The octogenarians’ Day of Reunion continues online

Yes, the Sydney Boys High Class of 1959 are nattering on the Net

Emails have been going back and forth. Just now I have replied at length to classmate Harry Goldsmith, who had written — and I edit a bit:

Neil, and you can tell by the turning my voice I am slightly angry, I really don’t mind you correcting me on my Latin. I know that Domini is “of the Lord” being the genitive Kate, I just had a temporary mind block. You can possibly see that I am dictating this which is why the words are disjointed and often wrong. You will recognize “Kate” should be “case”.

But this is not why I am angry. You know I’m not angry, really just pretending every time I go through K, which is not very often, I wonder how Neil Whitfield is, and then when we have a chance to meet at the school reunion, there is no sign in. Where the hell is he? What is he doing? why doesn’t he show himself?

And what about his Illawarra line mates… (and Harry here lists several and mentions that Roger Dye had died)… you would know because you lived on the same train line.

So Neil, speak up. Give every man his day. Why have you been avoiding me and how are you and I hope you are well.

Harry G

I replied:

Thanks, Harry for missing me on the day, but I opted to be there in spirit as public transport from The Gong on weekends could be better, and though well I do not get up to Sydney as much as I did. On the other hand, Sydney High and myself have had many a reunion, as the day I was teaching and K J Andrews looked through the window at me. Really! Talk about deja vu! Or when in 1985 Bob Outterside told me I owed him a Maths assignment from 1958 and even got an old markbook out to prove it!

Yes. my teaching career was not entirely linear 1966-2005, but most of 1985 to 2005 was at Sydney High.  Hence my pedantry about Kim Jaggar’s name. And yes, The Gong 1970-1980, except for a stint 1977-8 seconded to Sydney Uni. Then Fort Street after The Gong, then in the book business in Glebe, then SBHS with excursions to Wessex College of English 1990 teaching mainly Chinese students, Masada College at St Ives 1988-9…. Interesting, looking back, and I learned a lot.

And the Illawarra Line kids! Also Ted Oliver (Hurstville). Ian Toll of course, and others from Sutho Primary – Arno Eglitis who became a Maths teacher, Robert Burnie, Ross Mackay who was at the reunion…

I did my reunion via my blog – I’m a mad blogger, have been for 20+ years, and the Facebook OBU Group.  The entire string of 65^th Reunion entries on the blog is here: 65th Reunion | Neil’s Commonplace Book (wordpress.com)  Being a blog they go backwards chronologically, but I hope you can give them a go. May be memories there.

Best wishes,  

Neil

And as I am writing this Harry has replied! “…my career was almost exclusively in the computing field,, I think really in becoming director of information technology at the ABC long before the revolution of the 80s (computer Revolution)….” And it seems I taught his sons! I will now go to the archives to check that. Yes, seems I did!

In other email exchanges Clive Kessler clarified his health issues, and also sang the praises of Edgar Bembrick, our amazing Latin teacher. There is a lot about Bembrick earlier in this series.

Yes, I now feel free to post the clear version of the Reunion photo

But no names, no pack drill. Except that is the Boss, Kim Jaggar, next to Reunion Organiser Ian Toll, in the front row.

And a last word from Harry

You bastard Neil.

I started reading your blogs and could not put them down. Beautifully written, beautifully put together – what can I say? I am in awe of you….

So many memories…. 

Morning of Mother’s Day 2024

I receive my week’s supplies

Yes, Woolies delivered against quite a spectacular backdrop…

Look to the far left…

On Facebook there was such depressing news coming in from Gaza. Think of the mothers there, eh!

And so many more, so many more….

One clings to the voices of hope and love in these dark times, this from Israel and the beautiful but comparatively tiny jewel known as Hand-in-Hand, a school network for Israelis of ALL faiths and ethnicities.

That was made just THREE DAYS AGO!

My mother Jean (1911-1996) knew many dark times

This was not one of them. My graduation. First in the family to gain a university degree.

Flowers and grief: for my mother

Posted on June 24, 2017 by Neil

Recently I posted about Vermont Street, Sutherland, where I lived from 1952-1955, and again in 1963-4. The circumstances of that first sojourn are well expressed in my mother’s words from the 1960s:

Then in 1945 the guns of War ceased. We hoped so vainly they had stopped for all time–and the father came home. The next few years held struggle of a different kind for the young weary parents whose lives, like so many, had been so deviously interrupted. To return to the normal, the everyday, does not perhaps seem difficult, but it is so very difficult, as so many found. Everything had altered, values and concepts had changed. One thing sustained this young family–the love of man for woman, of woman for man, of man and woman for their children. To hope, to pray, with faith, that some day, sometime, there would be a better world for all to live in. Again the years went swiftly–two years, four years, ordinary troubles, measles, mumps, broken arms, children’s hurts to mend–the guiding, the helping, the encouraging, the children growing, the joys, the laughter.

The babe of 1940 [my sister Jeanette] was now a slight, fair, lovable schoolgirl of twelve. So proud were the parents of this so dear a child who held the promise of the future in her clear blue eyes. The dreams they had–the dreams she had–such lovely dreams, such beautiful golden dreams.

The father and the mother bought a house, their first “own” home. Just an ordinary house in an ordinary street, in an ordinary suburb, in an Australian city. A house with room enough for the children to grow in to live in, to be “home” in all its true and good meaning. Moving day came with all its pressures, its turmoils, but with happiness in the hearts. The unseen figure in the shadows moved closer and struck, taking with it back to the shadows the beloved child, the child with so much promise, so many dreams–the child whose very presence had helped the mother’s war-torn soul through the years and whose sparkling nature had helped the father through the rehabilitation period. The beloved blue eyes were closed to this world forever.

So we were all grieving in that place, I see now more clearly: my father, brother, and myself no less than my mother. I can recall nightmares often involving death, and odd little memorials made of pebbles that I would make in various obscure parts of the garden.

My mother took to growing flowers, even winning a prize in the local flower show for her pansies or sweet peas or violets — I don’t quite recall which. Her flowers were those of that time — no natives among them. That came later when we moved to Kirrawee and had waratahs and wattles and bottlebrush in abundance.

Music my mother loved

So the Class of 59 Reunion photo came yesterday

… and delivered a surprise.

Consider my classmates at Sutherland 70 years ago

See From my past they come — the boys of 70 years ago…

There am I in the back row, circled. And to the right (from your viewpoint) if memory serves is Laurence Napier, and to the left Brian Smith and next to him Ross Mackay. Laurence, Ross and I all in 1955 went on to Sydney Boys High, which is to say the Class of 1959. Which recently had its 65th Reunion.

I did not go, but celebrated the event here and in the Facebook Old Boys Group with the earlier posts in this series. Via Facebook my 1959 classmate and FB friend Richard Buckdale, who did go, told me how it had turned out. Until yesterday no photo was available.

10th May: Ian Toll sends a heap of us the PHOTO

Here is his email.

Greetings to all SHS Class of 1959 members! Our Class Reunion at the School on 14 April 2024 was a great success! If you attended…..many thanks! If you apologized….you must have a ‘better option’ …or were sick! (really!)

The Headmaster – Kim Jagger AO attended – & spoke well!

We look forward to you joining us in April 2026 on our next Reunion.

Attached is the photo we had taken on the day! See if you can recognize any of your old Class mates?

Best wishes,

Ian D. Toll

Reunion Organiser.

Ever the optimist, Ian! We’ll see how we feel should we indeed see 2026!

As for the photo, I have studied it carefully now. Ian I instantly recognised, but him I had seen on many occasions since 1959, including many a time at SBHS when I was on staff and he was working with the School’s Foundation organisation. And of course I recognised next to him the Boss, Kim Jaggar! But beside him is none other than Ross Mackay! Yes, the very same from Sutherland days, including not only Sutho Public but also for some years Sutherland Presbyterian Church. I in fact knew the family, visited his place in Kirrawee more than once, met his brother and sister — I thnk he had a brother, but am sure about the sister. And Ross 2024 edition has about the face a bit of a look of his mother, I think.

Not that you will see that, because I have decided on privacy grounds to post a disguised version of the pic, which still lets you see how many of us turned up. If later I get permisssion to post the clean copy I will.

The spotty Class of 1959

Translation not needed as we were taught by Edgar Bembrick!