One 'Our Father' a small price to pay

My education was steeped in Catholicity. 

I started at Saint Brigids in West Perth, continued at the Brigidine Convent in Wembley under the nuns. In late primary I became a student of the Marist Brothers at Saint Joseph's College in Salvado rd, Subiaco.

oOo

A part of the ‘Marist’ or ‘Marian’ ethos was to care for and educate boys who were less well off. Private Catholic schools were less well off than other private schools and they charged lower fees. And Marist Brothers Subiaco was at the lower end of all the Catholic Schools. So the Brothers thought up novel ways to save money.

That's me with my best mate Peter in our Marist footy jumpers

At Assembly one morning in 1955 the Brothers announced a building project – to build a new brick shelter shed and incinerator. But with a  difference. The Brothers also announced that they would grant a half-day holiday as a prize for the class that donated the most bricks. Wow, a half day holiday! Our Year Six class was highly motivated and I was particularly determined that our class should win the prize.

Luckily, where I lived was near the Wembley/Floreat Park boundary and there were a lot of new houses being built. Therefore there was a plentiful supply of new building materials. 

The big challenge was to transport clay bricks one and a half miles along Cambridge Street and up the hill to Marist Brothers, Subiaco. We called our hill trolleys into service. 

Each weekend we visited new building sites, loaded our hill trolleys with new bricks and pushed them to St Joseph’s Marist Brothers in Salvado Road. The Year Six pile was starting to take shape. Each Saturday we made two trips and on Sunday after Mass we made another trip. The Year Six stack was in the lead. 

As the competition neared its final phase, we started to do after-school runs as well. The Year Six brick assembly was the biggest and best of all! Year Six won the half day holiday and the shelter shed and incinerator was constructed from a mixed bag of bricks with the help of volunteer dads.

Then it was time for confession in the Catholic tradition.

'Bless me Father for I have sinned. It is three weeks since my last confession.

'Yes, my son and what sins do you have to confess.

‘I’ve been stealing, father’

‘My son, you’ve heard of the seventh commandment “Thou shalt not steal’?

‘Yes Father’

‘And what did ye steal, my boy’

‘I stole bricks, father’

‘Bricks?’ enquired the priest

‘Yes father’

‘How many bricks?’

‘Two hundred and thirty-six, but I had help’ I replied

There was a lengthy pause and an audible intake of air from the other side of the purple curtain.

‘And what did ye do with the bricks my son?’ he asked cautiously

‘We took them to school to build a shelter shed’ I said.

Silence

‘Now my son, stealing is against God’s law ...................... lengthy pause .............. but this was more like a donation than stealing as such. Isn’t that right, me boy?’

‘Yes father’

‘For your penance say one Our Father’

‘Yes Father’

A small price to pay for a half day holiday and a new shelter shed.