ON Sunday last, Mrs. Kathleen Headley nee Norton, familiarly called ‘Nen’ of 34 Norton Street, Work-en-Rust, turned a proud 103 and spent the day in praise and thanksgiving for spared life and for God’s continued mercies.
Winsome and dandily dressed, she was the center of attraction at a Thanksgiving Service at her home where she was literally encircled by relatives, friends and members of her place of worship – Smith Memorial Church. Also with the gathering was her cousin, Pastor Timothy and members of his congregation – God’s Cathedral of Praise of Lamaha Park. They all entreated God’s blessings upon her and joined in showering her with gifts and cards. She was also presented with a beautiful birthday cake and observed the traditional cake sticking.

Nen was born on October 15, 1914 to Lionel Theophalus Norton, a farmer and Rebecca Elizabeth Arthur, a housewife, of New Supply on the Eastern Bank of the Demerara River. She is the first of six siblings.
Even after reaching 100, Nen continued to be very active. But on this occasion, she woke up complaining of a `head swing’ and as a result was unable to attend church as planned. This gave the family cause for some concern since she’s always active, full of verve and dubbed by most to be ‘Fit-as-a-Fiddle.’ However, by midday she was much better and busy answering phone calls – both local and overseas.

CLEAN BILL OF HEALTH
Boasting a clean bill of health, she is free of such chronic diseases as diabetes, hypertension, arthritis and heart complications. Her ability to read even fine prints with the aid of her spectacles is incredible. On her special occasion, she was able to read the greetings on every card she received on that day. Her hearing is also good and she has a good appetite. She moves about the home unattended and insists on doing her own laundry, even though she has a caregiver.
Nen places a high premium on eating right and credits her long life, essentially to her good diet: A good diet she says, is rich in fruits and vegetables; whole grains and legumes and not loaded with salt, sugar, trans-fats, refined cereals and processed foods.
For breakfast, she opts to use a slice of bread with butter, two spoons of raw oats (no sugar), an orange and a glass of water. For lunch, her favourite dish is metemgee, along with a serving of fish, carrots and peas which are paired with lots of water of course.

She is doing fairly well – physically and mentally, her caregiver says, and has an equally prodigious memory. Without flinching, she would rattle off the names and dates of birth of her five siblings, all of whom except for her youngest sister, Lynette Francis, who resides between Barbados and England, have all passed on.
Nen, who has become well known and equally respected in her community, continues to age gracefully, not for one moment looking 103. She is intelligent, alert, active and very vocal. Her mental faculties are perfect and she possesses amazing critical thinking skills.
Twice married, she outlived both husbands: James Ford, whom she married in 1940, and Alban Headley, to whom she tied the knot in 1955. Her second marriage lasted for 40 years.

A housekeeper for the greater part of her life, Nen, had at the age of 21, served a period of attachment at the Guyana Pegasus in the housekeeping department.
Nen has never had children of her own, but knows the joys of caring and providing for children, having fostered many of them. Of affable disposition, loving, caring and compassionate, she is all you could ask for in a mother.
It was when she was at the prime age of 21 that she met the man of her dreams, and they got married on December 11, 1940, after an exciting five-year period of courtship. It was also, the first of the two times she walked up the aisle to seal the `I do’ vow.

Having gotten married just before Christmas, Nen still has vivid memories of shopping for the festive season – sewing curtains for the home; cooking the traditional Christmas pepper pot; cow heel soup; baking black cake, and brewing her favourite mauby, sorrel drink and ginger beer.

CHICKEN- FOUR CENTS PER POUND
Browsing down memory lane, she’d often marvel at the astronomical cost of food items today, compared to her time. She would smilingly recall just how much her princely pay packet of $30 per month could have bought. “In those days, that money could have bought plenty things, and I still had enough to ‘throw box’,” she told the Pepperpot Magazine.
“Oranges were five for eight cents; condensed milk – five tins for 40 cents; chicken, four cents per pound; five eggs for eight cents and rice was 16 cents for one gallon,” she mused with a chuckle.

Nen loved cooking and made a Sunday feast of peas or barley soup, with ‘loud cow heel.’ She also loved cooking what was called ‘resource’ (dhal and rice with mince balls) which she regularly prepared, much to the delight of her husband and adopted children.
The couple lived happily until her husband’s passing in the mid-1940s. Following his death, she remarried in 1955 to Alban Headley who initially worked at Gun Fernandes Betting House. Life began blooming once more, and they lived a wonderful life until the destruction of their home at Norton Street, Werk-en-Rust , by fire in 1992.

But through it all, Kathleen remained trusting and demonstrated strong faith in God, as her deliverer and the source of her supply. Being a prudent and industrious woman, she had savings with the New Buildings Society and was a member of a self-help group. Hence she was able to acquire a new home after their home was destroyed by fire.
Within six months their dream was realised and they became the proud owners of a new home, built on the same Norton Street, Werk-en-Rust site , which they enjoyed for the remainder of their marriage, until Alban’s death in August 1995.