Some of you may have read Snowball, a “re-constructed” tale of my first few years in Pakistan. How I learnt Urdu before French or English and other details. I you haven’t read it, or feel like refreshing, here’s the link:
Now, as I am almost done digitizing (and “post producing” my mother’s 8mm movies), There is one short movie you might find to your liking. A sort of rare combination, featuring my two eldest brothers -who generally were away in boarding schools and other family issues- my little sister and I. Not often did we all coincide.
L. to r.: Michel, the eldest, yours truly and Ayah (Nanny), at the Karachi house. c. 1954.
Zaman trying to teach me how to drive. With difficulty at first… as you will see.
My father, I, and closest older brother, Richard, counting the fish at the beach house in Belagi. (I know, I know, silver spoon and all that…). My father was keen on fishing. The house was built on a cliff overlooking the sea; this was the day’s catch, at about two years old, I was very concerned about the number of fish in the basket. c. 1955.
My mother Renée, my baby sister, Gaëlle and I. Beach house again at Belagi. On the coast of Sindh. Practically deserted then, only a handful of houses on the cliff, now a major week-end destination for the people of Karachi. Or so I hear. Little sister can’t have been more than a few weeks old. April 1956.
Before we move on to the movie/clip, a couple of comments:
The three songs I chose for the audio are classical “Bollywood” songs. The last two in particular: Chhaliya mera naam (I am the trickster) with Raj Kapoor, and Khoya khoya chand (Oh, the lost Moon) by Mohamed Rafi, with Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman as main actors. Those songs always bring me back to the Indian sub-continent.
“Trois petits singes”, in French, means “Three little monkeys”. I’ll let you discover why on the link below. Aap ka din accha guzray. (Have a good day.)
Equinoxio 
💛
Apparemment, tu préférais jouer avec les poissons qu’avec les voitures ou les petits singes 😀
Une belle tranche de vie ! Merci pour ce partage.
Belle journée Brieuc
Biz
Absolument. Après un long moment Zaman a quand même réussi à me faire pousser la voiture dans le bon sens.
Et mon aversion des singes doit venir de là…
Biz.
You did have an interesting life growing up. No doubt about it. Seemed normal to you, and it was, of course.
It took me a very long time to realize that my concept of “normality” was not universally shared… LOL. But then I was lucky enough to be raised in half a dozen different “normal” environments. Gives perspective. 😉
It’s the same for all of us until we get to know others and realize that we weren’t all the same. LOL You just had a more exotic one.
Perfectly put. Allow mw to try another hypothesis: After I went to Grad school in the US, I realized that “codes” were different. Ok. Let’s learn the codes. Done.
Later, back in France I realized the French (or Europeans maybe) don’t really understand some of the basics of American culture. Just because we all drive cars, live in similar houses, and a apparent similar civilization, there are many differences. Subtle most of the time.
And even in the US, culture in California is very different from New York, or Chicago I imagine. (Let’s not even mention “South of the Mason-Dixon line”!)
And yet, when one listens and watches carefully, one can find common grounds…
Hugs
Espetacular, Brian. Fico sem palavras, e ao mesmo tempo é um universo inteiro de vivência. Maravilhoso post. Grande abraço.
Muito obrigado Fer.
É. Isso mesmo.
Um universo diferente. Uma musica diferente. Uma linguagem diferente. Mais gente boa. Como tem gente boa em tudo mundo…
Abraço “back”.
Wow, what an intriguing snapshot of your family’s history and well-done digitising another 8mm movie!
Your mother looked amazing for not long giving birth to your sister – 6 weeks?
You looked scared of the 3rd feisty monkey! 😉
It’s amazing, your eyes haven’t changed since you were a child.
Glad you liked “The three little monkeys”. (Eldest brother Michel not included. He was always very serious. LOL)
I made the same the same reflection to myself when I visualized the movie. (Though I’d seen it countless times.) She was very… aware of her good looks. And took great care to quickly snap back into her cocktail dresses… LOL
Eyes don’t change much do they? Mine are still green. Slanting down a bit now…
It was a treat to read and always marvel at your colourful and very interesting childhood.
That really is impressive and especially as in those days, I don’t believe personal trainers were common or going to the gym.
No, they don’t. Mine are also green and yep, drooping down with age, ha, ha! 😦
Glad to share bits and pieces.
No, no personal trainers or gym then.
👀
How cool Brian! Great to have these moving images. I had to laugh about the three monkeys. You weren’t that keen on meeting the little red capped animal. Do you have active memories from your youth in Pakistan?
Yeah, my aversion to monkeys goes back a long way… 😉
Glad us 3 little monkeys made you laugh. My brother was delighted with the little “guy”. Those were times when there came Monkey-Wallhas (carer, sort of of), to the house, camel-wallahs, snake-charmers… A different world.
My very first visual memories come from Cambodia, about a year after. I was still very little in Pakistan. But I’ve had frequent “post” contact with India, in particular in East Africa where there was a large “Indian” community.
Thanks for visiting the moving images…
Cheers Peter
A thoroughly enjoyable post. I’d saw that you were a little fella who knew his own mind! I particularly enjoyed the don’t-put-me-in-the-midget-car dance.
Haha! yes, I probably already had a mind of my own. And Ayah and Zaman had lots of patience. Spoiled me. I”ll have to check another photo, in B&W, where I am inside the car. Looks like the same Jeep. I hadn’t realized – or had forgotten – that it was bright yellow. (My mother had the car made at the local bazar. For a few Rupees. The local craftsmen were amazing. Could do anything on a sketch…
I never would have guessed that the little car had been handmade!
In Pakistan and Afghanistan at that time, and most likely India, the crafstmen in the Bazaar were real artists. My mother would go with a sketch, a picture, sizes, and get things done. Cheap.
Great stuff as always!
Thank you my friend. I was kind of doubtful whether to post it or not. Looked more like “family” stuff, but it seems to “reach” others.
Take care.
Brian
What great memories!
Thank you. I’m trying to finish documenting all that. Memories of worlds long gone… 😉
Very good video! Glad to see that you have good memories.
Thank you. Very exotic memories… 😉
You’re welcome.
I love your growing up story Brian. Good thing you preserved all those photos😘
Salamat Arlene. Thankfully we did keep a lot of photos and films. Now a testimony to worlds that have disappeared…
All well, I hope? Ear better?
I am wearing hearing aids now Brian, thanks. Keep your stories coming🥰
Just posted a new story. I hope you are adjusting well to the hearing aids… 🤗
Too much to say, too many feelings rushing out. But I’ll just say thank you. And be well.
It’s all right. If the post generates feelings, then it’s a good posts. (And good feelings…)
You too be well.
I saw your reply to me on your Snowball post, but WP does not let me respond to it or like it. I have seen it and thank you for your reply. That was a precious post on your entry into this world.
Sorry about that. Mysteries of WP.
I’m glad you liked the post. This post explains – in part – why I love Hindi music as much as Charles Trenet or Rock & Roll. (Amongst others) 😉
Memories of childhood, so dear…
A good thing I have these films. Coz of course, I don’t remember anything before the age of 3-4. As everyone else memory before that is reset. Can’t access it…
Thanks for your visit and comment
Congratulations on finishing the film conversion project. Really cute toddling going on here and perfect music!
Gracias Rebe. Cute comments indeed. And the music? I just love Hindi music. Been brought up with it.
PS. (And I still have to finalize 3 movies…! LOL)
I enjoyed both the autobiographical story and the video which you have refurbished very well
Thank you Derrick. Refurbishing is quite adequate. IN addition to sharing with all my E-friends, I do hope it will serve as a reminder for the family to get an inkling of where they come from. Always important.
That history has been made by had as Pip would say. (I am moving along Great Expectations and enjoying it very much!) (Thanks for the advice…)
A man of many lives, Brieuc. So many beguiling travellers’ tales stranded here.
Ndiyo Memsahib. Some of those tales, I’ve often wondered what happened to those people who were so kind to us, Shah, Zaman, Ayah. What has been of their lives? I hope they were happy…
That is a good thought – to hope they were happy. But one does wonder when people fall outside the ‘protection’ of expatriate employment. When Graham had to close down the UK funded agri research lab at Kiboko, most of the staff were left unemployed, qualified or not. The drivers were the ones with the quickest chances of reemployment.
True. One can only hope so.
Now, when an operation closes down… is another matter. A very old and good friend of mine had to fire half his staff, when the company he ran had to be sold to another. He told the “third musketeer” and I (we’d worked in the same company together): “I fired the best.”
“What?”
“Yes, they had the best chance of finding another job.” 😉
(He is a good man)
It’s wonderful that you have these old home movies to look back on your childhood, and you’re doing a great job of preserving them for the digital age. You and your sister are of a similar age to me (I was born late 1955) but what different homes we lived in!
I thought we might be contemporary. 😉
I used to think my childhood was normal. Normal to have snakes in the garden, to have camel drivers visit at the “beach house” (Normal to have one LOL), to go see lions in the bush on the week-end…
I realized it wasn’t when I went “back” to France to study (read as you say) at the University. I quickly packed my stories away. Too different.
I odn’t know how long you’ve been travelling, but I think you can imagine what it was to grow up in those far and away places…
🙏🏻
Doesn’t every child think their life is normal, at least while young? Or maybe today, with more families travelling abroad, some are learning sooner that there is no such thing as normal? I hope so 🙂 I’ve been travelling to some extent since the early 80s but mainly then just in Europe. We’ve ‘only’ been going on regular longer haul trips since the early 90s, but I’ve certainly seen enough different places, and seen how children live in them, to appreciate the variety of possible childhoods experienced in those places (sometimes even in the same place of course, including my own London). We’ve visited schools in Goa, Tanzania and North Korea; family homes in the Brazilian Amazon, Oman, Cambodia and Rajasthan; and of course encountered kids and their families almost everywhere!
You’re right. Every child thinks their life is normal… Until they learn otherwise… haha. For better, hopefully or for worse. I also suspect most adults, despite access to worldwide… news, believes their everyday life is “normal”. Those who live ion corrupt countries believe corruption is the same everywhere. I would suspect the Danes wouldn’t believe some of the things that happens elsewhere…
Compliments on the wide range of your travels… It does change perspective doesn’t it?
Awwww what a lil cutie you were!
Haha! That was then. 😉
(Now I’m getting old with the kinks and pains that go along… Not complaining but it was easier to count the fish in the basket…)
Abrazo
Hahaha! I can so relate! Abrazo
😉
These are such fantastic and cherished memories, Brian. When you move abroad your entire family will be absolutely surrounded by strangers from the word go and your child, alongside its parents, will learn how to communicate, adapt to fit and integrate seamlessly. This is an invaluable lesson your child will learn by rote and by your side – in such a non-confrontational or awkward way that going forward in life integration and adaptation will never pose a problem to your child. Thanks for sharing and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
Absolutely. “Surrounded” by strangers”. Not that they are “bad people”, they just work along different codes. And until you learn the codes, you can get easily in trouble. 😉
But the little ones learn easily. Which is reassuring. I bet your kids have an Irish accent. 😉 (They say or will say “Doblin”)😀
Ha, ha, this made me laugh! Yes, that’s exactly how my 7-year-old would say Dublin. She would pronounce the ‘U’ with an O sound as well as pronounce the letter ‘R’ with a strong ‘OR’ sound from the top of her mouth.
Haha! Irish accent. 😉 Which at first can be a tad difficult (Me? I have a mixed American/British posh accent) but after a little while one can pick up the different rhythm…
(New Zealand accent is one of the most difficult for me)
Cheers.
(Seven already? OMG)
How wonderful that you have all those living memories from your childhood! You definitely knew what you wanted – and not wanted – already then. 😉 I wonder why the nanny insisted that you get near the monkey?
Looking back at the images, I realize that I had very definite tastes indeed.
I’ve wondered the same about the Nanny. I think my mother was insisting so that she could get all “three little monkeys” in the movie. That’s probably why…
(Later in Africa I had another close encounter with a monkey. Didn’t like it at all!) 🐒
😀 😀
Such a different life then, amazing to see the styles of the times.
It was a very different life then indeed. One thing that always strikes me, is that there was little or no hatred…
Yes, strange how we “developed” hate?!
Not sure whether it’s not the contrary. I am for Voltaire against Rousseau. I don’t believe in Rousseau’s “Good savage” theory that man in Nature is good and civilization perverted him. I believe it is quite the contrary. Man needs civilization, rules, whatever they are to “curb” certain “enthusiasms”. 😉
Been thinking of you, Just seen the first part of an old French TV drama of the 60’s on the French Terror, featuring Robespierre. He’s just done away with Danton, Camille Desmoulin, Fabre d’Églantine. Second part should see Maximilien’s fall…
Ah, yes, poor Robespierre – karma. On the other, I’m more Rousseau – but we respond to stimuli (context and learned behaviour also play a part). Voltaire should be heard too in my view.
It’s all right. I won’t argue one against the other. They were totally opposite.
Now the worst thing “They” did was to pout them facing each other for eternity in the French Pantheon. The two sepultures are smack in front of the other. Lack of manners on the politicians’ part… (What else is new?)
So, to go back to original argument, I don’t think we’ve developed hate, we’ve just let it grow…
A kind of benign development 🙂 but yes, I see your point.
Wow, Brian! You had some awesome experiences growing up! I loved the video!
Haha! Yes, a few exotic experiences. I basically lived inside the Jungle book, so to speak.
You should write your autobiography!!!
A few say so. I feel that I haven’t really done anything out of the extraordinary. Just lived. (In a few parallel universes, that is true)
My comment doesn’t seem to have posted but if you get it twice, I apologise. I really enjoyed this film. You are lucky to have such marvelous memories of your family. You didn’t seem very keen on the monkey in the beginning, but your brother’s antics obviously gave you courage. I enjoyed your learning to drive. It reminded me of my own son.
Your comment was “pending”. Don’t ask me why…
We do have quite a corpus of memory/history well documented. I was a bit in a hurry to finish digitizing the 8mm movies. They tend to fade away. Almost done. Only 3 left… Pfff.
Your son pushed the car backwards too? That’s creativity… 😉
Haha, my son is an extraordinary student so maybe it’s a sign of great intelligence. 🤗🌷
Most likely. He owes it to his parents. (Plus his own share of merit of course)
He is a great kid and works very hard. 😊
And makes his parents proud. (And supportive)
🌷
I wonder why it was “pending” for 3 days… Mysteries of WP.
🤷♀️🌞
I hope my comment on your new post came through 🌹
Yep. It did. I now look at “pending” and “spam” once a week at least.
WP does weird things 🤷♀️
Yeah, but still, they single-handedly manage about half of the world’s sites. Without as much fanfare as the big others. So it’s not too bad.
No, not bad, just occasionally upside down 🙃
True. But when I do a balance… I’m fine. Support is not too bad either. Can be a bit slow, but they try hard.
I haven’t needed much help, fortunately 🌼
Good. Let’s keep it that way.
what a unique way of upbringing in your specific circumstances. Your memoir would be very interesting to read.
Thank you. A memoir? Allow me to quote Beryl Markham, a fellow “Mzungu”. In her foreword to her biography by Mary S. Lovell, she says: “She tells me that people are interested in the things I have done in my life… I cannot think why this should be so…”
And Markham did wayyy more things than I ever did…
Having said that, it is pleasant to share a few moments.
Thank you for your visit and comment…
🙏🏻
Congrats on the pounds. (Though I’m metric, it seems to me pounds must feel better! Twice as many.) Loved your post, Oz must be a land of beauty. If I may be so bold I suggest you don’t ask for all those details to those who comment. personally I don’t have the time to fill out all the details. I know how conceited it may sound, but you will get more comments. You can change the settings in your sidebar.
Cheers.
I loved reading these two posts. Very interesting.
Dhanyavaad/Sgukriya (Merci) Charlotte.
As a singer, the songs must be interesting for you? 😉
I have a friend who speaks Hindu, his wife is Italian so quite a rich mix of languages. She learnt some Hindu ready for their wedding. I am teaching my pupils international songs at the moment and I don’t have any Hindu songs for children I must remedy that.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Accha! (Good)
I still know a -very- few words in Hindi.
Indians say Urdu is a very poetic language.
The last two songs in the little film are very good, musically, song-wise. I am the trickster, and the lost moon. You can find them on the net, You tube, using the original titles.
Merveilleux, Brieuc. Quelle chance de pouvoir vivre dans autant de cultures comme tu as fait. Elle était ravissante ta maman! Et toi, un petit qui savait ce qu’il voulait… et ne voulait pas!
haha! Surtout ce que je ne voulais pas, apparemment. Ravissante? Oui. Et elle savait s’en servir. Elle n’avait pas son Bac, (la guerre entre autre) ce qui ne l’a pas empêché de briller dans le cocktails parmi les Ambassadeurs et les ministres…
C’est une chance. Ça facilite l’adaptation mais au bout d’un moment, on ne sait plus très bien qui on est. Am I really a “Frog”?
Biz
C’est certain qu’on ne veut pas se faire “shipper” d’une place à l’autre, lorsqu’on le vit. Oui, très belle la maman. Et puis? Un Bac n’est pas garantie que l’on puisse briller parmis ceux qui en ont… preuve, ta maman 😉
Oui. Sois que tu deviens flexible et et versatile; sois tu te renfermes complètement. Et ouin… ça ne doit pas être facile se sentir sans identité…
Biz right back!
absolument. l’avantage d’être un caméléon comme moi, c’est de pouvoir s’adapter facile. Mais même comme ça, il y a des moments où on a besoin de souffler un peu. Dans mon cas la France ètait un peu ce lieu de… “repos”. Mais ces dernières années ils sont devenus tellement “fendants”…
Aucune garantie. Mon grand-père n’avait que le certificat d´études. (Secondaire) Et il ne faisait jamais une faute… Un de mes mes frères n’a pas fini l’école non plus. Justement, celui qui a les cheveux noirs dans le film. Toujours été un peu rebelle, et il a une culture incroyable. Sans parler de tous les PhD’s que je connais dont certains sont des c… finis…
Re-biz.
Oui, c’est certain et je ne peux qu’imaginer, n’ayant jamais quitté même ma ville! No, je mens, j’ai quitté Boucherville pour cinq ans, mais pas plus loin que 30 km de distance 😉 I’m so boring! (Et désolant que la France n’est plus aussi accueillante.)
Effectivement. L’éducation n’a rien avoir avec l’intelligence et la capacité d’avoir des conversations intelligentes avec autrui.
Biz Biz
🤗
🤗
History well done
Thank you. Much appreciated. 🙏🏻
Good
Thank you…
The monkey wasn’t to your liking, Brian! Great photos, a ‘labour of love’ to have them digitized.
I have documented before my dislike of monkeys in “The monkey incident”.
Yes quite a labour indeed. And believe me, 8mm movies are ten times as difficult as photos. (But I’m almost done with the old movies..)
Going to the Lake district this summer?
I was once chased by some very angry male baboons in an Indian hill town, even though I was completely minding my own business. I will never trust a primate again.
Have just been to the Lakes for a few days, but would like to go back again this year. Lovely walking.
Never trust any primate. Particularly the hairless variety… 😉
As for the Lakes it must have been nice. Your mother’s still there right? In good health I hope?
It was nice, thanks Brian, but very hot, high 20s / low 30s in June. Made hiking pretty hellish. According to the meteorological folks, the Lakes are in the early stages of drought – the wettest part of England, in drought, in June! Hope all’s well with you, any plans for Europe this year?
I have other Brit friends who mention an unusual dry weather. In England? 😳
No plans for Europe yet…
You’re life is so colourful!
Well, yours is not bad in that respect, is it? 😉
(I was just lucky…)
Do you have any photos from your days in Tanzania?
I do!!! They are a bit mouldy now though
It’s all right. Take a few shots. And send them. I’d be curious.
OK will do!!!
It’s a deal…
Damn, watching this movie I just get the wonderful feeling that I love life ~ the past holds such great memories… Congratulations for digitizing all of the invaluable footage of the 8mm film, brilliant. And what is really cool – you should have been a fisherman. I think that was your calling 🙂
That is a great result of this short movie… I feel elated that you should feel so.
As for digitizing, I still have two 8mm reels to finish… Almost done. Then I will start sharing the most interesting bits.
As for fishing, haha, my father loved fishing. Taught me to. I’ have done a good bit when I was a child, or younger. 🐠
(Do you fish in your wonderful rivers back home?(