- a memoir by Greg Jones

(Public Edit Version)
CHAPTER TWO: BRAVE NEW WORLD

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__________________

1983

I was enrolled at Narellan Public School in the later half of 1983 shortly after we arrived at our new residence. A new beginning was ahead of me, new friends to make, and here I would also find my first enemies. There was not enough time to get attached to any teacher during that year, so little is remembered of Mrs Owen, or Mrs Ludwig who were my teachers there. It was a hard experience moving from school to school, however my report results showed a high to very high achievement in all fields of personal and social development, recreational and academic areas.

That year was also a big year for venturing out as a family, one place in particular was Manly, in Sydney. It must have been my first real experience in a big city. We took a Water Cat from Circular Quay to Manly and arrived next to a huge amusement centre, the first one I had ever seen. I was truly amazed at the concept of a 'fun parlour'. I loved the bendy mirrors (that totally distort your figure), the head-swinging clowns (where you put ping-pong balls into their mouths and receive prizes from an accumulation of points), and the moving maze-walk. At 8 years of age I was starting to look forward to getting out more and exploring the world around me. We went camping as a family at Sussex Inlet (further south of Sydney) and I remember the sights, sounds and smells of the whole camping experience there; listening to the waves breaking nearby, different types of birds whistling, sausages and onions cooking on the barbeque plate and getting sand everywhere inside our tents and clothes. We also made some good sand sculptures on the beach near the site. At the inlet there was a natural whirl-pool which Dad told me takes you all the way out to sea if you happen to get caught in it.

Wonderment set in.

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