As the rain slowly drips off the eaves and the wind slaps the windaes I find myself in reflective mood at midnight here in the village. Normally this would result in my reaching for the Bowmore but given my efficacious regime of 4 days off/3 days on and since this is only Tuesday, I make myself a camomile tea instead and sip it, pausing only now and again to think how minging it is.
There are many topics to think upon, of course, swine flu, Hibs splitting the Old Firm, Lydia's 5th Santa letter (this week) and so on, but the greatest of these of course, and the one that pushes to the surface at this silent time of night, is our place in the universe and, as Gerald Manley Hopkins would say, 'the doom that man was born for'.
Thinking about this kind of stuff with a clear mind unfettered by fine malt whisky brings no more clarity and satisfaction, actually, than thinking about it after a good session in the Tartan Bunnet. There are more questions than answers as that old Bodhisattva Johnny Nash used to say.
In the course of this self-indulgence, however, I suddenly realised that I had missed an important anniversary, for October 2009 marked my 30th year of service with Dumfries and Galloway Regional Council as District Pedagogue. Not continuous service (for I took a year off in the mid nineties to die) but 30 years nonetheless. I have a feeling this anniversary should be marked in some way, perhaps by public subscription or a small statue. But I suppose there is acknowledgement enough in the unerring and touching gratitude of all the young people who have undergone my tutelage.
This was brought home to me one day when I was standing in the Prancing Pensioner and noticed what I can only describe as a rough type standing at the other end of the bar. He was swarthy, scarred, and was, disconcertingly, carrying what appeared to be a dead chicken. The unwritten law is if you catch the eye of a nutjob or passing psycopath he will suck out your marrow, but while I was staring conscientiously at a beermat a fresh pint was pushed across by the barman, bought by this stranger and I was forced to raise my eyes. "Remember me?" he said, his face cracking into a louche kind of smile, "You taught me at Maxwelltown High School. You were a useless c... but we liked you."
Recollections like this, so reminiscent of that excellent film Goodbye Mr Chips starring Mr Robert Donat, almost bring a tear to my eye.
9 comments:
There's also a similar "Mr. Chips" kind of scene in Laconte's "Man on the Train".
Useless? Never!
x
The picture's terribly good of you.
I'd say you're due a lot more pints! :¬)
In fairness, it should always be Celtic.. Hibs.. Dundee.. Aberdeen..... and somewhere mid table should be that R*****s team.
It makes you think when children you used to teach turn out to be adults. Time flies. I remember the chill that went through me the first time a man in a suit said "Hello Mr Rivron, do you remember me?".
Oh my goodness! That is quite the anecdote. At least you got a pint out of it.
While I don't ordinarily draw attention to "captcha" words, the one for verification currently is: caechand. Cackhanded? Odd.
I was speaking at a high school once and this handsome kid on the front row kept STARING at me. When I went to register them all to vote, while he was standing in line he declared to all his buddies, "I use to sit in her lap."
Turned out I was his babysitter at one point! But he let me squirm for a while before I figured it out when I saw his name.
So how many generations are coming up to you with that "remember me?" question? ;)
I enjoyed your poetry and performance at the Open Mic in Dumfries last night. Shame the venue was so dark and cold.
I took a couple of snaps which I've attached to an email and sent you, although I don't know whether D&G's spam filter system will automatically discard anything with attachments, so if you don't get it, please let me know :)
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