Our Man in Europe/Now BELIZE, Dave Delacroix (a.k.a on Facebook: David Michael Oxley): "GERONTIAN!"

 Our Man in Europe/now Belize, Dave Delacroix: "Gerontius!" 

(dedicato: Gordon Westeran/Marc Pierson/Steven Johnson; fellow Brits.)

"Gerontius!"

..."A la recherche du temps perdu"(MEMORIES). Memory, the stuff of chalk & glue, all now frazzled, framed, distorted with Time's garnered folly and abject wisdom.

CHILDHOOD FOCUS/fascination (Pre Internet-1950s) a fascination with an Elastic-band, collecting birds' eggs, breeding Hamsters (this in Yorkshire-England when Men were MEN & sheep were nervous?) Toy soldiers, reading BIGGLES, weekend - the Pennines - camping, a rite of passage; U come back home bitten by Midges/local mosquitoes, your face: Rice-Crackle & Pop! And of course, serious child-like Philosophical school yard discussions whilst seeing just WHO could SPIT the furthest, or FASTEST, run up HEELEY's "big hill"? And have U ever seen a GHOST? Or is it true your life unfolds in FAST-FORWARD when U drowned or actually DIE!? -even in the quick-slicing gears of a Combine Harvester? (We had to KNOW!?)

And thank U, a semi-Saviour (Onward Christian Soldiers!) Heeley-Sheffield Infants school where 2nd rate TEACHERS (a fave Whisky of mine/bring me some/can't get it in Belize?), where 2nd rate teachers sabotage/penalize ANY "wunderkind" to bring his fellow "Proles" up to speed & indoctrinate English Culture, the eternal apology: "I'm sorry. SO sorry. Sorry Can I help U?" -50-Sorry's per day, mandatory! -the British Life-lesson of KEEPING YOUR HEAD DOWN!!! .... Frick U! I Captained Aston Comp. Rugger Louts!!!

Junior-School was just as infantile. More "Field trips" to Working Farms, "COWS-MOOMOO-MOO! "a delightful (HELLISH!) excursion to an industrial/massive Sheffield Steel Works (Class needed YEARS of therapy afterwards/the ones gonna be farmers), at the FURNACES of HELL/Steelworks whose apprentice workers - sittin around reading Comics on break? -poor devils, a decade later made redundant by cheaper Japanese/Korean imports. Where R they now?

Comprehensive School, thank GOD for RUGGER! (Rugby). Leastways on the rugger field, rain, shine or snow U felt like, at least U could your kick ya OWN balls? Bovril & Sing-alongs in the SHARRAH-BUSKI (School Coach/away-games,) Saturday morning gigs?

And "Woe to the Vanquished" (Athelstan/Barbarian I think.) HUZZAH!!!- to the rise of Rock & Roll!

Was there any OTHER place to go?

"Mein-Got!" Age 70!!!! My fingernails R positively Gerontius! The battle of Waterloo? We nailed Napoleon, I guess, Hitler too...on a Rugger field.

c.dave delacroix, 2025