I thought I would share a memory of Maureen, which, up until now has not been told, and was only known by her and myself.  On my recent visits to her, I kept meaning to ask if she remembered this - but it kept slipping my mind to bring it up - but I'm sure she did...

Many years ago, when I was still living at my mam and dad's, Maureen would visit quite regularly.  There was something odd going on;  whispers, conversations stopped when I walked into the room, etc.  I knew something was being kept from me, but didn't know what it could be.  One thing I did notice was that, after a while, Maureen would keep her coat on whilst visiting - very odd, indeed.

Of course, some of you might have guessed what it was -  as did I, after a while - but I wasn't being told and I needed to confirm my suspicions.  On one visit, Maureen went to the bathroom - here was my chance - I went upstairs and waited in my bedroom.  I say my bedroom, but it was Maureen's room before she moved out, and it still had remnants of her stay: I particularly remember a boy's name carved into the window sill, that, even when covered with multiple paint-layers could still be read - I remember it now, it read Anthony Waite, of whom I have no knowledge.

Anyway, when Maureen left the bathroom, I seized my chance, dashing from the bedroom and asking nervously if I could have a word.  We went back into the bedroom, sat on the bed and I blurted out, 'Maureen, are you pregnant?'.  She confirmed she was and instinctively we both burst into tears and hugged each other.  After a few moments I said, 'why are we crying?', and she replied she didn't know.  We then both started laughing and had a chat about the expectant baby which, of course, was to be Wayne.

Of course, my mam and dad was of a generation where out-of-marriage pregnancies were kept 'hush hush', so to speak, so I understood their reason for not telling me was not that they didn't want me to know, but that they didn't know how to tell me.  Poor Maureen must have been sweating buckets having to keep her coat on in the house for all those visits!

This is a wonderful memory for me of my lovely sister.

Michael