Something happens, a word, an action, a connection……and you find yourself transported into the past. On this occasion, it was sparked by my seven year old grandson, Noa. At his young age, he is a curious researcher. Lately, he has been busy looking into old-time record players, asking me all kinds of questions about how they work,
His aunt lent him a real turntable which she had not used for years. “It should still work!” he declared hopefully, but would now need to connect it to an equally old-time amplifier. His father gave me a call. Could Noa come round with his turntable and try it out with my amplifier!
I love my trusty old amplifier which I bought in 1980. The matching cassette player and record deck have long since gone, but my lovely amplifier and powerful speakers (when connected to my phone via a Bluetooth device) , knock the socks off of any of these modern music contraptions.
Noa anxiously arrived with his deck. We connected it to the amp, plugged it in and soon the LP of Mozart his Aunt had given him exploded into sound, shaking the room.
This is where the series of connections began to bubble in my head.
I had in fact recently been transported to the past through various posts in my blog….. the history of how I came to settle here in Peru so many years ago…… and recently, the story of my father’s wartime experiences as a prisoner of war in WW2. So, I was already tuned in….I was ready for some time travelling.
“What about those LPs you have?”, my daughter, Joanna (Noa’s Mum) asked. I replied that I had given them all away, but then she reminded me, that high on a shelf in my bedroom, there were indeed some long forgotten vinyl discs. I ran to the bedroom. There they were….relics of a distant forgotten past, hidden away, almost out of sight harbourng dust.
I took them down and cleaned them,,,,, and then….. Noa placed one of them on the turntable…… it worked!
It was an English folk abum by the artist Nic Jones, the second album I had ever bought in my life, so many years ago when I was still at school.
The song “Annan Water” started to play. “Remember Joanna”, I remarked. “I used to sing this song to you at bed time when you were little.” She looked at me, laughed …….and replied…….”Well, I didnˋt know the words..but I used to hum this song to Noa when putting him to sleep as well!” History… family traditions repeat themselves!
My time clock was now racing back to the time I was seventeen studying in a Secondary School in England . I had an amazing English teacher called Richard Bird (Dicky Bird, as we named him) . In the very first lesson he sauntered into the classroom, silently looked around… and then jumped up onto the table, reciting with enormous energy the first lines of Canterbury Tales by Chaucer, all in the original Middle English. I still remember the first lines……
When that Aprille with his shoures soote……… The droghte of March hath perced to the roote,……… And bathed every veyne in swich licour….. Of which vertu engendred is the flour….
Richard Bird showed me the way to appreciate and love poetry and literature. He also introduced me to the rich world of traditional English folk music. He even wrote me good school reports!
He lent me a record……..yes…. the one by Nic Jones…… and then other records ….. and I fell in love with this genre of music too.
I already had a guitar and from then on added folk songs to my repertoire. It was not long after, that I started to play in public, the first time being in a Folk Club in Crawley where I lived.
After leaving school, I continued my studies. At college, I was in a new, exciting world, and soon found a connection with other folk enthusiasts. For a few years I played in a traditional harmony folk group called Harvest.
We played regularly together…. and as part of my quest to relive past moments, I met up with Marilyn, Miggy and Roger in Devon last year. Both Marilyn and Miggy have continued their playing and have a very strong reputation in the English Folk Scene.
And those early experiences formed the beginning of many other journeys into music. During and after my college days, music was always part of my life. I was to play in a number of groups, and with a variety of different musical genres, ending up with writing and playing my own songs.
Must admit, haven’t been doing much music lately. After a bit of a musical rest, it’s time to hit the groove again!
So, thank you little Noa for your inventiveness and your inquisitive spirit…. And also for your skilful ability which sent me back to the past. LONG LIVE THE CHERISHED MEMORIES OF THE PAST WHICH SHAPE OUR PRESENT LIVES!
And to finish, here is a video of one of my songs which is dedicated to my adopted home, Lima, accompanied with a selection of photos which give a taste of what this special city is like.
Wanderings! 
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