An introduction

 

An introduction

                                            Elsie's self-portrait

Allow me to introduce a sweet lady of my acquaintance. Elsie is 104 years old and is the sixth oldest person in Britain.

Elsie’s husband, Sidney, died many years ago, but, although she misses him, she is not lonely and has a lively and varied social life.

She has always had an active brain and is ever ready to develop new skills and enjoy fresh experiences. To that end, she has recently acquired a computer and has been using it to write letters to recipients as diverse as the Governor of Pentonville Prison, the Royal Society of Medicine, the Pope, and Kellogg’s. 

Her overriding wish is to be recognised and allowed a chance to shine. There is no limit to her imagination, from concocting an enticing recipe for tuna, beef and banana pies for Gregg’s (the baker) to pondering what effects would result from pouring paint from the top of the skyscraper at Canary Wharf.

Her letters have been compiled into a book, ‘The Elsie Drake Letters.’ As an inspiration to older people everywhere, Elsie Drake is unrivalled.

I am honoured to have had the pleasure of her company.

                            This is the front cover of Elsie's book