Haveachat with Les Shipp

by Les Shipp

he was warm.

  THE SEA.

  Having lived most of my young life by a fresh water river and learning to swim in water that had boundaries, I never really trusted the sea with its great expanse. The few times I played in the surf was great fun, but I always kept an eye on the safety of the beach. On one occasion while out fishing with my brother in a small boat, as it bobbed up and down and up and down I felt so sick I contemplated jumping overboard and swimming back to shore. The only thing that stopped me was, would the sharks get me before I made it. My brother thought it was hilarious that I fed burly over the edge as he chomped on a packed lunch.

  I used to feel queasy going from Circular Key to Manly on the ferry, so it must have been total disregard to my wellbeing when I boarded the ship Fairsea on a six week’s journey to England.

  Back in 1958 only the very rich were able to travel by plane, so a boat it was for me. To my relief sailing from Sydney to Auckland was smooth and I felt great. Half way between Auckland and Tahiti we ran into a tropical storm. The ship bucked and plunged as I headed for the bathroom. Strangely that was the only time I felt seasick in the six weeks journey.

  As we approached Tahiti the sun was just rising behind the island. It was a magical sight with all the brilliant colour spreading out from behind the island. This beautiful sight was only possible by coming in from the sea. I thank the sea gods for giving me such a wondrous experience.

  It was a long haul from Tahiti to Panama, and it gave me a chance to observe the moods of the sea, and the creatures that lived in it, and almost getting on first name basis with the sail fish that seemed to follow the ship. Standing on the bow of the ship at night as it cut its way through the sea was a treat I enjoyed.

  Panama Canal was an experience. Man had tamed and organised the sea for his own use. Quite a feat really, and not often achieved. From Panama to Curacao in the West Indies was beautiful but uneventful. The sea being calm and not at all resentful of what man had done to it in the Canal.

  Two days from Curacao the ship broke down and for the next two days it wallowed at the sea’s will as they worked to fix the engine.

  That was the end of my exciting sea voyage as I was confined to the ship’s hospital for the remaining two weeks of my journey. I was very ill but not from seasickness. The drunk ship’s doctor and a fat Italian nurse who spoke no English were more tormentors than carers. They didn’t know what was wrong with me but they were cunning enough to unload all the passengers off the ship in Southampton before they reported my illness to the authorities.

  I spent the next six weeks in the Southampton hospital recovering from hepatitis. So ends my story of an epic sea voyage.

  FOOLS RUSH IN WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD.

  Jamie grew up in a poor farming family who had plenty to eat and clothes to wear but not much else. The house was furnished with homemade furniture, mainly made out of packing cases and a coolgardie safe instead of a refrigerator. It was a happy enough life and Jamie grew up self-reliant and ready for life. At fourteen he left home because there wasn’t enough income from the farm to support another adult.

  From the labour exchange he was sent to a station hands job on a large cattle station in Western Queensland. He was happy about this as he was well suited for the position and felt it would be a great adventure for him.

  When he reached the station he found that it was well run and very prosperous. He was very impressed when he met the owner who seemed to be a down to earth, no nonsense kind of man who would expect him to do a hard day’s work but would be fair. The overseer, an older man, was also down to earth and hard working. He would be Jamie’s immediate boss. The day’s work started at daybreak and often went to sundown, which was fine with Jamie as it had been the same as his life on the farm at home.

  Jamie thrived on his life and over time grew into a fine young man who had the respect of his co-workers and his overseer. He never had much to do with the main homestead and didn’t know anything about how they lived. He was happy living in the men’s quarters with the company of the others and three square meals a day and good pay.

  As he rode past the homestead one day he saw a beautiful young girl who took his breath away. That night back at the men’s quarters he asked the overseer about her. The overseer said yes it was the owner’s daughter who had been away at boarding school and was now at university. Seeing the look on Jamie’s face the overseer added, just forget you saw her, she is well beyond your league. But Jamie couldn’t get her out of his mind and over time he felt a burning desire to meet her. This didn’t happen for some time until the young lady graduated from university and came home to stay full time. Her mother had died and her father needed someone to run the homestead. Even then the meeting didn’t happen until there was a raging bush fire on the property. The men along with the owner fought the fire day and night and that’s when Jamie finally met the young lady. She brought tea and food to the men fighting the fires and Jamie learned that her name was Jane. She wasn’t at all what he expected, not standoffish in the least. They had several chances for long chats and Jamie became more and more besotted with her. There was one big problem with their budding friendship. She was the daughter of a rich man who lived in a completely different world to him. Although he had saved up quite a bit of money, he was still the hired hand. He was very aware of this and was quite shy about his position, but he couldn’t get her out of his mind. He knew he would either have to leave his job or do something about his dilemma. Eventually he plucked up enough courage to tell Jane how he felt and was overwhelmed by her response. She looked upon him as someone she would love to be with.

  He decided the matter had to be resolved right now, so one evening he fronted up at the homestead dressed in his best. He wasn’t very sure about the reception he would get, so with heart pounding he knocked on the door. Jane answered the door and told him she had spoken to her father about him but wasn’t sure how he felt about welcoming him as a son-in-law. He thought I might be a fool rushing in where angels fear to tread but it’s something I must do.

  Jane’s father had his eye on Jamie’s work for some time and had him in mind for a future overseer, but this was something else.

  The father adored his daughter and wanted her happiness above all else. He was impressed with the forthright way Jamie had come to ask for Jane’s hand. It was a great relief to Jane and Jamie when he agreed to allow them to court if they didn’t rush into anything. All’s well that ends well, fool’s rush in, que sera sera. They lived happily ever after.

  A SQUARE PEG IN A ROUND HOLE.

  Everyone knows this doesn’t work, but does it really need to. They say no man is an island unto himself, but this is not necessarily so either. Some can sail through life completely self-contained, and if they do not fit into that round hole that’s considered normal, they are unique, and with their uniqueness are able to live a sound and productive life. It is not what the general run of people who work towards acceptance would like, or at times, feel comfortable with in others.

  Having grown up isolated from other children, except for brief amounts of time, I never gave being a square peg much thought. I was happy with my own company mainly because there wasn’t much choice, and I did have my horses and dog to keep me company. They never considered me square or indeed round, it was just me. My siblings were much older than me so they didn’t give a fig if I was square or round. Looking back I don’t think they really knew if I was there or not. Strange kid but then strange kids have to grow up.

  In the early fifties out in Western New South Wales there was a mighty shearer’s strike that turned nasty. On the property I worked on the sheep were badly in need of shearing but no shearers would touch them. In desperation the two sons of the owner and myself hopped in and shore them ourselves. This enraged the unionist and I was told to just wait until we get you in the pub. I found this a joke as I had never set foot in a pub in my life. What I saw of the six o’clock swill that was a go at the time, I thought I probably
never would.

  The fact that I was never a serious drinker often put me in the square peg category, especially when I went to work for a large company that mainly employed men. The majority of which would go straight from work to the pub, and stay there until they arrived home just before their dinners were spoilt. I on the other hand was off to Teck, rehearsing a musical or giving my time to charity. This was not fitting into that round hole, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

  LUCILLE.

  Ruby worked in a diner on the outskirts of a small town just out of Sacramento. She was well liked and worked hard at her job. The hours were long but the wages allowed her to live in comfort in her one bedroom flat. She was very satisfied with her life as her parents had been slaves on a farm but were now free. Their lives had been much harder than her life now and although no longer slaves, their lives hadn’t improved much. Ruby was an African- American but her colouring indicated that a white ancestor was in the mix.

  Sanchez was an immigrant from Mexico and worked as a fettler on the railroad nearby and lived in a fettlers hut out along the railway line. He also worked long hours and wanted to better himself, but for the time being he wasn’t making much headway.