Nana's House And The Stream

A Memory of Goodmanham.

In the back of the Vauxhall, my brothers and I would scan our eyes across the fields looking for that white two chimneyed farmhouse of Nana and Grandad that meant our long trip was finally over, and our holidays about to begin. That meant, wading and bushwacking as far as we could get (before being called in for tea) in the nettle covered stream. I think we imagined we were in darkest Africa. We'd find all kinds of pottery pieces in the stream, covered in mud, pieces of old china cups and plates. We'd clean them off and stick them wet in our pockets. If we weren't in the stream, we were walking the old train track, looking for spikes, or flying kites, feeding the chicks, gathering eggs, feeding the pigs, looking at the baby chicks in draws in the incubator, playing in the hay shed, even shooting Grandad's gun if we were lucky. Football in the field of course. Riding Sandy the dog. Later, there was rabbit hunting with Uncle David down the field, and falling off horses. The coal man used to come, and I was fascinated with opening and closing the door, watching the black coal and dust pour out. The milkman came round, left milk bottles at your doorstep, with silver foil lids and cream. Breakfasts were fantastic. Then long walks on the paths around (wolds way?) for hours, just my brothers and I, young kids, as if we were in a Famous Five story. 6 pence to buy a comic and sweets down in Market Weighton. I couldn't believe they'd tear the farmhouse down. It was too much a part of what Goodmanham was. In any other country it would be a protected heritage building. You wouldn`t have been able to touch it in the US or France, but somehow Britain didn`t realize or care. The deal grandad made with the people he sold to...not to tear the building down was soon forgotten and the archtypical British farmhouse was bulldozed. As a kid I couldn't believe anyone would do such a thing. So much land. Why destroy the house? I'll have to find a photo of it and post it. Thank you Nana and Grandad, and thank you Goodmanham for childhood holidays and memories that not even Disneyworld can match!

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