{"id":1945,"date":"2024-02-19T10:10:42","date_gmt":"2024-02-19T10:10:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1945"},"modified":"2024-02-19T10:10:47","modified_gmt":"2024-02-19T10:10:47","slug":"no-groom-no-worry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/no-groom-no-worry\/1945\/","title":{"rendered":"No groom? No worry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At the crossroads on the outskirts of town is the shop. A grey-haired woman, hesitant at its door, whispers on entering, \u2018I\u2019m Mabel Bennett.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Mrs Griffiths mentally notes: this one is nervous<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The shop is small from the street but its inside is capacious. Mabel\u2019s first\u00a0impression is of a greenhouse, pregnant with blooming white flowers. Closer inspection reveals racks where the gowns huddle silently, each awaiting a body to fill them, to walk and twirl in them, display them to a crowd \u2013 though just one human might suffice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

            \u2018I saw the online article,\u2019 Mabel says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018December\u2019s quiet, always has been. Hence the offer which lasts all week. Pick one out, try it on. There\u2019s nothing to pay.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Mabel approaches a rack, stops, touches a garment, then another, as if weighing up a partner for a dance. \u2018This one\u2019s gorgeous. My size too.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018Changing rooms are behind you,\u2019 Mrs Griffiths smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            The front door tinkles and two women, twenties, related?<\/em>, have gone straight to a row of bridal dresses. Confident types<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018Regrets marrying before I had the baby, I does,\u2019 one is saying. \u2018My dress was like a bloody tent it were, and me the size of a house.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018Clock this one, Goldie. Look at them patterns, real professional stitching that is. You\u2019ll look like a Disney princess in it.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018Eight hundred quid to buy! Forty five mine cost, Becks.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018No charge for trying on, girls.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018I dunno if I dare put on this posh one, Mrs Griffiths. I mean \u2026 me<\/em>?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018And you can take photos,\u2019 Mrs Griffiths encourages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Soon Mabel and Goldie are joined in the fitting booths by Heather Morgan, married twice, seventy-five, putting on the dress of her dreams. Both marriages were short, like the wedding dresses, knee-length, scrimping you know. But this one, well the Queen might have worn it the way it spreads out from the waist like a snowy fan, trailing on the floor as if waiting for attendants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Soon all three emerge, Mrs Griffiths takes snaps on her mobile and the phones of the women. \u2018I\u2019ll post them on the website. All publicity is good publicity.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Mabel, who is terminally ill and has not been married, is joyful, saying, \u2018I\u2019ve always wanted to wear one. Goldie, initially unsure about all this malarkey, sees herself in the mirror and is overcome with tears. Heather, having the time of her life, says, \u2018I must be dreaming.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018Expect you will go viral, ladies,\u2019 Mrs Griffiths says as the door jingles anew. Another woman, thin, bashful, studying her feet, stands before them. Raising her eyes cautiously, seeing the three begowned ladies, all proud as strutting peacocks, she says: \u2018My!\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Mrs Griffiths beckons her in. Ordinary women with their insecurities and struggles<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u2018It\u2019s my birthday week,\u2019 the bashful woman is saying. \u2018My daughter told me to come. You see these gorgeous models in bride magazines, so I just thought\u2026\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mrs Griffiths nods. You want to feel beautiful. <\/em>Showing the woman a rack, she says: \u2018Treat yourself.\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2018Expect you will go viral, ladies,\u2019 Mrs Griffiths says as the door jingles anew. Another woman, thin, bashful, studying her feet, stands before them. Raising her eyes cautiously, seeing the three begowned ladies, all proud as strutting peacocks, she says: \u2018My!\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"no","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10158782359051062_103813597863211":"","twitter_1225722811282530305_1225722811282530305":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[{"account":"facebook_10158782359051062_103813597863211","service":"facebook","timestamp":1752596298,"status":"success"},{"account":"twitter_1225722811282530305_1225722811282530305","service":"twitter","timestamp":1752596629,"status":"error"}],"rop_publish_now_status":"done","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1129,1154],"tags":[114,236,1170,1167,158,116,1166,1168,551,12,148,128,1049,1169,129],"class_list":["post-1945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1129","category-feb-2024-crossroads","tag-but","tag-door","tag-dresses","tag-griffiths","tag-its","tag-like","tag-mabel","tag-might","tag-mrs","tag-my","tag-no","tag-out","tag-shop","tag-size","tag-them"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbrNJE-vn","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1945","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1945"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1945\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1947,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1945\/revisions\/1947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1945"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1945"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1945"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}