Monday Morning sometime 1974, Springvale Primary school, hundreds of youngsters standing on a sea of black asphalt, standing on the cracks, standing on the lines that define the basketball court, looking toward the headmaster speaking about something or other. Alraedy the day is hot , the sky is an unbroken blue diamond – unbreakable, it seems no clouds can penetrate its defence. The yellow disc is pulsing wavers of heat like electricity, like having your fingers across a nine volt battery – These are not the days of sunscreen that smells of chemical goodness, or hats with floppy sides and peaked cap and #7 sunglasses to keep your eyes pristine, no . Who knew then what we know now about the cancer causing sun. The ozone layer had not been sucked into space at that stage, sunburn was worn like a medal. Peeling snakeskins shown proudly at recess on the football field. No back here in 1974 we’re all lined up in our size fours, scuffed and unpolished, blue shirt tails hanging out of our Grey shorts getting ready to sing the national anthem.

“God save our gracious queen,
Long live our gracious queen……
noble and glorious
proud and victorious……

Of course as children we had no issue singing about a queen in some throne in some far away land – and heavens, being an immigrant fresh off the plane it was all perfectly natural, but someone in some place in high power had determined enough was enough. Was there a vote? Was there debate? I don’t recall, but now it’s “Australians all let us rejoice for we are young and free”……. I did take it on myself to learn those words – hard! Our land is ‘girt’ by sea… now to get that one in I had to do a bit of a look up. The inter-net is a wonderful thing isn’t it? Just a few taps on the keys and Googleworld opens up before you, lines of blue and black code that take you on mysterious journeys to another time dimension because by the time I found that girt’ meant ‘surrounded’, an hour had evaporated. Gone! No longer mine, ungettable again. So the girt begat an advert begat a purchase became a download. You know the chain. And with the fantastic plastic it’s all so easy……. [thanks to Lily Allen for the fantastic plastic line!]