"My Dearest Boy..."

Last weekend I visited Mum and Dad.  While I was there, I took the chance to scan some old family photos.  My first post, with the picture of the Munro family in front of the verandah at Sunnyside, contained one of these photos.

Tucked away behind one of the photos was a letter from Viva Kathleen Reeder Munro (1878-1917) to her eldest son, James, my grandfather, on his eighteenth birthday.  I can calculate the approximate date of the letter from this, about 26 December 1916:

(page 1 of 4)

Viva was staying at the Jubilee Sanatorium, in Dalby, Queensland, away from her family in Warwick.  According to the notes on the letter, she was staying there in the hope she would recover from poor health.  The Jubilee sanatorium had been established to commemorate the jubilee of Queen Victoria and successfully treated many consumptive patients.  Unfortunately, Viva was not among of the lucky ones, and would eventually die from the effects of tuberculosis 18 months later. 

Viva's first sentence: "Very many happy returns on your 18th birthday.  I trust you will be spared strong and well to see your 81st".    This was not to be.  It is a sad irony that James himself would be admitted to the very same sanatorium in years to come, also suffering from tuberculosis.   James died aged 52 from a weak heart, an inheritance from this illness.

What I have learned about my great-grandmother Viva from this letter?  She loved her son - she calls him "Jig"!  I never knew that this was his pet name.  Viva was also creative, she tells James that she won first prize for the most original costume at the carnival.  What was it?   I have no idea and would love to know.  The letter also refers to people who are unknown to me, "Pally" and "Auntie".  And, most poignant of all, she talks about her health, saying she feels cooler and is starting to feel a bit better. 

I am delighted beyond measure to have found this letter.  All I know about James and Viva is what my mother has told me.  They are both enigmas, all I have are photos.  This letter is Viva's voice from almost 100 years ago.  It tells me something about her, and her love for her family and her son.  It is sad for me that Viva was away from her husband and children when this 18th birthday milestone took place.

James, my grandfather, preserved this document because it was treasured, maybe it was the last letter his mother ever wrote to him.  You treasured this letter your entire life Daddy Jim.  I am your grand-daughter and you never knew me.  But I feel I know you a little better now and, like you, I will treasure this letter always.


(This post was inspired by Julie Goucher's Book of Me Project, topic #42, Handwriting).