At last it appeared this week that summer is upon us, maybe......which got me thinking about that oft remembered summer of 76, which for me means days of water fights with fairy liquid bottles, melting Tarmac pavements, cricket on the radio & sitting in the washing up bowl with my sister to cool down (oh to be that thin again!).
Was it really the romantic idyll that we all recall though?
The summer of 76 was indeed one of the hottest on record, meaning that some parts of the South West went without rain for 45 days during July & August & for those us of growing up, it was a fantastic time to be young, enjoying those long hot sunny days. However it was also a time of difficulty and economic crisis, including riots at the Notting Hill Carnival, soaring inflation and finishing the year with the announcement of a 2.3 billion pound loan from the IMF
Which led me to ponder on the ability of the Great British public to look at the past through rose tinted glasses. It is easy to label us as a bit of a moaning nation (whining Pomms???), but when looking at the past we tend to wrap it in a blanket of loveliness, days were longer, doors could be left unlocked, even the war is tinged with a feeling of mucking in & everyone looking after each other. 1976 is just one example, but each generation has their own, my parents certainly feel things were better in their day! Is this a bad thing though? & actually isn't it nice that we can look back in this way & have the ability to feel good about a time that maybe wasn't quite the time we recall?
What does this say about the ability we have to be positive & deal with things? Well whatever it says, for me, 1976 will continue to be the year of sun, the Jubbly & those iconic orange space hoppers!!
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