Page 34 - moondani kyema
P. 34
ndani kyema, My Story - Ray Moore 34
Gradually each house settled into its new, self-help routine. Lessons began again on
a part-time basis. We sat on the 'beds' in some of the dormitories and wrote in pencil,
with exercise books on our knees. At other times, games were organized. There were
also vegetable gardens, chicken runs and goats. We had books to read, gramophone
records to listen to, concerts to improvise, religious services and Bible classes to
attend.
There were moments of excitement. One day a rabid dog came in the gate and ran
wildly around the place. There was a fair bit of open space inside the walls, and so it
was hard to capture the animal. The Japanese guards threw missiles such as half
bricks at it, and at least one of them found its target, making the dog even more
demented. Eventually it found the gate and ran outside into the town. I wondered
how much damage it would cause out there.
Just inside one stretch of wall was a bamboo grove. It was about five or six metres
wide and about sixty metres in length. One day while exploring this grove I
discovered a small, hidden outdoor chapel. There was a log pulpit and log pews,
enough to seat about fifteen people. As the property had belonged to a Presbyterian
mission, it was not hard to imagine that one of the missionaries or Chinese Christians
had built it. I was intrigued by it and in my imagination saw myself standing at the
pulpit and sharing my pearls of wisdom with the assembled company. It was the first
time I had thought about what I might be when I grew up, and it proved to be
prophetic.
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Gradually each house settled into its new, self-help routine. Lessons began again on
a part-time basis. We sat on the 'beds' in some of the dormitories and wrote in pencil,
with exercise books on our knees. At other times, games were organized. There were
also vegetable gardens, chicken runs and goats. We had books to read, gramophone
records to listen to, concerts to improvise, religious services and Bible classes to
attend.
There were moments of excitement. One day a rabid dog came in the gate and ran
wildly around the place. There was a fair bit of open space inside the walls, and so it
was hard to capture the animal. The Japanese guards threw missiles such as half
bricks at it, and at least one of them found its target, making the dog even more
demented. Eventually it found the gate and ran outside into the town. I wondered
how much damage it would cause out there.
Just inside one stretch of wall was a bamboo grove. It was about five or six metres
wide and about sixty metres in length. One day while exploring this grove I
discovered a small, hidden outdoor chapel. There was a log pulpit and log pews,
enough to seat about fifteen people. As the property had belonged to a Presbyterian
mission, it was not hard to imagine that one of the missionaries or Chinese Christians
had built it. I was intrigued by it and in my imagination saw myself standing at the
pulpit and sharing my pearls of wisdom with the assembled company. It was the first
time I had thought about what I might be when I grew up, and it proved to be
prophetic.
Return to Table of Contents
