Auntie Nan passed away this morning. She was 98 years old.
She was actually my great aunt, my dad's aunt, my grandfather's sister.
Auntie Nan was born Annie Charlotte Malcolm in Portland in 1913.
Latterly she lived in Glen Iris where she kept an eye on the ashburton staff for me.
After her husband george laidlaw died auntie nan decided she wasn't going to sit around & mope, she joined legacy widows, kept up her crafting and wrking for the monash hospital ladies auxilary. ( and many other charities as well)
Going to dinner at auntie nan's also became something of an experience. She was a good cook and would use our visits as an excuse to cook a roast & veges for us. One evening she served us roast beef with 13 (yes 13) veges. I, for one, didn't know there were 13 types of veges! Technically 12 i suppose as one was tomato & that's a fruit...
Anyway until about 3 years ago aunti nan lived in glen iris.
Every thursday morning she would walk the kilometre to ashburton library and return her library books. She would then meet some of her cronies for morning tea at the ashy shops before heading back to ashburton library to borrow her next lot of books.
I would often receive a phone call from her on thursday nights as she told me about the nice boy or girl (staff member) who'd helped her at the library, or filled me in in ashy library gossip. Or ask me if that nice person still worked at ashy cos she hadn't seen her for a while. I used to almost hope to be sent to AB on a thursday so that i could be sure of a decent lunch or dinner.
She was proud of the malcolm family & it's history. She used to love going back to penshurst & digby (and portland) each year to revisit her childhood and family haunts.
She had no desire to reach 100 (or get a telegram from the Queen) rather she wanted lo live a happy & fulfilled life.
When she moved into a nursing home in rosebud she took up watercolour painting because the nursing home ran watercolour classes.
Such was her enthusiasm for life.
She is survived by her three sons, clyde, tony & robin, & heaps of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
We'll miss you auntie nan.
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