Community News

JUST ANOTHER DAY AT NORTHCOTE SCHOOL

MARY COOK Mary is a longtime writer with several books in print and in electronic format. ‘Mary Cook’s Memories’ appears as a regular column

You could smell the newness of Cecil’s overalls as soon as he walked into the room at the Northcote School. They looked as stiff as boards, and they covered most of his long, lanky body. All you could see was his ankle-high running shoes on his feet, and part of his neck and his face. It was easy to see he was mighty uncomfortable.

It didn’t take long for Two-Mile Herman to start teasing Cecil, which was a big mistake. You could see Cecil’s face starting to turn beet-red, and all eyes were on Miss Crosby who wandered over to Two-Mile’s desk, grabbed a hold of an ear, hauled him out of his seat, and sent him up to the one empty desk in the room right beside the teacher, kept there for just such a purpose.

The smell of the new overalls took over the room, drowning out the bags of lunch on the table

at the back.

Recess came, and Cecil nearly knocked everyone down getting out the door. He headed right for a muddy spot in the yard, and pretended to slip, but we all knew he fell on purpose, covering the bottom half of the overalls with mud. Then he moved to the little mound near the backhouse and finished the job of getting covered with dirt.

When Miss Crosby came out and rang the bell to tell us recess was over, Cecil’s overalls looked like they had been around for years. Miss Crosby took one look at Cecil and told

Two-Mile Herman to get the broom and sweep him off. Two-Mile got rid of the mud, but the smell of newness was still there.

The next day Cecil came to school in an old pair of overalls with patched knees, and pins holding the braces that smelled of cow byre. Two-Mile Herman knew better than to make any comment, but he held his nose when he went to sit at his desk across the aisle from Cecil.

It didn’t take long for Miss Crosby to open the bible and start to read the morning lesson, rubbing her forehead and using the other hand to support herself at her desk. It was just the start of another day at the Northcote School.

OPINION

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2022-05-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

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