This is my mother, Janet Duncan back in 1969, then aged only 22. Pictured at Stonefield Public Park on 23rd August that year, she’s showing my father some pitch n putt skills. They were on an ‘international’ date, my dad on holiday in Scotland, the first time he’d ever been here! In the foreground beside the camera case, is the little Czech translation dictionary, the only way they could speak to each other other than relying on a few words they’d learned.
My dad, Joe later in life said he marvelled at how beautiful the Scottish weather was, complimented the lovely well tended parks and commented on the beauty of Scottish women. The rest is history as they say!
My father passed in 2007, aged only 60. My mother in 2009, aged only 62 both from different cancers. Both their lives sadly cut short at a young age before seeing any of their 7 grandchildren. Those were two events which changed my outlook on life, pushing me to live my own life to the fullest. It changed my whole being. I woke up to my own mortality realising life is short. Family, friends and health worth more than any possession.
In case anybody is interested, I now have the software to be able to restore faded photos like the one above, bringing back the vibrant colours of the day. The comparison shows what it’s capable of. I’m happy to restore YOUR faded photos of Blantyre people for free, in return for being able to add them to the growing photo archive of 14,500 old photos on Blantyre Project. Now one of the largest photo collections in Lanarkshire. Feel free to upload them here: https://blantyreproject.com/provide-information/
Linda – if you email me your photos to paul.veverka@sky.com i can restore some of them, (i think). If you have black and white photos, i may be able to add colour. Happy to do that for free if they have Blantyre connections….
Hi Janet Duncan’s daughter, wow!! that is so kind of you, and I am racing to my photo albums for the restoration you suggest. Most of my photos are black and white though, but I will have a good look, what a really generous offer, and my deep condolences on the loss of your parents at so young an age, that is so devastating, Your children have missed out, but photos such as these, along with your stories will bring your parents alive for your children with some lasting memories of their grand parents too, no doubt!
Hi Paul, What an amazing love story which ended far too soon, but you have found a moral to their life and it shows, you are sharing so much of your time with so many people. Thank you.
Jan J