THE OLD PUMP-HOUSE & THE WELL
THE TWIN FOOTBALL FIELDS(Please double-click on picture for an enlarged view)
Photos by Tonferns 2001
RAINY DAYS & MONDAYS AT MONTE
Rainy days and Mondays, they say, even in a song. But rainy days at school, added by a Monday meant a very boring day with a tendency of getting us and our spirits down. So, in this eventuality it would mean that there would be no outside play during breaks in the afternoon, or games in the evenings down the hill at the twin football fields. This was because of the fear that the boys would get sick if they got wet in the rain on the way back from the playgrounds. Boarders would have then to succumb to being confined to the long corridors or verandahs of the school buildings and pass their time with improvised games or read in the classrooms.
But for Felicio, who was a day-scholar, it was a different story altogether in sharp contrast to a boarder's routine. He tried his best to avoid the rain, or let it succeed in getting him down! For Felicio, who had to trek nearly 2 miles through the fields, be it through from light drizzles to torrential downpours of the monsoon season, it was nevertheless an arduous task.
Rising early in the morning Felicio glanced at the time-table stuck to the wall a little above his small study table in the dim morning light, sorted and selected his text and copy books for the day, while mother prepared his breakfast and also had his ‘tiffin’ ready.
Dark clouds loomed overhead with signs of impending showers of rain. So, for Felicio it seemed it was necessary to foresee the inclement weather conditions and have the books packed in a clear plastic bag which his mother had bought for him from Bhobe’s Stationery Shop in Mapusa. From the nearby ‘Tintto’ at Parra, Felicio had acquired thick rubber bands from the cycle repair shop, to hold the books together around in the plastic. He would then place this pack in turn into another bag that he would sling over his shoulder. And as if that was not enough, there was the raincoat and an umbrella. Felicio considered himself fully armed, before he set out on the long and usual hike to the school on the top of the hill.
Cumbiem Morod, Guirim. It was a modest and vibrant little ward of Guirim, where Felicio lived. There were 10 or 11 other boys in his village that went to the same school. They met at the point in the village where the worn paths crossed at the centre of the village near the small chapel by the well, waiting for the other boys before they started their onward march to the school, while Felicio, being the youngest, brought up the rear of the bee-line.
Handling and keeping the books, the ‘buthi’ (tiffin) and himself dry from the elements with a raincoat and an umbrella was quite a feat for little Felicio. Often they would stop and seek shelter in the balcao of a house on the way, whenever the showers very heavy. At the same time they were afraid of waiting for too long, as they would then arrive late to school.
Day-scholars who got their uniform wet in the rain would often be sent home by the headmaster, because of the risk of getting sick due to the dampness. Felicio experienced this on many occasions, and would always try to avoid being sent home.
Sometime in mid-July of circa 1956, the day had begun with intense precipitation combined with strong winds, and the rain water had somehow found its way and seeped into Felicio’s uniform through a tear in the side-pockets of his rain coat.
And so, as nature had its way, Felicio had found his day!
A rainy day had finally gotten him down. But it had an extra benefit and enjoyment of taking the long way home - walking along the main road passing partly through Guirim and Parra Jaknnim, because cutting through the fields as usual was impossible due to the flooding of the pathways through the fields that led to his humble home.
Although the years seem to have drifted away I cannot but help reminisce our bathing time after playing at those grounds when the “Boarding Father”, assisted by student volunteers, would toss on us water in buckets, drawn from the well near the grounds. Then upwards on the winding path through the cashew fruit trees up the hill we trudged again for days, months and years on end. When we at last made to the hill-top just before dusk, far down below we could still the farmers tending to their vegetable patches and rice crops in the fields.
All the electrical work was done and maintained by a dedicated Friar. His name was Bro. Diogo. Tube lights were first installed in the chapel in the late fifties. The generator, or dynamo as it was popularly known then, was used only in the night up to 11 pm. and sometimes when the skies darkened in the daytime during the rainy season. A new “dynamo” with more wattage was installed in the late fifties to cater to the additional demand created by newly added classrooms. As the old one could no longer take the full load it was then put on stand-by in case of an emergency.
An interesting and nostalgic moment that I recall is being fascinated by the pump house diesel engine that turned a long v-belt connected to a powerful water-pump that pumped water up to the school premises from the square shaped well – a remarkable engineering feat those days. As young boys we would put our ear on the pipe that ran up the hill to hear the faint murmur of the engine and the water gushing through it. The school also had a lightning conductor installed on the side of the steeple of the chapel. This provided safety not only for the school premises, but also protected the surrounding villages from severe lightning strikes.
Tony Felix (Felicio) Fernandes
Guirim, Cumbiem Morod,
(Story of Circa 1956)
But for Felicio, who was a day-scholar, it was a different story altogether in sharp contrast to a boarder's routine. He tried his best to avoid the rain, or let it succeed in getting him down! For Felicio, who had to trek nearly 2 miles through the fields, be it through from light drizzles to torrential downpours of the monsoon season, it was nevertheless an arduous task.
Rising early in the morning Felicio glanced at the time-table stuck to the wall a little above his small study table in the dim morning light, sorted and selected his text and copy books for the day, while mother prepared his breakfast and also had his ‘tiffin’ ready.
Dark clouds loomed overhead with signs of impending showers of rain. So, for Felicio it seemed it was necessary to foresee the inclement weather conditions and have the books packed in a clear plastic bag which his mother had bought for him from Bhobe’s Stationery Shop in Mapusa. From the nearby ‘Tintto’ at Parra, Felicio had acquired thick rubber bands from the cycle repair shop, to hold the books together around in the plastic. He would then place this pack in turn into another bag that he would sling over his shoulder. And as if that was not enough, there was the raincoat and an umbrella. Felicio considered himself fully armed, before he set out on the long and usual hike to the school on the top of the hill.
Cumbiem Morod, Guirim. It was a modest and vibrant little ward of Guirim, where Felicio lived. There were 10 or 11 other boys in his village that went to the same school. They met at the point in the village where the worn paths crossed at the centre of the village near the small chapel by the well, waiting for the other boys before they started their onward march to the school, while Felicio, being the youngest, brought up the rear of the bee-line.
Handling and keeping the books, the ‘buthi’ (tiffin) and himself dry from the elements with a raincoat and an umbrella was quite a feat for little Felicio. Often they would stop and seek shelter in the balcao of a house on the way, whenever the showers very heavy. At the same time they were afraid of waiting for too long, as they would then arrive late to school.
Day-scholars who got their uniform wet in the rain would often be sent home by the headmaster, because of the risk of getting sick due to the dampness. Felicio experienced this on many occasions, and would always try to avoid being sent home.
Sometime in mid-July of circa 1956, the day had begun with intense precipitation combined with strong winds, and the rain water had somehow found its way and seeped into Felicio’s uniform through a tear in the side-pockets of his rain coat.
And so, as nature had its way, Felicio had found his day!
A rainy day had finally gotten him down. But it had an extra benefit and enjoyment of taking the long way home - walking along the main road passing partly through Guirim and Parra Jaknnim, because cutting through the fields as usual was impossible due to the flooding of the pathways through the fields that led to his humble home.
Although the years seem to have drifted away I cannot but help reminisce our bathing time after playing at those grounds when the “Boarding Father”, assisted by student volunteers, would toss on us water in buckets, drawn from the well near the grounds. Then upwards on the winding path through the cashew fruit trees up the hill we trudged again for days, months and years on end. When we at last made to the hill-top just before dusk, far down below we could still the farmers tending to their vegetable patches and rice crops in the fields.
All the electrical work was done and maintained by a dedicated Friar. His name was Bro. Diogo. Tube lights were first installed in the chapel in the late fifties. The generator, or dynamo as it was popularly known then, was used only in the night up to 11 pm. and sometimes when the skies darkened in the daytime during the rainy season. A new “dynamo” with more wattage was installed in the late fifties to cater to the additional demand created by newly added classrooms. As the old one could no longer take the full load it was then put on stand-by in case of an emergency.
An interesting and nostalgic moment that I recall is being fascinated by the pump house diesel engine that turned a long v-belt connected to a powerful water-pump that pumped water up to the school premises from the square shaped well – a remarkable engineering feat those days. As young boys we would put our ear on the pipe that ran up the hill to hear the faint murmur of the engine and the water gushing through it. The school also had a lightning conductor installed on the side of the steeple of the chapel. This provided safety not only for the school premises, but also protected the surrounding villages from severe lightning strikes.
Tony Felix (Felicio) Fernandes
Guirim, Cumbiem Morod,
(Story of Circa 1956)
