We camped in the New Forest in August 1993 because it was cheaper than renting anywhere with walls.
The tent belonged to one of Alan’s workmates. It was a large frame tent with two sleeping compartments and instructions folded into a plastic sleeve. Alan read the instructions at home and said it looked straightforward.
At the campsite, he read them again.
Claire was seven and wanted to help. Michael was four and wanted the mallet. I gave him the bag of pegs, which turned out to be another form of mallet access.
The ground was firm. Alan put the frame together while I kept the children away from the poles and sorted bedding in the Escort. One section had been labelled left front by the owner. We did not know whether this meant our left while facing the tent or the tent’s left, which seemed an unnecessary point of view for canvas.
After an hour, the tent was standing. It leaned slightly at one corner. Alan said the slope of the ground made it look worse.
We left it there.
The children thought camping was excellent. They could wear the same clothes for longer, eat outside and walk to the wash block carrying toothbrushes in a plastic beaker. Michael asked why we had a bathroom at home if this was possible.
We cooked sausages on a small stove the first evening. The pan held four, so Alan and I ate after the children. A family at the next pitch had brought folding cupboards, a table, electric lights and chairs with footrests. We had two stools and a blanket.
‘They’ve done this before,’ I said.
‘They’ve brought their house,’ Alan said.
The holiday cost very little once we were there. We walked, visited a small wildlife park and drove to the coast for one day. The children collected sticks, stones and leaves until I pointed out that we already lived near trees and gravel.
It rained during the second night. Nothing dramatic happened. One corner of the sleeping area became damp, and Alan moved the bags before breakfast. The children slept through it.
I had expected camping to mean rest because there was less housework. There was less house. The work remained in smaller containers.
Still, the children remember the holiday. Claire remembers the ponies. Michael remembers being allowed to hold the mallet on the final morning.
Alan remembered that the tent took forty minutes less to put down than it had taken to put up.
He timed it.