Saturday 24 November 2012

memoir interlude/The World Just Beyond.

By 1965 my parents had achieved a measure of success.Both had been born in the middle of the Gret Depression and must have known hard times.Both had come of age during the Second World War,and the relative prosperity that followed.They had worked and saved and lived within their means until they could afford a house.In short,they had a young family and had attained a level of security.And thus,having known a life with a downside,they were determined to protect their children and give them the possibility of a good life.

Our move to Moncton had a number of practical effects.To begin with,there was simply no comparing the infrastructure of northern New Brunswick with that in Moncton.Instead of driving for miles over bad roads,in all kinds of weather,everything a modern,medium sized city had to offer was within a few minutes from home.Our house was much newer,new streets were being finished,and there was even a new school being built only a couple of blocks away.By the time we were ready for school,we would be able to attend in a modern building,instead of the one room,rundown school with outdoor plumbing that my mother used to teach in.And,rather than a lengthy bus trip,school would be just a short walk from home.

Moving to the city also meant that both of my parents were closer to their childhood homes.Or,at least closer than they had been during the first few years of their working lives.My mother's family still lived about two hundred miles west,and Springhill,my fathers hometown was within about an hours drive.As much as they liked being nearer to family,I'm certain that they didn't want to live in the same town as either of their parents,so Moncton was a comfortable compromise.Maybe the only downside was that my father had a two hour drive to work,instead of the ten minute drive from Redmondville.

Once we were in Moncton,there was a lot of family around for a while.I can recall that my grandmother Graham was around,as was my mothers sister,Ruby.And ,of course Anna English was in River Glade,at the sanatorium,stricken with tuberculosis.Without a doubt,the fact that we lived in Moncton must have made that time a bit easier than it would otherwise have been.Still,it must have been a trying time for everyone including my mother.Even so,no one let on that it was.I don't recall anyone speaking a word of it,and I don't recall that our sense of comfort was ever in question.While my mother worked,other family members saw that we were well cared for.

My father was even closer to his hometown.His father still lived around Springhill,as did his sister,my Aunt Roseanna.So we visited quite frequently and every time we did I was amazed that my father seemed to know everyone in town..

My Grandmother Davis lived in Shubenacidie,deeper into Nova Scotia,but still reasonably close to Moncton,so we visited there too.

Southeast New Brunswick seemed the ideal place for my father,as it was about as close as you could get to Nova Scotia as you could get without actually being there.And my father was Nova Scotian to the bone.

But of course,there was the business of keeping children sheltered from some parts of reality.Our homecoming must have complicated that undertaking considerably,as there were situations and characters that would require some well thought out explanations.

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