the beginning and the end

Over the last two days I have had contact with ex-students from the beginning of my teaching career and one near the end of it.

Hae Mama was in my 1962 primary school class in Papua. Silje Carling was in my 1998 high school class in Western Australia.

Hae rang me early yesterday morning on his government phone and asked for Mr Lock. Being constantly plagued by Indian call centres I told him to 'piss off and don't call again'. It was only after that I realised it may have been from Hae and I had to ring him back and apologise. He understood.

Silje, tonight, sought me out on FaceBook. I am into the internet technology, but not young enough at 68 to participate in all the ad-ons that FaceBook has. None-the-less I was pretty chuffed that Sil searched me out for her first 'friend' on FaceBook. She is an American and spent one year in W.A. at my school when her father was on exchange at Murdoch University.
We have kept in contact and I have followed her career as a teacher. This contact came out of the blue because it has been over a year since we last talked. Must get her on Skype although I might get a younger handsome brother to front up to the video chat.