Here are
a number of extracts from the memoirs of Mr
Ken MacArthur who taught
at St James’ School in the 1960s.
I had some sorting out to do in my mind as
there were so many conflicts between
what I had been
trained to do and expected, and the conditions
and situations with which I was faced. A few “heart
to hearts” with friends and colleagues
and an occasional “tête à tête” with
Mr Lloyd helped; although, looking back, there
were few people who could have done what Mr Lloyd
did for St James’. He could convince you
that; he had no more money; you were doing a
superb job; you could turn water into wine; and,
no doubt, that your reward would be in heaven.
You came away wondering if you had been drinking.
One moment you would see him striding across
the grounds to assembly in his gown; later he
might be discussing roof repairs with a builder
or advising “Pop” Prescot on the
boiler; after school he might be cutting the
hedge outside his office or off to the sports
field to do a bit of “groundwork”...
On one of my first mornings at St James’,
I was walking across the yard towards my workshop
when my eyes set upon a “character” in
a lab coat, assessing the world and the morning
with a sense of timelessness that almost seemed
odd. As I approached, he said in a most interested
way, “Who are you?”
“
Ken MacArthur” I replied, “New teacher
- and you?”
“
Hugh Webb - biology teacher” he replied.
“
You’re not new?” I said.
“
Oh no! I’ve been around for a while!”
Little did I know then of either the significance
of those words or the lifelong friendship
that would develop between us...
I have also heard it said that “you do
not have to be in a Church or cathedral to have
a religious experience” and I think that
sums up St James’ - it was no cathedral,
in terms of architecture or equipment, but it
was probably unsurpassed in terms of experience.
I hope that the experience - emitting from its
heart - will be as valuable to those in the future
as it was to me, and those of us in the past.
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