I can and I will: remembering school days and how things have changed

Today was Grandparents’ Day at our grandsons’ school. We have been fortunate enough to have attended each year since our eldest grandson started school and have kept up with and been part of his progression through primary school. Grandparents’ Day always brings back memories of my school days and the happy times spent in the school yard, in a very different world all those years ago.

The following is something I wrote as part of the lead up to a school reunion in 2002. It was published in the local newspaper on October 9^th 2001.

The first day of school: how long ago it seems. New shoes and a school bag and a new pencil case filled with shiny new pencils. Vegemite sandwiches and an apple in a plastic lunch box. Mum said that school would be good fun. You will make lots of friends and do really fun stuff. So why am I feeling like this? I’m a bit frightened and I don’t know most of these other kids. I look back on my school days with mostly fond memories of the friends I made and the experiences had. Some things I remember as if it were only yesterday.

Milk: delivered in crates, sometime between the start of the school day and morning recess. Little glass bottles with soft aluminium lids left unrefrigerated on the seat near the shelter shed. The cream was always thick and sticky at the top and it was just too bad if you didn’t like milk because the only thing that would excuse you from having to drink this stuff was a note from home.

The games we played: Hoppo-bumpo and British Bulldog come to mind. Real body contact games that were frowned upon by the teachers but tolerated. Eventually the games were banned, as torn shirts and stretched school jumpers worn by kids with bruises and band aids on various parts of their anatomy saw the demise of such violence.

Cricket: there always seemed to be a game of cricket going on. Tippety Run was most popular; hit the ball and you had to run. Hit the ball hard or kick it into open field was the idea. Cricket was a game for the “big kids”. If you were a “little kid”, most of your time was spent watching or fielding in the outer where the ball seldom went. Occasionally a “little kid” got picked in the team and for those who showed a bit of ability with bat or ball, well, they were in the big time.

The playground equipment: an assortment of potential disasters. All steel constructions were so cold in the winter that your hands stuck to them on a frosty morning. In the summer they were almost too hot to touch. There was a slide, log swing, monkey bars and a jungle gym. “Hitting the bars” on the log swing was a feat accomplished only by those who dared the wrath of the teachers or who had a point to prove. Anyone who strayed into the path of a rapidly moving piece of 8×4 timber was going to end up with serious bruising. There was no such thing as soft-fall surrounding the play equipment. The idea was not to fall off.

The school bell tower: the school bell could be heard all over town when rung to signal the start of the school day, recesses, lunch time and the end of the day. Although there were strict rules about climbing the tower, it was often used as home base for such games as hide and seek. It was also good for doing chin-ups.

School sports day:  a day of fierce competition between all the schools in the district. We donned our sports uniforms and assembled in class groups to await transportation to the venue. Parents’ cars and school buses were filled to capacity with excited kids. The day was spent being marshalled by teachers and parents into school groups and waiting for your name to be called for a particular event. Flat race, high jump, hop step and jump, sack race, egg and spoon race and long jump were vigorously contested as each school strived to gain an advantage over another. We were told we would have to do our best if our school was to win the day.

The school bus: fiascos, fights, farts and lunch boxes. For many the school bus was an important part of each school day. For out-of-towners, catching the bus was part of the daily ritual. Waiting for the bus on cold winter mornings, with frost so heavy that it looked like snow, we passed the time by jumping on frozen puddles to see how thick the ice was. This trick often resulted in wet feet that had to stay wet for the entire day. On the bus there were rules that had to be adhered to, but naturally with a number of kids in a confined space disagreements were frequent and fights often the result. Passing wind on the bus bought cries of “Who farted?” or “Who opened their lunch box?”. At times, considering what some kids actually had in their lunch box, it was difficult to tell where the offending odour was coming from.

The school toilets:  situated down the back of the school grounds, these buildings were where you went after gaining permission to a request of, “Please may I leave the room?”. In those days, permission was not always forthcoming. Especially if the need arose just after class had resumed after recess. If it was raining you had to run to the toilets. At least the boys did because their toilet was a considerable distance away. The toilets were wooden buildings with concrete floors. They were always mouldy and always smelly; the sort of places you went to, did your business and got out quick.

The café:  across the road from the school stood the café that supplied school lunches for those kids lucky enough to be allowed to buy their lunch. Those of us who always had a packed lunch from home considered it a real treat on the days we could buy lunch. Wooden tables and chairs with floral plastic tablecloths occupied the area in front of the counter, behind which were shelves filled with lollies. The school lunch menu offered little choice: Vegemite or peanut butter sandwiches, pies and pasties; pies smothered in tomato or sometimes Worcestershire sauce were popular.

Secondary school:  the step from primary school, grade six to secondary school, form one was huge. This meant that we had graduated from being mere primary school kids to being secondary school kids. However we were only form one kids to all those in forms above us. Nevertheless, we were on our way up. In primary school we learnt the basics. In secondary school we started to build on that basis and with hormones racing, began to find out what life was all about. The opposite sex began to get pretty important; in fact at times, probably too important. Yet, despite all the distractions, we managed most of what we were supposed to be doing. Each year of secondary school took us closer to adulthood as we met with new experiences and built on our knowledge. We gained new skills and were given the opportunity to accept more responsibility.

Teachers:  most of us, over the course of our school years, were taught by a number of different teachers. Each new school year usually meant at least one new teacher. The first day with a new teacher was met with mixed emotions as we wondered what he/she would be like. To us kids, teachers were just teachers. But now, thinking back, there were some real characters amongst them. Men and women from different backgrounds, all with different ideas and values. Some were dedicated teachers and some considered it as just a job. In the long run they all helped shape our lives, develop our values and each one of them played a part in determining what we are today.

Leaving school:  when we reached our final year and the last day arrived, it marked a turning point in our lives. It was the beginning of the rest of our lives. We all went different ways and did different things in life. We got married and had kids of our own. Some of us stayed in touch either frequently or occasionally and some of us parted, never to see each other again. But wherever life has taken us, we never forget our school years.

This is a photo of the school emblem that we wore on our school uniform jacket pocket. My mother hand embroidered this particular one onto my jacket. I still have it.

Do you remember your school days fondly? What were some of your favourite memories? Share them in the comments below.