My father used to call those grey trousers he wore with a blazer his flannel bags. Does anybody say flannel bags anymore? I tried my children and they looked baffled.
When leaving the dinner table, the expression, “May I be excused?” was widespread in my youth. Has this too gone the way of the dodo?
At mass this morning, they said that the exit hymn is “God’s Spirit is in my Heart”. “What on earth is that?” I thought but once they started singing I found I knew all the words. I was sure, sure, sure that I hadn’t heard it since I was a teenager but the internet seems pretty firm that it first came out in 2002. I am baffled but maybe I did learn new hymns in my 30s? This seems very unlikely but who can say? Then Margaret Atwood was on Desert Island discs and she picked Beethoven’s pastoral symphony as one of her 8 discs. “Ho hum,” I thought, “I wonder what that is?” Yet another musical number Mrs. O’Shea taught the school choir, that’s what, though we learnt it with the following words which I feel Beethoven wouldn’t have approved of: Now winter is passing and soon it will be spring/with daffodils and tulips and birdies on the wing. I also recently heard for the first time in about 40 years “In an English Country Garden” – yet another number Mrs. O’Shea brought into our lives. It’s funny how these songs one learnt as a child can be really evocative.
I’ve been looking at slides from my childhood and although it is a pain to set everything up the images are so much better than the faded brown snaps from photo albums and I now respect my father’s commitment to slides though I was dubious for many years. When I see myself I recognise every single thing I am wearing and I know what feelings it evoked in me, what I loved, what I hated. I am fascinated by this as I am not very interested in clothes now. I wonder what happened to that youthful clothes lover.
I had lunch yesterday with my oldest friend, our parents were friends and as she is a year older than me (something she used to enjoy pointing out to me when we were little, but now, ah, how the tables have turned), I have known her since I was born. Anyway over Christmas she went to a 40th school reunion. “40, 40 years!” I screeched in horror. “That’ll be you this year,” she pointed out tartly. I am shocked. How did that happen? But also, perhaps it’s not as big a surprise as all that.
I only know the phrase ‘flannel bags’ from reading old fashioned books but as a child my parents were very firm about using ‘may I be excused?’ instead of ‘can I get down?’ which was only acceptable for children in high chairs. Regardless the answer was usually no as I recall.
You are correct, the answer was almost invariably no.
Flannel bags sounds like Jeeves and Wooster…but I know what you mean about songs (and some 1970s advertising jingles are killers). Hymns too have a time and place, I think.
I am not thinking about the numbers of years I can count since..leaving school/University. No 1 son is 31 in 3 weeks, that’s bad enough…
The hymn “God’s Spirit is in my heart” was written by Alan Dale in 1969. Alan Dale was the pen name of John Michael Arnold (1928-2010), a British priest and hymn writer.
Did know the term flannel bags but not heard recently.
Never once asked to be excused. Just had to sit there.
Jennifer, I am so relieved to hear that about the hymn. I thought I was losing my mind. Yes, FB not recently heard by anyone, I guess. Even if you asked to be excused, you just had to sit there so you didn’t miss much.
Suzy, 31! I am shocked but as my friend said at lunch, it’s coming for me also and sooner than I think. Totally agree re advertising jingles.
I have my 40th high school reunion this year. I think I might go to it as I haven’t been to any of the others.
On the subject of your father’s slides, you may want to consider getting them all digitalized. My father did that with his (slides of people, not the 10,000 sunset shots) and sent me a copy of the files. I am putting all the photos into photo books (the kind assembled and ordered on-line). It’s great to have the pictures in accessible format and even better to have the format be relatively compact. The memories!
‘In an English Country Garden’ is one of those songs that I only recently learned had non-rude lyrics in the original. Pretty sure Mrs O’Shea would no more have approved of the words I learned in the school playground than Beethoven would have your version of his Pastoral.
Gosh Karen, I would love to do that but it requires more time and energy than I currently have – I am v envious. Hope your 40th school reunion goes well. I wonder will we have one? I have heard nothing which is a bit ominous..
Who knew there was another version? Certainly, if Mrs. O’Shea did she chose not to share it with the second year all-girls convent school choir.