's always had Anna to do the work and someone to look after the children. It makes you think, doesn't it?

The other news is that Hugh decided that it was silly for Sybil and Josette to have to write to each other if they wanted to meet, so Hugh's had a telephone put into Josette's little flat so they can telephone.

Actually sitting down in quiet times and thinking about all this is making things clearer. I know there are some things that I don't understand, and I won't understand them until I'm much older, but at least I know the outlines now. And the best thing of all is that Sybil and Josette agree that I'm old enough to know about the family's problems.

Still, this will all take a lot of thinking about. I wonder if I'll ever understand why people do as they do?

#48: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 12:38 pm

Poor Ailie - all very confusing but at least people are making her aware of what's going on.

I can see that it would be hard being "a Middle with a reputation" - every time anyone did anything wrong in our year it was assumed that one of a small group of "naughty" kids would be to blame, and the CS seems to be very bad for that!

Upset about Anna but laughing at Jo having to actually do some of her own housework!

#49: Author: LadyGuinevere, Location: Leicester

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 1:53 pm

I think you've caught her tone wonderfully!

Thanks Jennie!

#50: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 2:13 pm

Thanks, Jennie. I'm sorry that Ailie and her friends always get blamed when anything goes wrong at the CS.

#51: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:42 pm

Wonderful, Jennie

Thank you

#52: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 9:21 pm

Poor Ailie, having to try and understand all of that - but she seems to be making a good attempt.

Thanks Jennie.

#53: Author: keren, Location: Israel

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 9:59 pm

Alison H wrote:

Upset about Anna but laughing at Jo having to actually do some of her own housework!

you can actually read that drabble too.
It is on this board, but I cannot remember its name.

#54: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2005 10:21 pm

Thanks Jennie. The tone was a lovely mixture of that statemtnet of fact, mixed with a partial understanding of what's been happening - and she recognises that her comprehension will develop as she matures, even as this puzzles her.

#55: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 2:32 pm

Ailie's being really brave... I'm glad she's finding she can talk to her sisters.

Thanks Jennie

#56: Author: Josie, Location: London

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 11:59 am

Just caught up with this. Thanks Jennie.

#57: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:36 pm

Well, half -term passed as half-term does. We walked our feet off seeing the sights, and eating too many rich meals. It wasn't that we didn't enjoy ourselves, it was that there's never anything new, apart from the place we go to.

The thing is, the world outside school is changing faster than the school does, and we don't seem to be able to keep up. We heard some different sorts of music whilst we were away, and it was lovely, a really catchy rhythm, it made us want to dance, but of course we weren't allowed to. I feel as if I'm living in a time-warp.

I had a letter from Daddy today. He seemed different, more lively and friendly, but all he said about Mummy was that she was still in the clinic, still not well. I think he still thinks I'm too young to be bothered with problems. Well, he's got a shock coming to him. I'm climbing my way up to the the top half of the from lists by working hard. That will be nice. He also said that it was a good idea for me to stay with Sybs for a few days so Josette and I would be able to travel to Devon together. I'm looking forward to that, but not to going to the Quadrant.

What I'm hoping for is that Josette will spend some time with me. Peggy, Bride and Maeve always seem to monopolise her, and I get left out. If Josette and I can get out of the house to go for walks together, we might get to know each other better, and that would be good. I do wish my family wouldn't think that an activity isn't good if it isn't done in a group. There are times when you need to have a serious conversation with someone, and I think that ought to be respected. I hate the way we keep getting dragged into something such as playing Charades when I want to read a book or listen to some music. If you knew my family, you'd think that the world was coming to an end if we didn't always laugh and smile for every minute of the day.

That's the difficult thing. I know I'm supposed to show Uncle Dick and Aunt Mollie that I appreciate their hospitality, but they never seem to realise that anyone can be unhappy over anything but ill-health.

It's not that I don't appreciate them, it's just that I wish they'd all realise that I am growing up and I can think seriously about things. I'm not putting this very well, I suppose it's part of growing up, all these confused feelings. One minute I can be happy as anything, the next I'm feeling sad or confused, and no-one seems to understand that.

I think that the Chalet School mostly teaches us to be good actresses. We have to pretend to be happy all the time, to be involved in things, and the only excuse is bad news about an illness at home. We're told that it's our fault if we're unhappy at school, but what if school just isn't enough? I suppose that what I really want is a proper, happy home life, but I can't see me getting that, not for ages anyway. And if I do get married, how will I know how to have a happy family home if I've never had the experience of growing up in one?

#58: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:12 pm

Quote:

how will I know how to have a happy family home if I've never had the experience of growing up in one

Poor Ailie, that she should feel so miserable. Thank you for this Jennie.

#59: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:46 pm

Thanks, Jennie. I really feel sorry for Ailie being made to live by rules which don't make any sense.

#60: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 3:17 pm

Poor girl - she's growing up, but no one appreciates it.

Thanks Jennie.

#61: Author: Amanda M, Location: Wakefield

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 4:20 pm

It must seem like such a confusing world to Ailie at the moment. I hope she gets the chance to speak to Josette alone.

Thanks Jennie.

Star Wars

#62: Author: keren, Location: Israel

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 7:52 pm

Their life is amazing.
My son is currently in boarding school and even though he comes home on tuesday as well as most weekends, he has a mobile phone and phones me at least twice a day (the calls to my phone from his are free!), if not more (even 4 times sometimes!)

When I was at school, my parents were in the same country, so we could use a phone box, but here, their only contact with their parents is this letter wrtiting, which seems to be only once a week.

#63: Author: Pat, Location: Doncaster

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:08 pm

I went to boarding school in this country 1959-62, and our contact then was the weekkly letter.

#64: Author: Carolyn P, Location: Lancaster, England

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:23 pm

Caught up again Jennie. Glad Ailie is being told at least some of the truth and hope she manages to get some time with Josette. I love her growing insights into her family and school life.

#65: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 10:35 pm

Poor Ailie, she can see the difficulties so very clearly - and how lonely she is even with all those people around her.

#66: Author: Mrs Redboots, Location: London, UK

Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 11:02 pm

keren wrote:

When I was at school, my parents were in the same country, so we could use a phone box, but here, their only contact with their parents is this letter wrtiting, which seems to be only once a week.

Don't forget, Keren, that back in the 1950s and 1960s, even "trunk" calls were very expensive and not made lightly. International calls couldn't be dialled directly and had to be "booked" in advance - they would often take several hours to come through - not something you did just to say "Hello".

When I was at boarding-school in the 1960s, most contact was by letter-writing; you were allowed to telephone and receive telephone calls, but there was only one line for 40-50 girls and the house staff, plus it was still seriously expensive, so calls were brief and in addition to letters, not as well as!

And all outgoing and incoming letters had to be checked - not, thankfully, read (we were spared that!), but the envelopes - to be sure you weren't indulging in correspondence of which your parents might disapprove....

It wasn't until the 1970s, when you started to be able to dial calls to all over the country - and, indeed, the world - that prices started to come down and telephoning became more universal.

#67: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 10:57 am

Thanks Jennie

#68: Author: Elle,

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 11:26 am

How did I miss this?

Thanks Jennie, its fab.

#69: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 1:03 pm

Thank you Jennie. Poor Ailie, growing up all alone and cut off from the world. They never seemed to notice that in the books.

#70: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 7:38 pm

Well, that's the Christmas holidays over and done with! They started well. Sybs and Hugh met me at the station in London and drove me home. I was tired that first night, so all I wanted was some supper and a hot bath, then bed. Why we still have to keep making these long train journeys beats me. It's not so expensive to fly, and it's much quicker. I hate having to try to sleep all night sitting up, I end up by feeling as if I'd been awake for days.

The rest of the holiday wasn't so bad. Sybs took me shopping and bought me the new uniform that I needed, and some new clothes for the holiday. I've grown since September and my clothes won't let down any more. Sybs was really good, she let me choose my clothes, and they're more grown up than anything that I've had before.

Auntie Mollie obviously thought that they were too grown up, judging by the look on her face. She even suggested looking in the trunks in the attic to see if there were any old things of Bride's and Maeve's that would fit me and be 'more suitable'. And she didn't like the jeans and trousers that Sybs had bought for me. In the end, Josette told her that Daddy had asked that I have them, so apart from her face going tight whenever she saw me wearing them, she really couldn't say anything to stop me.

That's what I mean about my family. The oldies all have these fixed ideas about what's right and proper, and they never seem to look beyond the end of their noses and see what's happening in the world. I even heard some comments about it being a pity that Josette had come back to England to read for a degree instead of getting married to John. And there were some comments about Sybs, too. Apparently, because she's married to Hugh, she ought not to be taking a course at the Needlework School, and as for her working with Hugh, helping him to design the places he's doing up, well, she ought to be at home, making a nice, comfortable home for him, and having babies.

I was going to open my mouth and stick up for Sybs, but a look from Josette stopped me. It's no good trying to change their minds, so why waste time and energy arguing with them.

I'm getting ahead of myself. Well, Sybs and Josette told me what had gone on in Australia, and how unhappy they'd both been. I was amazed at what they said, but seeing how they were feeling whilst they were telling me about it, I didn't doubt that every word was true. Still, I understand a lot more now than I ever did before, and knowing about it makes me feel better, not such an outsider. And another thing that made me feel better was that Josette said we'd spend some time together during the holidays, just walking and talking, the two of us.

There were some remarks about that, but Josette said straight out that she'd missed almost two years of me, and she was going to be selfish and have me to herself so we could be proper sisters again. This did the trick. of course, family solidarity must be maintained. I wanted to laugh when she said that, but it wouldn't have been wise to, would it?

So, all in all, the holidays weren't too bad. I lived through them, that's one good thing, and I've got to know my sisters better than I did before. And we heard from Daddy. I can stay for the whole of the Easter holidays with Sybs and Hugh, so I'll be in London for almost a month. What Hugh does for a living sounds interesting, so I'm hoping to persuade him to take me into his office so I can see what goes on there. I'd rather be a secretary than than stay at home and help out with the Red Cross and the WI, but that's all in the future.

I'm happier now, and I think I'm starting to grow up a bit. It's jsut getting the rest of the family to acknowledge it and treat me accordingly. Well, that might come.

#71: Author: Carolyn P, Location: Lancaster, England

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 9:22 pm

Glad she got her time with her sisters, and love her new clothes.

#72: Author: Pat, Location: Doncaster

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 9:26 pm

Proper clothes for her age too!

#73: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 9:27 pm

Thanks, Jennie. I'm glad that she got to spend so much time with her sisters.

#74: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 10:10 pm

Nice to see that Jem is allowing her to grow up - surprised at Mollie though - she always struck me as the most modern of them all.

Thanks Jennie.

#75: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 4:30 am

Thanks for that Jennie. I'm so glad Sybil and Josette were nice to Ailie. I hope she will feel happier about her family now that she has spent some time with them.

#76: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 9:40 am

Here I am, back at school. Another term of hard work and effort, but with any luck, we'll get in quite a lot of skiing. I stayed at Syb's house for a couple of nights before we all got on the train, and so did Janice because of her ferry sailings.

Hugh was really nice to us, he was full of laughter and jokes when he was home in the evenings. And he gave us some extra pocket money before we left. He was absolutely amazed at the amount we're expected to manage on considering Switzerland is such an expensive country.

My report was better last term, I had a nice letter from daddy telling me to keep it up. Janice and Judy also got better reports, so their parents were pleased. We'll be taking 'O' Levels next year, and then perhaps they'll let me leave school to do a secretarial course. I know I'll never get into university, I'm not clever like Josette is, and I'd like to earn my own living. Of course, the danger there is that Uncle Dick is talking about needing a secretary to deal with all the correspondence for the Quadrant. I don't want to work there, it would mean living there and being expected to join in all the family activities. No, definitely not for me.

I think I have a problem family, it's just that most of them don't realise that there is a problem. It's perfectly acceptable for their sons to have decent careers, and the girls are expected to start to train to do something, but the moment there's a sniff of a marriage on the horizon, the girls are expected to give up their ambitions to marry and have babies. Just look at Julie Lucy. She was training to be a barrister, then she got married to a Housemaster at a public school. She has two children, but she spends a lot of her time working for the school, and she's not paid for it. I think that's unfair. Why should the school think that she ought to do all that work for nothing. Oh, apparently they keep telling her how much they value her contribution, but that's just words. I thnk that what they really mean is that they'd have to pay someone else to do it if she weren't there. The worst of it is, from what Janice has said, is that Julie isn't very happy, she's tired all the time, and has to put her children second to the school.

What really amazes me about families is that they can seem so happy on the surface, but underneath it all, everyone is miserable. In our family, it's a crime to be unhappy, or rather to let people know that you're unhappy. We all have to keep up appearances.

I don't know what good that does, but I'm fed up with it. I think I've done quite a lot of growing up just recently, since July, anyway. I know what I want to do, I know what training I want, and I'm going to go for it. If my family don't like it, that's their problem.

One thing that I've thought through is this. Yes, I'm the youngest daughter of a family, yes, I've been to lots of places in Switzerland. yes, I've been to a respected international boarding school, but what is the real truth? I've been sheltered from life, I simply don't know how most peolpe spend their time or earn their livings. I don't know anything about real life, I've been sheltered from it.

So, I'm going to work for my own way out of this situation, and see what I can do to be more independent, try to make my own way, and stand on my own feet.

Well, if it's up to me, I'd better get down to work, to make sure that I can have the future I want, not one that's dictated to me.

Last edited by Jennie on Sat Nov 26, 2005 12:35 pm; edited 2 times in total

#77: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 10:34 am

Wishing Ailie all the best for her chosen career - I hope she gets what she wants from life!
Thank you, Jennie, this has been excellent.

#78: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 10:36 am

Good for Ailie - bet she upsets a few people though!

Thanks Jennie.

#79: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent, England

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 12:27 pm

Thanks, Jennie. I hope she won't be forced to work for her Uncle Dick - that wouldn't be fair to her.

#80: Author: Rosy, Location: Gloucestershire-London-Aberystwyth

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 1:01 pm

Ah Ailie. She has much potential. Thankyou Jennie!

#81: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 5:27 pm

Thanks for the flowers. There may be more from Ailie at a much later date, but for the moment, that is the end of the Russell universe.

I did think about trying to do something about Kevin and Kester, but there is so little about them in the books that the idea ground to a halt after two minutes.

#82: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 5:36 pm

How sad that it's all come to an end, as I have enjoyed the stories very much. Thank you, Jennie.

#83: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 6:15 pm

Thanks Jennie.

#84: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 1:14 am

Fascinating Jennie.
I loved her analysis of the family problems - and the mention of poor Julie!

#85: Author: keren, Location: Israel

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 8:24 am

Mrs Redboots wrote:

keren wrote:

When I was at school, my parents were in the same country, so we could use a phone box, but here, their only contact with their parents is this letter wrtiting, which seems to be only once a week.

Don't forget, Keren, that back in the 1950s and 1960s, even "trunk" calls were very expensive and not made lightly.
When I was at boarding-school in the 1960s, most contact was by letter-writing; you were allowed to telephone and receive telephone calls, but there was only one line for 40-50 girls and the house staff, plus it was still seriously expensive, so calls were brief and in addition to letters, not as well as!

It wasn't until the 1970s, when you started to be able to dial calls to all over the country - and, indeed, the world - that prices started to come down and telephoning became more universal.

quite,
in 1983, I was in boarding school for 5 months in a differetn country from my parents.
I don't think that I spoke to them at all during that period of time, but wrote plenty of letters.

There have been tremendous changes in everything to do with phone calls since even when i was little.
When we first moved to Israel about 20 yrs ago, it took at least a year to get your own phone line!

#86: Author: MaryR, Location: Sale Cheshire

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 9:08 am

Thank you, Jennie. I have just read all of Ailie's story in one fell swoop - delightful to see her growing up and away from her family, ready to stand on her own two feet.

#87: Author: Amanda M, Location: Wakefield

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 12:17 pm

I've enjoyed seeing Ailie growing up and determined to take control of her life.

Thanks Jennie.

Star Wars

#88: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 2:45 pm

I'm so sorry that has finished. I can quite imagine it being like that and it can be part of the downside of big families.

I can remember when jeans were considered quite shocking and when it was thought better that children had minimal contact with their parents while away at school or, even worse, when in hospital because seeing their parents 'unsettled them'.

I was in hospital in 1948 and NO visiting was allowed on the childrens' ward. In the Mid 50s that had improved to 1 hour on Wednesday and 2 hours on Sunday.

Now it's encouraged and much healthier.

#89: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 6:31 pm

Thank you Jennie - I hope Ailie did go on to make a success out of her life. She deserves it.

#90: Author: Miriam, Location: Jerusalem, Israel

Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2005 6:49 pm

Just wondering... Did Ailie's stay have any effect on the Bettany branch of the family? Do they retain their old patterns, or also join in the genral shake up? I'm sure we'd all love to hear details... Wink

Thank you for this drabble anyway.

#91: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2005 1:52 pm

Thanks Jennie - enjoy your rest from the bunnies, I'm sure they'll be back at some point Very Happy

Liz

#92: Author: Josie, Location: London

Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2005 12:56 am

Thanks Jennie. Has been good to see things from Ailie's point of view. Enjoy the bunnies' hibernation!

The CBB -> Ste Therese's House

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