Way back when

A little gentle rain with a return to winter has breathed new life into the garden. This is the rain of my childhood; soft, soaking and accompanied by a light breeze. I recall many walks in the winter school holidays from home in Clovelly to the soccer field in Fish Hoek in  rain that didn't bother us - or perhaps it was the destination that took our minds off it. This was where  all the talent was, whether it played soccer or not. In summer it was the lawns at the beach and winter the soccer club. Of course, it was only eye candy, as we were still a few years behind the girls who occupied their minds! But such are the teenage years and it was all good fun.
The soccer field was also the destination of the floats of the annual Mardi Gras -  the biggest event in Fish Hoek for many years under the capable guidance of the inimitable Lynette Barling, with drum majorettes in blue and white silk and white boots always in perfect time and very easy on the eye, a Scottish marching band in their splendid kilts and of course the ching-ching of the tins as they were held out for coins to the crowds lining the streets (it was after all a charitable event) and the music which blared out from megaphones. At the field, the best float would be chosen and participants would relax and party as only the Fish Hoek crowd could, in preparation for the Mardi Gras that night at the Civic Centre.
Those halcyon days are gone and can never be regained. The soccer field has long been the home of Fish Hoek High School and Mrs Barling's larger than life personality has never been replicated. But a little gentle rain can still jog the memory.