On My Own

On My Own

 

 

Before mother joined in to support the new war, it was decided that I should leave public school and enter a private boarding school for boys, in order to finish my schooling in a good environment. I had no idea of the adventures that would follow in the years ahead.

Here I was in boarding school in Vancouver, and my mother was in the Royal Canadian Air Force, and sent to Toronto for her basic training. My sister, who had a full time job at the local Court House, was staying with a girl friend. The British Government was advertising for secretarial help to work with the British service staffs, in Washington, DC, on a temporary duty assignment for the duration of the war. She had sent in her application and was awaiting the reply. It was shortly after I entered school that she was accepted and left for Washington. To tell the truth, somehow I felt left out.

It took a little adjusting to get used to boarding school. First of all, there were no girls, not even as woman teachers. It was up at six thirty, shower and breakfast, then classes at eight, lunch from twelve to one o'clock. When classes ended at four thirty it was time for organized sports. Dinner was at six, study hall from seven to nine, and lights out by ten pm. The only thing that varied from the routine was the organized sports. The school concentrated on two sports, cricket and football (soccer). Less popular sports were lacrosse, baseball and rugby. Since I was a tall, skinny kid I stayed away from rugby, and played soccer and some cricket.

Several of us who played cricket had a little game on the side. Col. Smith, the cricket coach, loved to play cricket himself. He had an artificial leg, the result of injuries sustained in France, during World War One. We had secret bets as to who could hit his artificial leg as it made a loud noise when it was hit. I don't know if he ever caught on to our secret game. If he did, he never let on.

The head master was Mr. Ernest Allen who also taught English. He often visited other classes and always showed great interest in the students. He mentored the study halls and was happy to guide those of us who needed a little extra help. I liked him very much.

Most of the students came from regular families-father, mother, siblings, etc. They were able to go home for holidays and enjoyed occasional visits from family. I was a kind of misfit. Although my father would come to visit once in a while, on weekends, I felt pretty lonely. It was not easy to travel in those days. Father was working quite far away, south of Vancouver, he would have to make his way to Vancouver, then take the ferry across the Inlet and come to West Vancouver where my school was located. Father did the best he could, as I would guess this was at least a three hour trip or more in each direction. We would talk about school, my grades, etc. Mostly, I would ask him about my dog "chum". Chum was a black retriever who I had since he was a little pup. I had to give him up when I entered school, and had given him to my father to care for. From the way he spoke, I believe he had grown to love the dog and was taking good care of him.

Because of my unusual situation I believe my headmaster, Mr. Allen, took pity on me and decided to take me under his wing. In many ways he became my "Mr. Chips". He did inspire not only me, but most students. His favorite saying was "think it through, you can do it". He would often sit with me in study hall and discuss whatever subject he thought I needed help with. Sometimes the conversation would get around to his life in England, the family he lost during the war, or sometimes he asked me what I was going to do with my life after school? He was like that with most students; I believe it made all of us strive harder to make good grades. We didn't want to let him down.

I must say that I enjoyed the school and the friends I made. But, a new adventure was about to begin. My mother had been assigned to a newly built flight training school at Macleod, Alberta. She was going to be there for the duration and wanted me to join her. She had already made arrangements for me to stay at a large ranch/farm near the base. I was going to the Canadian prairies. I wasn't sure just what I would find.