Open Writing

We had quite a walk to school. The Convent was just across the street from the school. And yes, they were strict, and they did use straps and yard sticks to get your attention, or reprimand you. The worst they ever did to me was giving me the strap on my hands. They'd make you stand in a corner or out in the hall. And the Priest came at least once a week to talk to us, weather we needed it or not.

I sometimes would go to the convent to help with there yard work. And I got to sing in the Choir, and at funeral masses. That was the one thing I loved about going to the Catholic School.

I only saw my dad go to church once. And he really seemed out of place there. But the Bishop was my favourite. He was funny and you could talk to him about anything.

When mom was gone and I couldn't find anything to eat I'd go and visit him. We would sit at this huge dining room table that could seat 12 easy. He got his housekeeper to make me a sandwich or something. Never hassled me at all. But he knew our whole family.

I didn't have a whole lot of friends as a child. But there was a few that would always play together. Our neighbor Mark next door. He was a little overweight and was very much a sissy. They had a garage in their back yard and we'd play Evy, Ivy, Over. That's a game where you throw the ball over the garage and the person on the other side catches it and has to tag someone running around the other side. What can I say, it kept us amused at time.

In later years I happen to meet Mark on a visit to Thunder Bay. He was married and had a child. I thought it was funny, but it seemed that he still was very childish and his wife didn't seem to happy with him. I'd be surprised if they were still together.

In the summer it was fun to raid the neighbours’ gardens. Not to damage anything, but fresh vegetables and berries were fun snacks. Old lady McNulty had a whole big lot all in a garden. She had strawberries and raspberries galore. And she planted potatoes.

Sometimes she would catch us. And yell to get out of the garden. We used to say she was a witch. She even had a young tree on the roadside that was city owned and she would yell "don't touch that tree" even if you were only standing by it. So sometimes we would go to the tree while one of us was in the garden.

Sometimes mom would say, "wouldn't strawberries be nice for desert tonight". Even give me a container to put them in.

The fall was great as had a 40 gallon drum in the back that dad would burn stuff in. We'd start a fire and then swipe some of old lady McNulty's potatoes. We'd wrap them in tin foil and put them in the hot coals of the fire till they were black. Man, I can taste those suckers now.

All the kids that I hung around with had pretty good families. Mark and I were together a lot. His mom never came to our house ever that I can remember.
Mark and I use to go swimming a lot. There was a river at the train bridge near us. It was high to dive off of. Sometimes we'd see a train coming and then wait till it got right on the bridge before diving off. A lot of us did that.

I was always a good swimmer. Everyone always knew where to look for me when the pool was open. One day there was a boy that was almost drowning and I got him to shore. It must have scared him terribly as I never saw him there again.

Mrs. McNulty was a tiny lady and lived alone. I really don't know much about her. But she had a long window by the front door and there was a coat rack that had a coat and a hat on it. With the dim hall light on at night it always looked like someone was standing there. That was why we called her a witch. But really we liked her. She new we were in her garden. I don't know what she did with all that garden food. Maybe she planted it for us.