Living to Travel

I just know that the label of this one will garner some attention. My mother is one of those very modern women. At 88 , I'm sure she is the first women's libber holding very strong beliefs about the equality of the sexes and filled with the determination that I would have "an education" and a profession". To this end I was to be informed about everything a girl should know. The Catholic school I attended also believed that parents are the prime educators of their children. Bear in mind that this is the late 50s and this self same institution also espoused the Virgin Birth. Thus it was that after the mothers and daughters night, we attended she came home with a printed pamphlet which contained EVERYTHING A GIRL SHOULD KNOW. I burned to read those pages and could scarcely contain my excitement when she produced this document on a cold winter's night as we sat uncomfortably by our one bar heater. To our surprise, we were joined by my father who sat as close to her as he dared but out of arm shot, while parrying deathly glares from my mother and hiding his frequent titters with bouts of coughing and spluttering. All was revealed and my first impression was "EEE_UUW" followed swiftly by the agonisingly embarrassing thought that these two people in the room with me had indeed indulged in aforesaid behaviour. Horrors upon horror. I kept sneaking looks that were a mixture of wonder and disgust for at least five days. My mother just smiled at this and looked wise.