Page 312 - Three Score Years & Ten
P. 312
“THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN” MISSIONARY WORK IN CHINA
Amy Moore
Yang Xian where Sadie was keeping her company until the end of the month when Sadie would go for
class work to Xinji.
We were excited, not only to have some of the older workers back, but to be told that, with new
workers being accepted for China now that the war was over, two young ladies from Australia would
be joining us. One was Ailsa Lumsden, whose parents were in charge of the Men’s Hostel at MBI
when I was a student there, and the other was Betty Worth from Tasmania. Geoff and Ilma Malins
were back and living in the Local Sec. House in Hanzhong and he had taken over the secretarial work
which also relieved a lot of Percy’s burdens.
In October Percy had to go to Shanghai for Council meetings and although it was too expensive for
me to go with him, which I would love to have done just to see our boys again, he suggested I take a
holiday anyway and go with him as far as Baoji, where I could stay at the Bible School with the
Fischbachers till he returned. I was really tired and fed up with housekeeping, so I jumped at the
chance of getting away for awhile, especially as Ilma was there now to look after any guests who
might come through.
It was a wonderful time to be travelling through our lovely mountains. The autumn colours everywhere
were beautiful and I found it hard to decide whether I loved them more like that or in the depths of
winter when they were covered in snow, or in spring as I first saw them and fell in love with them after
Language School. Dorothy and I went through to Xi’an with Percy and stayed two days in the
hospitable Scandinavian Mission Home till he went off on the plane to Shanghai. Then we took the six
hours train journey back to Baoji and settled in with the Fischbachers till Percy’s return.
Theo and Olive were both teaching in the Bible School and Dorothy was able to play with their little
Philip who was about the same age, so I had the days quiet except for keeping an eye on the children.
Dorothy was wildly excited over her very first train trip. She thought it was wonderful. What pleased
her most was a big baby doll that Olive Fischbacher gave her, one somebody at home sent her to give
away. Dorothy had longed for a doll ever since she saw Gwenda Beck’s doll and I had promised her
one when we went on furlough. Now she had one and she called her Betty, that was Gwenda’s doll’s
name and Dorothy had wanted her doll to be Betty too. Jack Beck had not come back from
Shanghai by the time Percy got home, from his extended stay in the northern part of the province, and
I was feeling sorry for Myrie. He had decided to come back by road rather than plane. Actually he
would have come by plane, but when he wanted to get a ticket he was told all planes were booked up
till the end of December, so he had no choice, but it was already two months since he had left with the
children.
Now that parcels were beginning to come through from Australia, my mother was beginning to send
small things through which she knew I could use but had not been able to buy locally, like sewing
machine needles and good sewing cotton and elastic and safety pins. I had done a lot of sewing for
the outfits of the three boys but it was wonderful not to have to make everything from second hand
things as I had done with Alan three years before. Mother had bought most of the things in Perth and
sent them direct to Shanghai. In the parcel she sent to Hanzhong was underwear for me, a woollen
pullover for Percy and a lovely little green cardigan for Dorothy. She was delighted and did not want
to take it off ever at bed time! Then she asked, “Who gave me that sweater?” and when I said
“Grandma”, she said, “Nice little Grandma! When am I going to see her?”
One of my cousins had sent a suit for a boy which she knew would be too small for my boys, but
thought I could give away. I immediately thought of Marjorie Smith with her four boys and felt sure she
would be glad of it, so I sent it off to her at once.
312
Amy Moore
Yang Xian where Sadie was keeping her company until the end of the month when Sadie would go for
class work to Xinji.
We were excited, not only to have some of the older workers back, but to be told that, with new
workers being accepted for China now that the war was over, two young ladies from Australia would
be joining us. One was Ailsa Lumsden, whose parents were in charge of the Men’s Hostel at MBI
when I was a student there, and the other was Betty Worth from Tasmania. Geoff and Ilma Malins
were back and living in the Local Sec. House in Hanzhong and he had taken over the secretarial work
which also relieved a lot of Percy’s burdens.
In October Percy had to go to Shanghai for Council meetings and although it was too expensive for
me to go with him, which I would love to have done just to see our boys again, he suggested I take a
holiday anyway and go with him as far as Baoji, where I could stay at the Bible School with the
Fischbachers till he returned. I was really tired and fed up with housekeeping, so I jumped at the
chance of getting away for awhile, especially as Ilma was there now to look after any guests who
might come through.
It was a wonderful time to be travelling through our lovely mountains. The autumn colours everywhere
were beautiful and I found it hard to decide whether I loved them more like that or in the depths of
winter when they were covered in snow, or in spring as I first saw them and fell in love with them after
Language School. Dorothy and I went through to Xi’an with Percy and stayed two days in the
hospitable Scandinavian Mission Home till he went off on the plane to Shanghai. Then we took the six
hours train journey back to Baoji and settled in with the Fischbachers till Percy’s return.
Theo and Olive were both teaching in the Bible School and Dorothy was able to play with their little
Philip who was about the same age, so I had the days quiet except for keeping an eye on the children.
Dorothy was wildly excited over her very first train trip. She thought it was wonderful. What pleased
her most was a big baby doll that Olive Fischbacher gave her, one somebody at home sent her to give
away. Dorothy had longed for a doll ever since she saw Gwenda Beck’s doll and I had promised her
one when we went on furlough. Now she had one and she called her Betty, that was Gwenda’s doll’s
name and Dorothy had wanted her doll to be Betty too. Jack Beck had not come back from
Shanghai by the time Percy got home, from his extended stay in the northern part of the province, and
I was feeling sorry for Myrie. He had decided to come back by road rather than plane. Actually he
would have come by plane, but when he wanted to get a ticket he was told all planes were booked up
till the end of December, so he had no choice, but it was already two months since he had left with the
children.
Now that parcels were beginning to come through from Australia, my mother was beginning to send
small things through which she knew I could use but had not been able to buy locally, like sewing
machine needles and good sewing cotton and elastic and safety pins. I had done a lot of sewing for
the outfits of the three boys but it was wonderful not to have to make everything from second hand
things as I had done with Alan three years before. Mother had bought most of the things in Perth and
sent them direct to Shanghai. In the parcel she sent to Hanzhong was underwear for me, a woollen
pullover for Percy and a lovely little green cardigan for Dorothy. She was delighted and did not want
to take it off ever at bed time! Then she asked, “Who gave me that sweater?” and when I said
“Grandma”, she said, “Nice little Grandma! When am I going to see her?”
One of my cousins had sent a suit for a boy which she knew would be too small for my boys, but
thought I could give away. I immediately thought of Marjorie Smith with her four boys and felt sure she
would be glad of it, so I sent it off to her at once.
312
