STANDPIPE DIPLOMACY

 STANDPIPE DIPLOMACY 

Harry Bissoon 


When I was in my teens the standpipe was the point of social interaction.It was the web browser that took us surfing, gathering and sharing information, enriching not only our information network, but also touching our emotional and romantic musical strings. It was a meeting place that created bonds of friendship, and even enmity, that has followed us into our years of maturity and mellowed contentment. 


Before the sun rose in golden brilliance, we had already made several trips, back and forth, fetching bucketfuls of water, for cooking,washing,drinking, and bathing.Water tumbed over the rims of swaying buckets as we raced to complete this chore, spending time in between trips to chat, gossip, and bond with each other. 


The standpipe bore witness to lasting relationships that cemeted itself into nuptial knots. On many occasions, parents called out from kitchen windows to remind us that we had to make haste, to fetch water, and then hurry off to school. They knew that we idled by the standpipe to tease and blush, to exchange niceties, and to become infatuated, even feel tingling sensations of budding love with girls who smiled and stayed at the pipe longer than they should have.


The standpipe also created a closely knit neighborhood, as our families talked over fences and did laundry with the water we fetched. We even shared water from the standpipe with neighbors who couldn't get their own. 


This surfing at the standpipe web browser made us better at what we did. Discrimination based on our appearances, color, and the texture of our hair, was never present, and from the standpipe, we became closer at school, and during our leisure time, when we frolicked at games and simple adventures.


And we learned what it really meant to be raised by the village. We were disciplined not only by our parents, but by neighbors and family members. It was surprisingly amazing how news of our misbehavior travelled from far away to the ears of parents, long before we got home. Parents, and sometimes even neighbors, dispensed disciplinary measures that included the whip. 


These were times that made us what we are today. These were not the good old days. These were the golden years, when technology thrilled us  with the rolling of a bicycle tyre; when we ran to neighbors, far and close, to deliver messages; when playing marbles was our casino game show. And when listening to, and telling stories before bedtime was our evening entertainment. 







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