Nan at 14
Show Notes
Episode 27: Dear Nan — A 1930s and 40s Childhood
A letter to my Nan about life growing up in the 1930s and 40s in Australia
Today’s episode is another of my Dear Nan letters — the series I began after my nan died in 2022, as a way of processing grief, honouring our relationship, and making sure that this beautiful woman was never just a blip on this earth.
Because she wasn’t. She was extraordinary. And her story is so worth hearing.
In this letter, I write about my nan’s childhood — about growing up in 1930s and 40s Australia, during the Great Depression and World War Two. About a family that moved constantly, from Paddington to Narrabeen to Manly to Mona Vale, chasing the next opportunity, packing up in the middle of the night. About a dad whose gambling was quite possibly the invisible thread running through it all. About a mum who cooked and sewed and embroidered late into the night on Christmas Eve to make sure her children had something to wake up to.
My nan never used the words we were poor. But she was. And it took me three years after she left this earth to put the pieces together and really understand what her childhood had been.
This episode is also a little reminder of why I do what I do — why I help women write their memories down, why I believe so deeply that every ordinary life is full of stories worth keeping. Because we don’t always know what we’re losing until it’s gone. And the small jigsaw pieces our loved ones give us, if we’re lucky enough to gather them, are more precious than we ever realise at the time.
I also have a little chat today about Little Life Stories — my memory writing program — which has just had a bit of a makeover and is now available for $97. More on that in the episode.
Oh, and I’m sipping the most beautiful tea throughout — gifted to me by the lovely Sara from Ettie and Dorie. It’s called Dear Dorrie and it’s lemony comfort in a cup! If you love a good quality herbal tea, go and find her. You won’t regret it!
Pour yourself a cuppa.
If you enjoyed this episode, follow Tell Me Over Tea wherever you listen, and if you feel inclined, leave a little review — it helps more story-lovers find their way here:)
Kim x
Nan with Felix (left)
Where to find me:
✨I write, on Substack, a weekly newsletter, you can subscribe to that here: Betty Mae Wrote newsletter. It’s the space where I share stories (both mine and other people’s) and it’s also a way of keeping up to date with all things Betty Mae Wrote, Little Life Stories, Lovely Letters and the podcast.
✨To find out more about my memory writing program, Little Life Stories you can do that here: Little Life Stories
✨I’ve created a simple and beautiful starting point for your own storytelling: The Five Minute Memory List.It’s a short, exercise (a cuppa’s worth), to help you gather memories and begin. It’s fun and easy peasey and it’s something you can use in your letter writing, journaling and personal life writing. You can grab that by subscribing to my newsletter (you’ll find it in the welcome letter one you’ve signed up): here
✨The Tea + Toast Letter Club! A little moment to pour yourself a cuppa, find a comfy spot, and enjoy a letter (and some other goodies) in the mail every month. You can read more about it here. Oh, and from July on, there will be an extra special little gift waiting for one lucky duck subscriber. A ‘golden ticket’ will be tucked inside one envelope. Who will July’s ticket finder be?
✨If you’d like to get back into the gorgeous slow soothe of letter writing, please know you are always welcome to join: The Lovely Letters Project (it’s free!)
✨Or if you simply need a good old sticky beak around the place, please head on over here to the website:www.bettymaewrote.com
✨Oh and if you’re an Instagram type, be sure to follow me on Instagram: @bettymaewrote
Written and hosted by Kim, founder of Betty Mae Wrote — a slow-living space for letter writing, memory keeping, and everyday storytelling, from a tin cottage on the Far South Coast of NSW.
Music: Kim on the uke;) Rattling teacups – also KimProduction and Editing: Surprise, surprise, guess who? Yep! Kim again!
Art by Lewis Dillon (thanks, Lew!)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bettymaewrote.substack.com
