Saturday 7 May 2011

Mother's Day With A Difference

Photo via Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service

It must be Mother's Day somewhere in the world;  I see that there are many moving tributes to mothers around blogland. I am so happy for all of you who remember your mothers with gratitude and love and whose children remember them equally lovingly. There can never be enough love in the world.

When my daughter was small she decided to do something special for me on the day, and bring me breakfast in bed. She was a sweet and dear little thing, an absolute treasure. At the same time she was independent-minded and capable from an early age. She usually spent the long holidays in Germany, with my parents, and I'd hand her over to the stewardess at Heathrow who then handed her over to my parents in Dusseldorf airport.  For the flight she had to wear an official card round her neck, giving all relevant details, like name, address, flight number, etc. 'Unaccompanied Minor' was the official title. This cardboard sign never lasted long. and by the third time she flew across she absolutely refused to wear it. "I know the way now", she said, "and I don't need this sign at all. I am not a refugee child".  It probably isn't funny now, but it was then.

Anyway, on this particular Mother's Day she was going to make me breakfast and bring it up to me in bed. At some ungodly hour I heard her clattering down the stairs. Sunday morning was my only chance ever for a lie-in, I was not best pleased about the early start. Cupboard doors opened and slammed shut,  the kettle clanged against the kitchen tap. I could hear her arguing with her brother, never a good sign. The  smell of burning toast reached me, followed quickly by the lid of the kitchen bin snapping shut. Then there was silence, the arguing had stopped and I heard only sounds of someone being busy in the kitchen. I forced myself to stay in bed.

When her footsteps thumped up the stairs I was ready for her. The smell of burnt toast still hung in the air, I was hoping the toast itself had been disposed of. She burst in "Surprise, surprise, Happy Mother's Day, mummy, I made your breakfast. You can have a nice lie-in".


She was carrying a tray with a plate of burnt toast, a pot of cold tea and a pot of marmalade. "How lovely, darling, thank you so much".  She was so pleased with her efforts, beaming all over her face.

I sat up and tucked in while she watched.

The smell of burning was getting stronger, it was more like cloth burning than just breadcrumbs. I sniffed the air. Something was definitely wrong.

By the time I got downstairs and into the kitchen, the towel draped over the grill attachment over the top of the cooker was in flames. It was drying there and neither of the children had thought to remove it before they cooked the toast in the grill pan.

Stupidly, I grabbed the burning towel and flung it into the sink, then snatched another towel off the radiator and smacked it on the flaming grill, extinguishing the fire. I was lucky, the grill pan was clean and fat free and the towel quickly burnt itself out in the sink.

As a mother's day present we went out and bought a toaster.

37 comments:

  1. Excellent story! Tell your daughter she gets the burnt toast award, shortly to be followed by the burnt towel award. You get an award for saving the house from a fiery end.

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  2. Love your story, Friko - it's the thought that counts!

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  3. What a delightful Mother's Day story, and with a happy ending, but the middle part with the fire and all...very scary!
    I'll bet you loved that toaster.
    — K

    Kay, Alberta, Canada
    An Unfittie's Guide to Adventurous Travel

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  4. Hello Friko:
    The moral of this tale must surely be that tots, toast, toasters and tea towels don't mix!!

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  5. ha. glad no one was hurt...makes it a rather comical story...i was making breakfast in bed for mom once and dropped a brand new gallon of milk all over the kitchen...ugh

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  6. that's a lovely story for a mum friko. happy mother's day to you and to your other readers!!! steven

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  7. The smell of burnt toast always reminds me of my mother . I don't think there was ever a day without her making a bonfire out of breakfast and I miss it still !

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  8. A sweet memory Friko. Glad you were not burned in an effort to extinguish the flames. Happy Mother's Day 2011!

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  9. I thought I'd survived some Mothers Day breakfast disasters but nothing that would compare to that. The worst was a vase of water (with a flower in it) being tipped into my lap as my breakfast was served. The kids were so disappointed I insisted on getting out of bed and changed before eating their feast. Aren't memories wonderful!

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  10. Aww...funny and touching, along with the suspense in the middle. You were clearly Super Mom, saving the house from disaster!
    Do you still have the toaster?
    Happy Mother's Day!

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  11. What a delightful story! I was chuckling all the way through, long before I knew the end of the tale!!

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  12. I wonder if Hallmark would be willing to make a card out of this story, which seems to me more realistic than most! Happy Mother's Day, Friko.

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  13. Nice memory well told. Happy Mother's Day!

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  14. Thank you for sharing your wonderful memory with us...and from the distance of time it is wonderful - isn't it?


    Saturday evening Aloha from Waikiki


    Comfort Spiral

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  15. That's a great story, and I wonder if your daughter remembers it, too. I bet she does!

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  16. Despite the fire - what a sweet story! As someone already said here - it's the thought that counts.

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  17. Such a lovely memorable time shared with the ones we love. Great tale, all too real for me, except I was the one who started the kitchen curtains on fire. My dad was the one who managed to extinguish them and the trash can beneath them!

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  18. Great inventions, toasters. Kids too!

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  19. Brilliant story, one to hold over their heads forever. Can't believe you threw the towel in the sink, though - thank goodness you got away with it!

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  20. Kinder haben oft gute Absichten mit fast katastrophalem Resultat und wenn dann die Eltern ruhig und gelassen bleiben und sich eben über diese gute Absicht freuen, spricht das nur für sie und das Kind behält keine bedrückende Erinnerung, sondern eine Art Erleichterung...
    Dir einen schönen Tag!
    Renée

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  21. The tragicomic events are always the most amusing to remember ;)
    My mother somehow instilled a deep fear of fire in me (or maybe it was all those Smokey the Bear PSAs) so Mom never got breakfast - well, that and she was ALWAYS awake before us (except maybe on Christmas, when "Santa" was exhausted from wrapping presents at 3am).
    : )
    Happy Mother's Day!

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  22. What an interesting Mother's Day memory! I wonder how many kitchen fires will be created today?

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  23. Gut geschrieben und eine spezielle Erinnerung. :)
    So macht man einen Muttertag unvergesslich.
    Dir heute einen schönen Muttertag.

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  24. Yes! I have had some Mothers' Days like that as well. Loved your story!
    Happy Mothers' Day...may your toast be perfectly done!!!
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  25. That pretty much sums up the motherhood thing. Thanks for a Mother's Day laugh.

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  26. What a perfect Mother's Day memory, in all its fiery imperfections. That's Motherhood.

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  27. what a great story! glad you didnt force yourself to stay in bed too long :)

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  28. Funny touching story. Thanks so much. Dianne

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  29. Perfect sit-com fare! Well told!

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  30. Great Mother's Day story. My most memorable was when my son, similarly independent like your daughter, decided he would make French toast.. but that we didn't have enough bread, so first he'd make bread! Except we didn't have all the right ingredients so he substituted most of those. I came downstairs to a huge, gluey mess and nothing worse. A Mother's Day fire certainly tops that.

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  31. How good it is to have memories like that.

    I was sent as a child on the train from Boston to Washington in holidays to stay with my father. I too had to wear a sign. I guess I'm more sneaky than rebellious. I simply waited until the grown-ups were out of sight and then remove the sign.

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  32. I think I will count my blessings that my children have rarely attempted to bring me breakfast in bed!

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  33. Levity (+) love=Friko.
    A wonderful tale well spun.
    One can be assured that when we
    stop by this site, we will never be
    disappointed. Your Bin Laden message
    previously was devastatingly bang on.
    This story recalled from your past
    is lovely, sad, and life affirming;
    best Mother's Day message yet.

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  34. lovely story- albeit in the middle I was thinking "Yikes"! Kids are great arent they!

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  35. Lovely story, Friko and long-lasting memory too.

    Smiling...when all is said and burnt, it's the thoughts that count.
    Thank you for sharing.

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  36. Yes Mom's day in America in in May. Loved your story but didn't get the reason for adding the travel to grandparents in this.

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