A little history gives a slant on what people say. We thought we were Middle Class, we had the social graces, the accent, the interests, but not the cash. We, my mother, brother and I, had just returned from Africa under the British Raj, where we had lived and, I suppose, acted like landed gentry,… Continue reading Pre WW2, the 30s, A comparison, then and now
Autobiography, 1930 -39
Shortly after we came back from Africa my mother and father had a legal separation with the result that my mother, brother and I were what is today called a single-parent family something rarely heard of in the 30s, when religion and probity were highly respected, and people did not air their problems in the… Continue reading Autobiography, 1930 -39
Africa 1928 and beyond, Empiren Day and Royal Occasions
When we first heard the King’s speech on the wireless, it was really a celebration of the Empire and its reinforcement, tightening the ties. My first recollection of Empire Day, although I know it was celebrated in most schools in England, was when it was celebrated in Livingstone. Unsurprisingly it was a ‘great day’, which… Continue reading Africa 1928 and beyond, Empiren Day and Royal Occasions
Africa 1928 – 30, The result of the African experience
I write this to draw conclusions about psychological reactions in children, they and their adults are not aware of, but which have damaging long term consequences; not making a criminal, but disadvantaging and imprinting a permanent lack of self-respect on the child. The final paragraphs are extracts from a previous, general comment on my African… Continue reading Africa 1928 – 30, The result of the African experience
Africa 1928 – 30, The journey to the Cape
The day came to leave and we, my mother and I, caught the train which would ultimately take us to Capetown, a train where one booked a compartment in which one read, ate, slept and washed for tedious days on end. The hand-basin was hinged on the door and one tipped it up to empty… Continue reading Africa 1928 – 30, The journey to the Cape
The Victoria Falls
In the then Northern Rhodesia. On film today it is certainly majestic, but to see the immensity, the rush of water, hear the noise and feel the constant rain of the spray in those simple, uncluttered days, is an unforgettable lifetime’s experience. The descriptions of The Victoria Falls runs to 11 pages on the Internet;… Continue reading The Victoria Falls
Conflicting Standards
I repeatedly find that the departments of the government, and local authorities issue edicts that conflict with another, or with every day practices. We were goaded at one time to switch off the idle lights on TVs and other equipment in order to save the world. What I find absurd, is that there seems to… Continue reading Conflicting Standards
Vandalism and our amazing World
I may be telling you something that you are well aware of, but I think it well worth voicing it again for the benefit of those who have been too busy to take time to contemplate. I for ever seem to be amazed at the way in which the world and we within it, have… Continue reading Vandalism and our amazing World
Fairytales circa 2010
I had always thought that fairytales were for the entertainment of the young. My definition of a fairytale is that it is an imaginative story not based on fact, generally gentle in concept, amusing, and with an element of danger as the spice. Now I find that we are being presented with a double diet… Continue reading Fairytales circa 2010
Africa 1928 – 30 A smal boy’s introduction to killing
With no homework, I had a long afternoon to put in. Ocassionally a few friends and I would go outside the limits placed by our parents, through the tall grasses of the Veldt, along wide deep drainage ditches waiting in their dusty state for the next onslaught of the monsoon rains. It was exciting creeping… Continue reading Africa 1928 – 30 A smal boy’s introduction to killing