I have already noted some turning points in my life. The trip to England in 1952 and the concert by the Vienna philharmonic in Salzburg were definitely life changing moments. Add to this a growing desire to be independent. Wonderful as they were Mum and Dad were both very strong characters and Mum always said she pushed me out of the nest. Otherwise I would probably never have married and continued returning home regularly for food and no doubt washing! None of us could see that the bubble would burst eventually and I was about to have my eyes opened.
1970 began with attending a Mass at St Mary's cathedral with the Bishop and clergy falling all over each other which I comment was medieval popery with incense and bicycle type bells. I did love all this at school but of course it was done decently and in order! Helen Joseph a notable campaigner against the government said she would support Dad in his application to become cathedral organist. This did not succeed mainly through ffrench-Beytagh's being away. We had a holiday at Champagne castle involving walks and I think I had a go at bowls but not horse riding. Our table won the quiz because I knew the zoology questions in the last round. Many got a tummy bug and it rained.
Before we went away I was longing to be moved from the branch HQ job and I was duly appointed as Non-European branch organiser.. Note the title as I was in charge of 14 libraries for Africans, Coloureds and Indians. I shadows my predecessor Claire Wiltshire for a week. She had found a librarian dead in front of a library. There were murders very weekend. Maurice queued 4 and a half hours for SABC orchestra season tickets at th Civic theatre. I note my frustration with Essie Aremband who was too demanding and fussy. There were too many people thinking they were in charge and arguing for position in that office! I went for the tea with the Mayor who was fairly interested. I was a combination of boss, delivery man of books and pay and referee. We had a weekly meeting of the librarians and they fought cat and dog over every little thing dividing along racial lines. I was assure that I was very safe as any attack on me would be immediately reports by police spies. The one Asian librarian at Lenasia 20 miles away was determined to get me to make political comments which I never did. the really stupid thing was having to wear a white coat over my safari suit (shorts) which got filthy every day. Could I wear a brown coat Mum asked? No that was for the Non-Europeans as they were called! I was not doing my back any favours lugging heavy boxes about in and out of a white Landrover. The next week I had a collision - the cops came but drove past! When I phoned again on a landline they came after 45 minutes and monad at me for not stopping them. "We don't have time to look for accidents!"
I was very scathing about the SABC orchestra concerts in my diary. Dad told off Maurice for being "too critical and spoiling it for others" but of course Maurice was right but perhaps h would have done well to choose his audience for his remarks! Knud Nielsen came to give organ recitals from Copenhagen with his wife Myrli - they were charming and we took them to Pretoria. I proposed a toast to the guests at the Guild dinner and my jokes went down well. (page 74 for the start of the Guild)
All the staff were called Mr. Mr Makhudu was my assistant and said to me "Mr Woodhouse you're a good man" . "I try to be" "You will never understand us because you do not speak our language".
He was so right. How much better it would have been to learn Zulu instead of Latin with the dreaded Spike.Or instead of French at university.
I went to a Lent group with Miss Laver and Dad - she did not like his unorthodox comments! Bosmont library was burgled twice leading to lots of for fillings. I went to the cathedral to hear the wonderful Donald Coggan who I met later in London. He was then Archbishop of York and spoke magnificently on the spiritual and physical hunger of the world with the population growing by 8000 every hour.
1970 began with attending a Mass at St Mary's cathedral with the Bishop and clergy falling all over each other which I comment was medieval popery with incense and bicycle type bells. I did love all this at school but of course it was done decently and in order! Helen Joseph a notable campaigner against the government said she would support Dad in his application to become cathedral organist. This did not succeed mainly through ffrench-Beytagh's being away. We had a holiday at Champagne castle involving walks and I think I had a go at bowls but not horse riding. Our table won the quiz because I knew the zoology questions in the last round. Many got a tummy bug and it rained.
Before we went away I was longing to be moved from the branch HQ job and I was duly appointed as Non-European branch organiser.. Note the title as I was in charge of 14 libraries for Africans, Coloureds and Indians. I shadows my predecessor Claire Wiltshire for a week. She had found a librarian dead in front of a library. There were murders very weekend. Maurice queued 4 and a half hours for SABC orchestra season tickets at th Civic theatre. I note my frustration with Essie Aremband who was too demanding and fussy. There were too many people thinking they were in charge and arguing for position in that office! I went for the tea with the Mayor who was fairly interested. I was a combination of boss, delivery man of books and pay and referee. We had a weekly meeting of the librarians and they fought cat and dog over every little thing dividing along racial lines. I was assure that I was very safe as any attack on me would be immediately reports by police spies. The one Asian librarian at Lenasia 20 miles away was determined to get me to make political comments which I never did. the really stupid thing was having to wear a white coat over my safari suit (shorts) which got filthy every day. Could I wear a brown coat Mum asked? No that was for the Non-Europeans as they were called! I was not doing my back any favours lugging heavy boxes about in and out of a white Landrover. The next week I had a collision - the cops came but drove past! When I phoned again on a landline they came after 45 minutes and monad at me for not stopping them. "We don't have time to look for accidents!"
I was very scathing about the SABC orchestra concerts in my diary. Dad told off Maurice for being "too critical and spoiling it for others" but of course Maurice was right but perhaps h would have done well to choose his audience for his remarks! Knud Nielsen came to give organ recitals from Copenhagen with his wife Myrli - they were charming and we took them to Pretoria. I proposed a toast to the guests at the Guild dinner and my jokes went down well. (page 74 for the start of the Guild)
All the staff were called Mr. Mr Makhudu was my assistant and said to me "Mr Woodhouse you're a good man" . "I try to be" "You will never understand us because you do not speak our language".
He was so right. How much better it would have been to learn Zulu instead of Latin with the dreaded Spike.Or instead of French at university.
I went to a Lent group with Miss Laver and Dad - she did not like his unorthodox comments! Bosmont library was burgled twice leading to lots of for fillings. I went to the cathedral to hear the wonderful Donald Coggan who I met later in London. He was then Archbishop of York and spoke magnificently on the spiritual and physical hunger of the world with the population growing by 8000 every hour.
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