Granny Martindale, shared by Ruth Coates
Granny Martindale died when I was only two years old. She was no blood relative, but within the family she was always known as Granny, a woman of unswerving faith, whose own life was filled with unimaginable tragedy.
Married to William, Granny had six children. However, in an age of high infant mortality, five of these children died in infancy, or early childhood. The sixth, Tom, survived until he was nineteen years old but then he, too, died, on his way home from a POW camp, after the Armistice signed in 1918.
By this time William had also died so, in her early forties, Granny was left alone, widowed and childless. However, far from capitulation, Granny did something extraordinary. In an age before the introduction of modern maternity services, Granny became the local, unofficial midwife. She delivered dozens of babies and then, on September 12th, 1930, she delivered my mum.
Granny became a powerful presence in my mum’s life. Perhaps mum helped to heal the gaping wounds of bereavement. Perhaps mum gave Granny the love that she had never had the opportunity to experience. Whatever the reason, Granny became a second mum to my mum. It was Granny who took mum away to Blackpool for holidays from time to time. It was Granny who paid for baby clothes, school uniforms, and extra food for the family. At the age of eleven, Mum won a scholarship to attend the local grammar school. Grandad, being a man of his time, thought education for girls to be a pointless and expensive luxury, but Granny argued, and Granny prevailed, and mum went to grammar school!!!! In many ways, Granny was a woman ahead of her times.
However, more lasting even than her sacrificial giving, more powerful even than her emotional connection, was the strength of a life ethos, emanating from a profound Christian belief system. Her faith informed her life, gave her the strength to bear each blow and, like a blazing torch, was passed on through mum, and into every following generation. More than half a century after her death, we still talk about Granny Martindale with respect, with pride, and with gratitude.
Truly, she was God”s fingerprint in our lives.
We have all known people who have shaped our lives. Loved ones. Friends. People of courage and integrity, people who have triumphed over adversity, people who never knew the impact of their quiet, humble service, a silent but still influential “cloud of witnesses”, who made us the people we are. Alive, or now dead, they continue to shine like torches in our personal walk of faith, especially during these challenging times. We are introducing a new magazine feature called “The Torch” in which you are invited to share your Torch story as a source of inspiration, motivation, and strength to our whole church community. Articles should be maximum 400 words, less if a photograph is to be included. If you would like help in writing your story, please contact Ruth Coates. Otherwise your articles should be submitted to Sylvia before each magazine deadline.
Someone has left God”s fingerprint in your life. Who was he? Who was she?
