‘My penny,’ she yelled. ‘I need to find it, Shane.’
She stumbled through the raging wind to the far side of the room, where she dropped to her hands and knees and started feeling for the coin. The flashes of lightning showed rubble strewn across the bathroom floor and Cathy looked frantically around, searching for a glint of copper.
Shane and Michael crawled over and began to help her search, running their hands across the tiled floor. ‘There,’ Shane shouted at last, pointing towards a piece of masonite board near Cathy.
She saw the little coin lying at the foot of the board and scooped it up quickly as another crash shook the room. With their house falling to pieces and even the mattress gone now, she felt it was all the protection they had left.
As the three children turned back to the other side of the bathroom, the wind howling in their ears and tearing at their hair and clothes, they saw a sheet of corrugated iron sticking through the wall where they’d been huddled a few minutes before. Cathy’s heart jumped in her chest and she tried not to think what would have happened if they hadn’t moved to search for the penny.
She looked across at Shane, whose face was pale, and Michael, who was shivering convulsively. She clenched her fist around the penny and imagined her family safe together.
‘It’s alright,’ she yelled. ‘We’ll be alright. We can hide under that sheet of iron.’
Shane ran a hand across his face, flicking water from his eyes. ‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘Let’s go.’
They crawled across and squeezed behind the sheet of metal into the triangular space it made with the walls and floor. The rain and the wind raged around them and crashes came from outside, but the iron was wedged firmly into the floor and Cathy and her brothers lay huddled together beneath it, arms wrapped around each other for warmth.
‘We’ll be okay now,’ Cathy said, feeling the penny in her fist. ‘We’ll all be okay. The cyclone can’t hurt us now.’
‘It’s like a cubby,’ Michael said. ‘Or a tent.’
‘But much stronger,’ said Shane.
When the noise of the wind began to lessen a long time later, Cathy thought she was imagining it. She stayed where she was, flopped against Shane and Michael, as the first weak light of day began to creep into the room, and as the wind and rain died down. When they finally stirred it had been daylight for some time and Cyclone Tracy had gone. Cathy sat up slowly and looked at her brothers: Shane had grazes across his chest and a gash down one arm, and Michael’s hair was matted with blood. She knew her feet had been cut by broken glass and one of her shoulders felt bruised and swollen. But that didn’t matter; they were alive.
They crept out from under the sheet of iron and across the bathroom to the door. No sounds of birds calling or cicadas whirring came from outside, though drizzly rain still fell and the wind eddied around. They pulled open the door and saw all that remained of their house: the bathroom, half the kitchen and the floorboards. Cathy took Michael’s hand and in silence the three of them picked their way to the back of the house, where the metal stairs down to ground level still clung to the side of the building.
In the yard below they saw a woman weaving her way through the scattered debris, eyes searching from side to side and tears running down her face.
‘Mum!’ Michael yelled and the three of them were racing down the stairs, across the yard and into her arms. Cathy pressed against her mother and hugged her tightly as everyone cried and laughed and spoke over the top of each other.
‘I was so scared.’
‘I thought you’d all be killed.’
‘The house is wrecked.’
‘It was so cold.’
‘I left Darren at the hospital. I had to find out.’
‘All our stuff is gone.’
Michael pulled away slightly and looked up at their mother with a frown. ‘And Mum, you know what? Santa didn’t come. He missed us.’
Cathy felt the penny still clenched in her fist and smiled through her tears. She thought of Darren waiting for them at the hospital and her dad sailing back to Darwin this morning. She imagined them all together again, safe and well; she didn’t think Santa had missed them.
Yared shifted further towards his nanna. He was glad she was lying close beside him.
‘Is it true?’ he asked. ‘Did that really happen?’
‘Yes,’ his nanna said, ‘a cyclone really did hit Darwin. It destroyed many, many houses, but most of the people survived.’
‘Oh,’ said Yared. ‘That’s good.’ Then he frowned. ‘Do we ever have cyclones here?’
‘Not really,’ said his nanna. ‘They’re usually further north. They form over the sea.’
‘Really?’ said Yared. ‘That means they mustn’t have them in Ethiopia either.’
‘Oh?’
‘Well they don’t have the sea,’ he said. ‘They have other countries all the way round them. So they mustn’t get cyclones there either.’
Yared’s fist was still closed around the copper penny, his skin pressing against the metal. He pulled his arm out from under the blankets and thought for a while of Cathy and her brothers hiding in the bathroom while the wind and rain swept round them. He was glad they’d had the penny to make them feel better.
‘Well,’ his nanna said, beginning to push herself upright, ‘I suppose it’s time to say goodnight now.’
Yared slowly reached over and placed the penny in her hand, then watched as she stood up from the bed. He wondered when he’d get to see the coin again. He’d have to wait until the next time he visited, he thought. Maybe she’d let him have another story then.
‘Goodnight Yared,’ his nanna said, smoothing down the covers. ‘Sleep well. I’ll see you in the morning.’
‘Goodnight Nanna,’ Yared said with a yawn and closed his eyes.
The Return of Mrs Richmond; or, Yared Shows Them All
Yared finished his last spoonful of cornflakes and sat back in his chair.
‘Finished?’ his nanna asked, looking up from wiping a bench. ‘Well run and clean your teeth then, and get your bag together.’
‘Yes Nanna.’
Yared pushed his chair back and tramped down the hallway to the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth he stared into the mirror with a frown. Today was the day his parents came back. Today was the day he left his nanna’s. His stomach was jittery and he couldn’t work out how he felt. If he thought of seeing his mum and dad again his heart would jump, but when he remembered their raised voices his stomach lurched. When he imagined his room at home he would almost start to smile, but when he thought of saying goodbye to his nanna his chest ached.
‘Nearly done?’ his nanna asked from the doorway behind him, and he spat out his toothpaste and rinsed his mouth. ‘Well, get your schoolbag and shoes,’ she said, ‘and come to the car. You can leave your suitcase in your room – your parents will collect it before they pick you up from school.’
School. Yared’s stomach seemed to do a somersault as he remembered what was happening at school today.
‘Umm…’ He bit his lip. ‘Maybe I should stay home today, Nanna.’
His nanna laughed. ‘Why do you say that?’
He tried to dig his toes into the cracks between the bathroom tiles. ‘Well… it would be easier for Mum and Dad to pick me up from here.’
‘Yes?’
‘And… and that’s all.’
For a few moments there was silence. Yared stared down at his feet while his nanna watched him from underneath raised eyebrows.
‘Yared,’ she said. ‘Why don’t you want to go to school?’
Yared squirmed. ‘I told you.’
‘Yes, and now you can tell me the truth.’
The silence dragged on again until at last Yared said, ‘Mr Moretti said he’d be away today.’
‘I see,’ his nanna said slowly. ‘And you think you’ll have that woman from last week again?’
‘Maybe,’ said Yared. ‘I don’t know. We might.’
Even n
ow he could feel his face getting hot as he remembered what she’d said to him. He didn’t want to see her ever again; she was mean and silly and ugly.
His nanna sighed. ‘Well, unfortunately there’s not much you can do about it. If she’s there she’s there, and if she’s not she’s not. I’m afraid I can’t let you stay home for no reason.’
‘It’s not no reason.’
‘Well I suppose that’s true,’ said his nanna, ‘but you’ll have to go to school anyway. Now there’s no point arguing, so run and get your things quick smart while I back the car out.’
Yared scuffed out of the room, his hands deep in his pockets.
When they chugged to a stop in the school car park Yared stayed sitting in the front seat, his hands clasped in his lap. He stared through the smudged windscreen at the jumble of children milling around the oval in their green and yellow uniforms. He thought he could spot Toby and Nick kicking a ball but he didn’t move from the car.
‘Well,’ said his nanna, ‘I suppose it’s time to say goodbye now.’
‘Mmm,’ said Yared.
His nanna squinted ahead at the playground. ‘I… well, it’s been nice having you stay. You can come again anytime you wish.’ There was a pause, then she said, ‘I hope… well, I know it’s a long time since I’ve had children, but I hope…’
Yared shrugged. ‘I didn’t mind,’ he said. ‘I liked the stories.’
‘The stories,’ said his nanna, turning to look at him. ‘That reminds me – I nearly forgot.’ She leant down to rummage in the handbag under her seat and brought out the old copper penny. ‘You asked me how you’d know what happened to it next,’ she said. ‘I thought… well, I wondered if you might like to keep it.’
‘Really?’ said Yared. ‘Can I?’ He stared at the coin as it lay on his nanna’s palm. ‘But isn’t it your treasure?’
His nanna smiled a strange smile. ‘Well… I think I have enough treasure without it,’ she said and put the coin in his hand. ‘You can keep this one if you’d like.’ She climbed out of the car and walked round to open Yared’s door as the bell sounded across the oval. ‘Now come on, out you hop,’ she said, ‘or you’ll be late.’
Yared scrambled out of the car, still staring at the battered coin in his hand. ‘Bye Nanna,’ he said and gave her a hug. ‘Thanks.’
‘Goodbye Yared. Have a good day.’ She squeezed his shoulder with one hand. ‘Remember to tell me sometime what happens next.’
Yared slipped the coin into his pocket, slung his bag onto his back and headed into the schoolyard. As he strode across the grass, mingling with the crowd of children straggling towards the classrooms, he thought of the coin in his pocket and smiled.
‘Yared,’ someone called and a football came flying through the air, bounced off his knee and fell to the ground.
He looked up to see Nick and Toby bearing down on him, each struggling to push ahead of the other.
‘Don’t let him get it!’ Toby yelled. ‘Don’t let him get it!’
Yared gave the ball a kick and it skidded away a few metres before Nick managed to pull away from Toby and scoop it up. He raced towards the classrooms, laughing, and Toby started to chase him before giving up and dropping to a walk beside Yared.
‘Guess what?’ he said once he’d caught his breath. ‘Lincoln brought his slingshot to school. I saw him get it out of his bag this morning.’
‘Really?’ said Yared. He could imagine what Lincoln was going to do with it: shoot stones at everyone when they weren’t watching. ‘I hope he gets in trouble.’
‘Yeah. And guess what else? I know who our teacher is today – it’s that lady from last week with the funny glasses.’
Yared felt his stomach clench. ‘How do you know?’
‘I saw her in our classroom.’
Sure enough, when Yared’s class had lined up along the side of their building it was Mrs Richmond who came to let them in. Yared ducked his head and hoped she wouldn’t notice him as he filed past her into the room. When she called his name on the roll he answered quickly, without looking up. His stomach felt tight and heavy and he didn’t know how he’d be able to last the whole day like this.
‘Now I wonder,’ Mrs Richmond said after finishing the roll. ‘Does anyone have show and tell for today?’
Yared glanced around the room then looked back at his desk. If they ever did show and tell Mr Moretti would tell them the day before, so they knew to bring something if they wanted. But no-one would have brought show and tell today; they hadn’t been warned about it. Lincoln, who sat in the row behind Yared, whispered something then gave a laugh.
‘Well?’ said Mrs Richmond. ‘I’m sure someone must have something.’
She began to look along the rows at each child in turn and Yared squirmed and shoved his hands in his pockets. If she recognised him from the week before she might say something, and then everyone would laugh at him again.
The fingers of his right hand brushed against something hard lying in his pocket. His nanna’s penny! No, he remembered, his penny. He risked a glance at Mrs Richmond as she stood up the front, her eyes sweeping round the class. Maybe… but no, he thought, he didn’t want to get up and talk. He didn’t want her to see him.
‘Well, if there’s no-one…’
Yared ran a fingernail around the scarred edge of the penny as it lay in his pocket, and thought of how many years it had been around. He thought of all the stories his nanna had told him about the coin – of the children who’d lost it, found it, dropped it, picked it up, spent it, saved it, thrown it and held it tightly. He thought of being able to tell the class – and silly old Mrs Richmond too – how much he’d learnt about his country and the people who were part of it.
‘…then we’ll move on to number facts,’ said Mrs Richmond.
That did it! Yared closed his fist around the penny and put his hand in the air.
Mrs Richmond squinted at him. ‘Yes?’ she said. ‘What is it?’
He took a deep breath. ‘I have something for show and tell.’
Historical Notes
Chapter 2 – 1911
When the colonies of Australia began preparing for Federation there was disagreement over which city would become the capital. The rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney meant that neither city would agree to the other becoming the National Capital, so to keep both sides happy the writers of the constitution decided that a new capital city would have to be built within the state of New South Wales, but at least 160 km away from Sydney.
Even after Federation occurred in 1901 though, it took years for the politicians to agree on exactly where to build the new city. In 1908 they finally decided on the Canberra-Yass region as the site for the new capital, and on 1 January 1911 the Australian Federal Territory (now called the Australian Capital Territory) officially came into existence. At that time around 1,700 people lived in the area that is now the ACT. Most of them lived on large sheep or cattle stations, or in one of the small villages in the region.
The year 1911 was also the first year that Australian pennies were produced. Before that Australians had generally used British coins or private bank notes, but after Federation the government had the power to introduce Australian money. In 1910 the first silver coins were minted (sixpences, threepences, shillings and florins), and in 1911 the first copper coins were made (pennies and half-pennies). They were minted in London, because the Australian mints weren’t equipped to produce bronze or silver coins yet.
In 1911 penny postage was introduced in Australia, which meant a letter could be sent anywhere in the country for only one penny. (It was the first fixed postage rate for the whole of Australia.) It was also around this time that men like Roald Amundsen, Robert Scott, Ernest Shackleton and Douglas Mawson were leading expeditions to explore Antarctica.
Chapter 3 – the First World War
In 1914 Australia was still part of the British Empire, so when Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August, Australia automatically went to war as
well. Over the next four years, until fighting stopped on 11 November 1918 (the day we now commemorate as Remembrance Day), Australian soldiers fought in places like France, Belgium, Turkey and Palestine. They fought alongside men from other countries of the British Empire, as well as men from Russia, France, Italy and America. Altogether, more than 330,000 Australians fought overseas during the war; over 60,000 of them died and 137,000 more were wounded.
At the start of the war many Australian men were eager to fight for the British Empire. The official enlistment age was 18, but often younger boys wrote false ages on their enlistment papers so that they could join the army too. If men didn’t enlist, neighbours sometimes sent them white feathers as a sign of cowardice, to try to pressure them into joining up. More than 2,000 Australian women also went overseas during the war, to nurse soldiers wounded during the fighting. They worked long and hard in difficult conditions, and were sometimes in great danger when their hospital tents were bombed or shelled.
When the war first broke out, the Australian Government introduced laws allowing it to imprison people it considered a threat to the country. In 1914 thousands of people living in Australia had been born in Germany, or had German parents or grandparents. Although many of them joined up to fight for Australia, there was still a lot of anti-German feeling. Around 4,500 people of German descent were interned during WWI, because the government was suspicious of their loyalties. (Later, during WWII, internment camps were used again for people of German, Japanese or Italian descent.)
The laws the government passed also allowed it to censor what was reported in the media, which meant that newspaper reports of battles were not always accurate. War correspondents were not allowed to talk about the gruesome effects of war or the number of soldiers killed, because the government wanted more men to join the army, and didn’t want people becoming depressed or alarmed. Instead, newspaper reports described battles as ‘thrilling’ and ‘splendid’, and exaggerated how successful the Australian attacks were.
A Penny in Time Page 11
