August 1965
The first of the jasmine opens and releases that sweet scent. The scent takes me back to August 1965 and a bus full of tired refugees known as 10 pound poms.
The lights of the Illawarra are spread out below as the bus descends Mt Ousley. A touch of Yates' Embroidered Cloths of Heaven seen as lights of a fantasy land to a 7 year old.
A quick escape from the hostel nissan huts. "To many whinging poms" said Dad. "We are here to live an Australian life not live as displaced poms."
That first house a Tim Winton rambling place split into 3 flats. A yard with Jasmine in bloom, a banana tree, the place an absolute jungle. Insects & lizards everywhere. Middlesborough was a total desert compared to this 1/4 acre block.
The neighbours as exotic as the wildlife. Maureen pregnant and laugh out loud (long before lol) married to Ant all 6' 6" of him as skinny as a rake. Friendly as can be (and becoming life long friends). And as Australian as can be. Invited the poms in for a cup of tea, because that's what they should do for an English family. Dad's great relief when it was obvious tea wasn't really doing the trick and Ant produced the beer.
With mum the three boys are making the trip down Crown St, in what seemed the hottest day ever, heading to South Beach. The wonder that know one else was at the beach on this beautiful August day. Not to mention a beach with sand and not pebbles.
The jasmine everywhere almost stifling you with the overpowering scent. A hard decision made by Mum to leave behind her 2 brothers and 3 sisters, mum and dad. Not to mention that close community of familiarity that must have reached in hard. It was easier for dad not much in the way of family ( a mother he didn't really get on with and he'd been here before in his Merchant Navy days) and the urge to get somewhere open and fun now that the Merchant Navy was out. By 1965 there was a whiff of doom over the north of England or so he said.
Even a 7 year old boy could tell the decision had been a good one.
Mum had some physical terrors to overcome as well as some cultural terrors. Walking to school through that block of bush had mum terrified at every lizard scurrying, at every moan of the crow and total disbelief a bird could laugh.
The school yard full of gums, dust and cicadas and the joy of the sun, light and heat.
Every August as the Jasmine gives out its scent, I give thanks for that decision to leave Blake's Albion shores and join the convicts.
More on Mums transformation from English rose to a bronzed go getter later.
The lights of the Illawarra are spread out below as the bus descends Mt Ousley. A touch of Yates' Embroidered Cloths of Heaven seen as lights of a fantasy land to a 7 year old.
A quick escape from the hostel nissan huts. "To many whinging poms" said Dad. "We are here to live an Australian life not live as displaced poms."
That first house a Tim Winton rambling place split into 3 flats. A yard with Jasmine in bloom, a banana tree, the place an absolute jungle. Insects & lizards everywhere. Middlesborough was a total desert compared to this 1/4 acre block.
The neighbours as exotic as the wildlife. Maureen pregnant and laugh out loud (long before lol) married to Ant all 6' 6" of him as skinny as a rake. Friendly as can be (and becoming life long friends). And as Australian as can be. Invited the poms in for a cup of tea, because that's what they should do for an English family. Dad's great relief when it was obvious tea wasn't really doing the trick and Ant produced the beer.
With mum the three boys are making the trip down Crown St, in what seemed the hottest day ever, heading to South Beach. The wonder that know one else was at the beach on this beautiful August day. Not to mention a beach with sand and not pebbles.
The jasmine everywhere almost stifling you with the overpowering scent. A hard decision made by Mum to leave behind her 2 brothers and 3 sisters, mum and dad. Not to mention that close community of familiarity that must have reached in hard. It was easier for dad not much in the way of family ( a mother he didn't really get on with and he'd been here before in his Merchant Navy days) and the urge to get somewhere open and fun now that the Merchant Navy was out. By 1965 there was a whiff of doom over the north of England or so he said.
Even a 7 year old boy could tell the decision had been a good one.
Mum had some physical terrors to overcome as well as some cultural terrors. Walking to school through that block of bush had mum terrified at every lizard scurrying, at every moan of the crow and total disbelief a bird could laugh.
Every August as the Jasmine gives out its scent, I give thanks for that decision to leave Blake's Albion shores and join the convicts.
More on Mums transformation from English rose to a bronzed go getter later.
Comments
Post a Comment