NINETY NOT OUT ------ A DAY TO REMEMBER

 Dear Readers,

            As I live in Cape Town and nearly all the surviving members of my family are in Johannesburg I went there for my 90^th birthday with Mandy, Sally and their husbands and Belinda flew in from Australia. Sally and Alan put on an excellent lunch at their home for me and the entire clan. And as you don’t turn 90 every day I had to make a speech so here it is.

            ‘Thank you for coming. I nearly didn’t make it to my own birthday celebration because I aged so drastically on the flight from Cape Town. When we landed in Joburg and everybody was waiting to disembark the two airhostesses and the Captain announced to everybody that I had just turned 100. That’s the kind of Lift you get when you fly on an airline with that name.

            ‘The fun didn’t end there. A couple of days later after I moved in here with Sally and Alan I decided to have a bath instead of a shower in one of the two full bathrooms adjoining  my room. Guess what happened next?

            ‘As a brand new centenarian I didn’t realise that I should not bath alone. I got stuck in it. Alan and Sally were out somewhere working, but fortunately Joyce the house manager heard my distress calls and she and her husband pulled me out. Luckily I didn’t lock the door otherwise I might still have been there now.

            ‘Those are the funny things that occur in my life every now and again, but the longer I live it is pockmarked with sadness. This is one of the penalties of old age. I have outlived two ex-wives and a wife, a younger brother and a half brother and two grown up children Simon and Samantha. Samantha was the mother of my grandson in England who I will never see. Currently my youngest brother 82 year old Anthony is teetering on the edge saying things like, “I’ve had a good innings.” We can only hope that he goes as painlessly as possible.

            ‘Thankfully, very much on the plus side I have the Magnificent Trio of Mum’s babies, oops, sorry LADIES, Mandy, Sally and Belinda Boo. Thanks again LADIES to you and your husbands for being such a help to me after Mum died.

The Magnificent Trio
Sally, Belinda & Mandy

          ‘I have been very fortunate to have found Andi my 55 career. She is a real gem and is better known as Handy Andi because she can fix just about anything, the TV, my computer and ME. She was not able to be here today because somebody had to look after the house and our two dogs.

          Please join me in paying tribute to all those who have been such an asset to me and in particular Rosemary Gayle Abbott. If she had not looked after me so well for a few weeks short of 50 years I too would not have been here now. They say dynamite comes in small packages. Well that was our Gaylie, who lived for other people. So can you stand and drink a toast to her and all the other people who have been so much a part of my life.

            ‘I WAS SO LUCKY TO HAVE KNOWN YOU ALL.’

Regards,

Jon

P.S. Anthony died the day before my birthday but I was only told about this a day later so as not to cloud my special day.

P.P.S. Sally and Alan gave me the T-shirt I am pictured here wearing, but as I told them at the lunch you would have thought they would have learnt by now that it is rude to ask somebody how old they are.