Recently I've reconnected with my class at boarding school in 1961/62. That's over sixty years ago.
There was a reunion organised which I couldn't attend, but it led to a raft of email exchanges.
It was almost eerie to discover that one of those people was, like me, an ex-Nasho, a Vietnam veteran, and like me, wrote a book about it.
Strangely, I remember his name, but can't put a face to him.
Again, it was a long time ago.
Anyway, I tracked down his memoir which he called Dominoes and Marbles and read it in one sitting.
Apart from the fact that the subject matter describes experiences we shared which obvious resonates, it's an engaging narrative, and the product of a professional writer; a journalist.
One chapter, which he called Fortes in Fide, and which describes his experiences at school, unearthed previously hidden memories of my two years at a boarding school nearly a thousand kilometres from my home in North Queensland, as a thirteen year old who had never been away from my family.
It reminded me of another schoolmate who often defended me when I was on the receiving end of a bit of bullying. In those days I weighed thirty kilograms wringing wet, and probably needed a bouncer. This schoolmate went on to join the regular army and was killed in the Battle of Long Tan in 1966.
The memoir covers much more than Vietnam. The author describes his childhood at Mount Tyson, his primary school experiences in the small state school there, and his time at Downlands.
He relates experiences at recruit training similar to mine, and his posting to Vietnam in September 1966, four years before me. He served with 5 RAR, the battalion my unit (7 RAR) replaced on its second tour.
Much of the narrative describes his experiences as an apparently competent rugby union player, a journalist, and his appreciation of the music of the Vietnam era.
For me, the memoir is very much an indulgence in nostalgia, but it's well worth a read as it captures the flavour of the time.
You can buy it online here - https://www.amazon.com.au/Dominoes-Marbles-Young-Times-Peace/dp/0994281439
2 comments:
Interesting. I recall meeting a Kerry White (probably the same) who I think was a journalist when we were in Kingaroy (1980 - 83). His younger brother, Ian, was in school with me.
Ian's arrival gets a mention at the beginning of chapter twelve.
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