DANCING DAYS - a poem by Frank
Dodsworth.
Read at the Ingham Reunion April, 1990.
(Frank was at Nudgee from 1946
to 1948)
When I was young and had no sense,
My Mum and Dad in sheer defence,
Afraid
that they had spawned a fool,
Enrolled me at a Boarding School.
A College 'twas, like many others,
Conducted by the Christian Brothers;
With
daily Mass and Holy Communion,
And a morbid love for Rugby Union;
I'll ne'er forget that fateful day,
When snatched I was from childish
play,
And, all togged up in suit and hat,
Dumped down there - and that
was that!
But I was young, though all at sea;
My earnest thoughts were those of
tea,
Which came at six, nor was I late;
But first out of the starting
gate!
And there I got not stew or steaks;
But on my plate, two penny cakes,
Which
set me back upon my heels,
for at home we had cakes after meals!
Four fast gulps and they were gone;
I could still have gone a buttered
scone,
But yet I felt a mite less thinner,
As I waited for my proper dinner!
Alas! though then, to my surprise,
All stood and prayed with downcast
eyes,
They thanked the Lord for his largesse,
While my stomach churned
in emptiness!
Then, as one by one, they strolled away,
I found myself the last to stay;
Until
the awful message hit,
As dinners go, then that was it!
For there was a theory then abroad,
Since discarded, thank the Lord,
That
hunger makes the brain cells stronger,
And may even make then live much
longer!
Maths I learnt, and Science often,
'
Neath teachers not too proud to soften
The
hardness of their students' hearts,
By teaching them the Martial Arts.
Of which arts there were three choices,
The choir first, for those with
voices,
Then the boxing ring some thought entrancing,
And lastly, there
was ballroom dancing!
Now I couldn't sing and just because
I like my nose the way it was,
I
opted for the dancing bit,
And thus the torch of fame was lit!
Now the lady who taught these finer arts,
Had come, we heard, from foreign
parts,
She claimed she was born a Monagesque,
And was training young ladies
for the burlesque.
So a string of these fillies she brought with her;
And expected to dance
with them we were;
REAL GIRLS too, if you know what I mean;
But such scenes
of confusion have never been seen.
Half the class resigned straightway;
And were seen at choir practice
the very next day;
While the rest sat there as glued to our chair;
While
Madam and girls looked on in despair!
Defeated thus far by her motley male crew;
Our teacher announced her
plan number two.
Her rage and contempt managing to smother,
She announced
we would dance with each other!
Now I was of an age when I just grew and grew;
At this stage of proceedings,
I'd hit 6 foot 2!
But, as I copped a partner 6 foot 4,
I was the girl as
we danced the floor.
As we went through the steps,
the glides and the
twirls,
Dancing proved nicer without those dashed girls!
The two of us
practised any time we had spare,
And ended that year as the champion pair!
It's a very warm feeling, though I'm not one to boast;
To know that at
something you're better than most.
As, with studies completed, once more
I was hurled,
From the warmth of my schooldays to a heartless coldworld.
Now I strove mighty hard my career to advance,
But, on Saturday night,
it was always the dance.
The old Cloudiand Ballroom of pre-bulldozer days,
Was
a regular witness to my weekly forays.
But there was a problem, a technical hitch;
A little confusion as to
which one was which.
For I knew but the girl's steps, and not how to lead,
So
the lassies I danced with were puzzled indeed!
With both of us dancing in opposite directions,
There were collisions
and words in rising inflections;
So I'd explain to my partner about my
sore feet;
Outside in the dark on the balcony seat.
It's funny, you know, but that school I attended,
Did more for my ego
than it ever intended.
And it's a pity my talents were rudely ignored,
Nor
my name spelled in gold on the oak Honour Board!
Through its portals passed Judges and Doctors of
Laws,
Professors, Generals
and tycoons galore,
But never again, and never before,
Will they see ballroom
dancers like me anymore! |