Two Together - a digital story by Ron and Betty Cross (Lake Illawarra MAP Project)

MENTOR WRITER: Chris Mansell
SYNOPSIS: Betty and Ron reflect on their childhoods and life together
SCRIPT: BETTY: Its part of us. Its how we were raised.
RON: People made sure they looked after one another yeah.
BETTY: When I was a kid I remember going out in the rowing boats with my friends. We used to hop off the side in the middle of the Lake and never think anything of it.
We swam like fish.
RON: Yeah, we all taught ourselves. It was how it was them days.
BETTY: We walked out into the Lake at four years of age and just took off. If you didn't you got left behind. And people looked after each other.
RON: When I first moved down here, I lived in Albion Park Rail,
BETTY: You lived right on the Lake didnt you!
RON: Yeah and in the wet season, the Lake used to come right up and lap our laundry.
BETTY: My mother died when I was two and my brother was six months old. I went to live with my grandmother, Lotta Terry, and when I was six and a half she died of breast cancer. After that, I went down to live at my other grandmother's Jessie Betts. If you lost your mother at two you were always lost especially when the other children were around. No mother at the tuck shop, that sort of thing. My father was away working.
RON: He worked on telecommunications in Sydney and he was very busy down there and he couldnt get down very often to see Betty.
BETTY: My father thought I should have gone nursing
RON: Yeah, well I suppose thats ... I would probably never have met Betty.
BETTY: At 17 I got married to Ron and wore blue.
RON: Oh yes, she looked beautiful, yeah.
BETTY: It gave people something to talk about (though for no reason)
RON: We just had to assure everyone after that... not to mark the calendar that we was... it wasnt no shotgun wedding I can assure you.
BETTY: but I chose to wear it because it was beautiful Italian silk.

BETTY: I did 26 years Meals on Wheels, and my husband, Ron did about 18 years.
RON: Yeah I did it for about 18 years.
BETTY: Its part of us its how we were raised,
RON: People made sure they looked after one another, yeah.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Lake Illawarra
• digital story
• Oak Flats
• grief and loss
• love
• community