Page 15 - My Memoirs - Max Kurz

I commenced secondary school in 1954 at South Sydney Technical School. The school was near where I lived about a 20-minute walk or 10 minutes by bike. I was gifted a red speedwell bike with 3 gears from my Aunty Anne. Unbeknown to me it was her way of resolving the commitment for shopping for my grandmother. Now that I had a bike, I was able to shop for her even to the extent of having to go to the kosher deli “Starks” in Bondi for bagels and smoked salmon etc. Life with my grandmother was not easy; she was demanding, for her what came first and foremost was cleaning the flat
including the silver, shopping, escorting her visitors’ home when the buses had ceased running. She showed no interest in my schooling, or my personal needs; she was totally narcissistic, and I felt very alone.
Schooling was a challenge. I was an ordinary scholar; life was about getting through each day without any thought about the future nor was there any self- motivation or encouragement from my family. I tended to take a back seat with regards to sports as this was my first real exposure to outdoor activities, and I did not learn to swim until I was fourteen. At school I developed a close relationship with Steven Kellner, and we remained friends for many years thereafter. Then there was Mark Eriera, my first cousin who attended the same school and the 3 of us became best buddies.
At a social level, I was close to my cousins Ruth (2 years younger) and Simone (same age), Aunty Anne’s daughters. There was a family ritual dinner at my Auntie’s home on Friday nights and social outings. My social scene developed because of my cousins as they were active in Jewish groups where I was introduced. We were teenagers experiencing what teenagers experience at that time of our lives. My cousins were very popular with the boys which placed me in good stead as to my acceptance by the groups. The only obstacle for me was that I lived on the other side of the tracks. In Jewish circles the center of the universe was Bondi and its environs. Where I lived was way out, 10 kms or 45minutes by
15