What are your earliest memories? The Silver Lining is the first story of my blog, Taroom Tales. Join me on a journey back in time, with my dad and his remarkable long-term memory, a positive side-effect of aging. While he might struggle to remember where he left his car keys or what he ate for lunch (actually, that could have been me..), I’ve heard many a tale in great detail of dads earliest memories of life in Taroom, back in the day! I think they are worth listening to… he can tell a really good story.
by Twerpy Smith
The Silver Lining
A POSITIVE SIDE TO AGING
WELCOME TO MY FIRST BLOG POST… this is the story of my inspiration, my dad, and the silver lining that comes with dementia.
Tales from Taroom, Blog Episode 001/2023
Lester Close and Bronc Bradshaw, Glenhaughton ringers dressed for town 1960s
Have you ever wondered what it was like living in Taroom when the main
street was gravel and drunken ringers created ways to get arrested so they
could spend the night in the lockup – the best B&B in town?
[archive photo Lex Smith collection; photographer John Scott]
My renewed interest in all things old was a bit of an accident really.
My dad, Lex Smith, suddenly found himself alone, and lonely, after we lost my mum in April 2022, after the unbeatable pancreatic cancer brought us all to our knees.
They were peas in a pod my mum and dad. Partners for 63 years, married for over 60 of them – yep, they did get a letter from the Queen for that! – it was a loss too great for dad to bear.
His memory suddenly started playing tricks on him. The doctor questioned his abilities behind the wheel of a car. Unbelievable. My dad, who has never had a ticket, nor an accident of any kind, in his life.
1960 newly engaged couple Lex Smith and Lorraine Hay stepping out at Taroom Show
[archive image from Lex Smith’s collection; photographer unknown]
But I’ve heard it said that there’s a Yin for every Yang, and I soon discovered dad’s Yin.
He has always been a great teller of stories, my dad.
As kids he would delight us with bedtime stories about Glenhaughton, back in the day, but I’d long since forgotten the details. In an effort to distract his broken heart, I asked for a story.
And so it began…
[photo Tim Bongers]
This blog has developed from my father’s incredible recollection of his early years.
He can recall the first time he heard country music.
A hillbilly song was playing on his uncle’s battery-operated radio. “I was 4 years old and the wireless was taller than me,” he remembered. “I was fascinated. I had my ear pressed right up to the speaker trying to hear through the static.
“Tex Morton was singing about Old Man Duff… he was very rough.. as tough as a man could be, he ate wire nails… and had hair on his chest like a chimpanzee!” he laughed at the memory of the silly lyrics.
Lex Smith approximately 4 years old, when he can remember hearing Hillbilly music for the first time, playing on his uncle’s radio [archive photo from Lex Smith]
I started recording his stories. He was soon talking about Glenhaughton again.
I made some videos. Published them on YouTube. People started sharing the movies, old mates were getting in touch.
A photobook was made, for those ringers who were in them, or for their families, since a lot of those mates were no longer around. Momentum was building, and a reunion was inevitable.
On the Kings Birthday weekend 2023, 10 ex-ringers and a couple of cooks from the 50s and 60s, met up at the Glenhaughton Ringers Reunion with more than 100 family and friends.
This is where my stories begin, from the perspective of a Ringer, and how it was back in the day.
October 2023, 85-year-old Lex Smith returns to Dray Gully on the way to the Tin Hut for the Ringers and Cooks reunion. It’s been 64 years since he last camped here, alone with just his dog Gracie for company on a 3 week bore and windmill run.
SHARE YOUR STORIES
I’d love to hear any stories you have experienced or heard from the early years, when the cattle were wild and packhorses carried supplies to mustering camps. It’s an age that will never be repeated, and I hope will never be forgotten.
In 2024, Podcasts will be added to the page. The eldest Taroom locals will chat about their earliest memories here and the changes they’ve witnessed. The stories are infinite.
Can you help me capture them?
CONTACT ME – Leesa Bongers
Glenhaughton stories – Email: glenhaughtonringers@gmail.com
Taroom Tales – Email: taroomtales@gmail.com
Leave a Reply