大象传媒

I am not a story teller, so this tale is brief, but is endearing. I start at the beginning and skip to the end.
Dad and his 11 brothers and sisters were born in Malaysia, his parents having being posted there from Liverpool as part of his dad's business. Grandfather died when dad was 2, and grandmother when dad was 8. His oldest sister Lily, some 15 years his senior, continued to look after the family.
When the Japanese attacked in 1942, the family made their way to Port Klang intending to board a boat to India then over to England. Dad however was playing pool, got separated, and missed the departure. Desolate and vulnerable, dad eventaully ended up in St. Michaels Institution, an ophanage. The rest of the family never knew what happened to him. Dad was 16 then.
The war came and went, and dad joined the Malaysian police. There were many adventures there too as saw active duty during the Emergency of 1948 to 1960.
In 1956, Lily and her husband Geoff had settled in Melbourne. It was the Olympics, and Geoff was keen to watch an event, any event, and decided upon a hockey match - Malaysia versus England. When he got to the match and purchased a programe, he noted that the left half position was played by Gerald Toft. No it could not be! Not Gerald surely.
As the players ran out onto the pitch, Geoff scanned down the line of the Malaysian and there he was. Abandoning all protocol, Geoff jumped over the barriers and ran onto the pitch. The two greeted each other with screams and tears of joy.
That night, dad went back to Geoff's house and surprised Lily and her kids. Lily's son, Jim, recalls how proud he felt to have an Olympian in the house. And that's how the family were re-united.
Dad has many other tales and experiences of the war and the emergency, and his many scrapes with death, but the happier ones seem the best to tell.

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