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Good Shepherd nuns

PLAY - GROUND.
We were out on the swings one-day and a dog came, it was jumping up at me, so I climbed up the chains of the swings. I was going higher and higher.
So when I saw the man talking to the dog I came down. The man was the pig man. He started to chase me. I ran into the convent were I knew I was not allowed to be. It was the only way I could get away from this man.
There was no one to help me.
I saw a room with a piano in the corner, were a nun was sitting at it playing. I ran to her, she hid me behind the piano. I knew then, that she was the one nun I could go to. I gave her a hug. She smiled at me. I felt a warm glow go though me. What was this feeling?
It made me feel so good. I loved it. Mother Francis of Rome.
In the play ground there are tall trees all along the driveway, as well as climbing roses, which grow over the archways. I loved to climb to the tops of the trees and look down on everyone. I can hide up here too. If! stay up here they can not get me. The pig man has come. Did he see me climb up here?
The birds flyaway whenever I move. He can see me now, I have climbed down to go to the toilet. I start to ran, there is a big ditch across the driveway which I have to jump over. I miss and fall down it, the pig man goes away. Will he get help for me? It is getting dark, I can hear someone coming, they get me out.
My head is cut open again, I went to the hospital and stay there for a while. Why is it that the Doctor who has seen me not help me, or do anything for me. Mother Francis would come to see me, just like the first time. I still get bad headaches from the fall and the cupboard which full on me. The pain gets so bad sometimes that I think my head and ears would burst open.
I have phoned the hospital in Christchurch who have tried to get records a bout these two falls but they could not fmd anything about me at all.
So if! didn't go to the hospital when I fractured my skull, where was I sent to? The scar and the dent are still in the top of my head.
GROTTO.
I was taken up to the grotto were the nuns had wild rams, I was put in the paddock
with them. The rams chased me, while Mother Euphrasia watched. I would run away and fall over and had to stay in the paddock. I was so scared. Whenever I went to the fence and start to climbed half way over, Mother Euphrasia would push me on to the bar-wire and start to slap me across my face. My hands would be covered in blood.
I had done no wrong. She kept saying as always. It is because of what my mother had done, she had to do this to me. This would happen every Sunday afternoon, when it was fine. We went for walks, over to the other convent, to pray at the grotto. [Mount Magdala.]

BROOM CUPBOARD.
When we were locked in the broom cupboard, the nuns told us that we had to stay there until the "Bogey Man" came for us. I don't like the dark or my bedroom door shut at night. When I go out by myself, I look behind me more than in front of me.

DARNING.
I could darn socks from the age of five years.
If I left little holes in the weaving of the darned socks, I was slapped across my face by Mother Euphrasia.

THE DEAD.
Between the age of five and ten years, if ever a nun died.
We had to walk over to Mount Magdala to keep vigil over the dead body, during the night. This was so scary. There was a cloth under the coffm, which went right down to the floor. The older girls would get under the coffin and make these terrible sounds.
We had to kiss the dead nun on her face and make a gard ofhonor down a long drive way with tall trees on each side We weren't allowed to move, talk or make any noise. We just had to stand there. God help you if you fell over or went to sleep, you wouldn't see the light of day. In other words you were beaten when you went back to St. Joseph's
Copyright@ 2006-2010 Ann Thompson
All Rights Reseved


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