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Transcription of Letter
From
Mrs. J.R. Derbyshire
62, Friars Avenue
Delapre
Northampton
England
To
John Derbyshire
57, North Perkins Avenue
Elmsford
New York 10523
U.S.A.
Jan. 20th 1975.
My dear Son,
after two very traumatic weeks I can at last have time & inclination to write some letters. Judy & Tess came home on
7th. I got Fred Allen to take me to Heathrow for a fiver. We
are no wiser than when she came
& have only pieced a few bits together
from her phone conversations with various people. We've hardly seen her through the day & she has been out most
nights sometimes till 3 & 4
am. You can imagine Dad's feelings. We are both deeply hurt by her attitude towards us. I would do anything for her if
she was open with us instead
of sullen & bitchy. Why John, she makes use of us when it suits her. Anyway, I asked Dad not to say anything. I
don't want to quarrel with her
& for Tess's sake we've kept quiet, but I feel she's no love or concern for us. I bought two new beds & had
your room decorated in a hurry as
I had half stripped the walls & didn't expect them till later this month. Well, she has a flat £50 a month,
says Allan will send her money
when he can, & she has moved in today. She told Auntie Cis
she & Allan had
drifted apart, he wanted to be on his own & she got bitchy with
him. She hated there. Its not going to be easy for her with a child & I can't see her living on her own for long,
I'm afraid us old folks don't
understand the way of life today dear. There seems no stability or integrity. Its really very sad. Write & cheer us
up, there's always a chuckle
somewhere in your letters.
I should think you're well rid of Cindia & her relations, Dad's quite
sure the
"Tong" will be after you,
but if your latest love is half Italian it might be the Mafia!! so watch it son. It's a grey, pouring rain day, but so
far no snow, in fact it's been
quite mild & sunny. Sorry love, I'll take note & leave a space at the bottom. Judy is going to write to you
she said. Well my love its nearly
dinner time, so I'd better go & see what I can rake up. If you stay in New York, I might come & have a couple
of weeks with you, I won't get
in the way! How about it?
Take care, look after yourself, write soon,
Your loving
Mother
X X X
Judy has a job at St David from Feb. ½ term, then Bective at Easter & could have her old job back in September if she wants it, but Cis[1] thinks she should try a Senior school.
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Notes
- Auntie Cissie was a schoolteacher herself and was presumably giving advice on the local job opportunities for teachers.