“Village Visitor” Celia Craig 65

“A Gurden Childhood” (Early 1950s)

Celia Craig

It wis bonnie in Gurden in springtime, Yalla primroses specklin the braes. We githered them, up fae the Cauldwall For wir mithers ti pit in a vase.

There was Warnie and tig in the playgrund And ca-the-rope skippin and ba’s. Each game hid its sang – say the Alley-O As ropes slapped and ba’s stotted aff wa’s.

On fine summer days in auld Gurden There wis games, games galore ti play, Crawlin across the fitba pitch In deserts – the haill lang day.

There wis hoosies and dallies and shoppies And dashin around on wir bikes There wis cowboys and Indians and others And jumpin aboot o’er dykes

The back gairden swing was excitin, My Dad’s Navy hammock gid fun, Lazily swingin and drowsing And the tentie was shaded and dim.

Sugarellie water was lovely Though taakin a lang time ti maak, Shaakin the bitties o licorice In a bottle ere a drap ye kid taak.

There wis dookin and fishin for podlies, Bandies in rock pools at the beach, Turnin up steens for crabbies That scuttered awa oot o reach.

Bonnie lemmies were placed in rock hoosies, Then we louped rock ti rock, steen ti steen, Sure-fitted but somedae aye slippit On the seaweed, sae slimy and green.

We played follow-the-leader like dare deils. We strung syrup cans, walkin on high. We climbed doon the horse-shoe braak wattter Till recalled by my Deddie’s loud cry!

We hid stilts o wid – tennis bats, swords, Aa widden – my Uncle wis good And efter a dook in the herber To Granny’s – a shivery bite o food.