Last Sunday begun just like most Sundays and that is quiet; little did I know that before the end of the day I would be getting the mother of all surprises.
My brother told me that we would be visiting a friend at Wimbledon later in the afternoon and at about 1530hrs we set off from our Fulham base. When we got there I mentally noted that there appeared to be a lot of cars parked around but I didn't think too much about it. Ringing the bell and the door being opened by a charming young Ghanaian girl, we were directed to the back garden. At that moment my brother asked me to go ahead since he wanted to use the washroom.
I got to the garden and was a little perplexed because no one seemed to be around and there I was alone standing an empty backyard. All of a sudden I heard a loud " S U R P R I S E!!!!!" and from all hidden places came a crowd of people shaking my hand, slapping my back and hugging me like there was no tomorrow.
After my momentary confusion it dawned on me that these were all Presecans(Odade3s) including some of my mates whom had heard I was in town and decided to throw a surprise party in my honor and my brother was in the thick of the plot. Some were my classmates, a few were my seniors whilst a lot were my juniors. Some I recognised but had forgotten the names whilst other I couldn't remember; it had been so long since school. I counted over thirty people with others arriving later.
Anyway the party was in no time in full swing with a Ghanaian caterer materialising and setting up shop with a variety of Ghanaian dished such as fufu with various soups, jollof, apex and palaver sauce, ofam, banku, kenkey etc. There were also Ghanaian drinks such as Ekumfi fruit juice, Club and Star beers supported by the usual whisky, brandy and other stuff.
Before we started our meal, someone insisted we sung our Presec Sunday evening prayer hymn " Be Present at Our Table Lord"..... which we all happily did with our croaking voices.
When a group of old students meet, we all become school boys again so the teasing, the nicknames, and secrets all come out. We finally found out eho the school poultry farm raiders were and also who ran off with a pan of red red which had been an outstanding mystery.
A number of guys came up to introduce themselves to me; one said he was in Form 1 when I was in Form 5 whilst others were in the same House 5 with me. Over the years faces change but names don't. One thing they all had in common was a deep sense of gratitude to me for the way I helped and guided them during those school years. One chap said he was about to drop out of school in form 3 but then I used to drag him along with me to study and would lash him if he refused. He said after I left the spirit of learning and discipline was instilled in him and he went on to obtain a distinction at his O levels and has never looked back since. Today he is an engineer with a PhD and had come over all the way from Manchester when he got wind of the event just to thank me; something he'd been wanting to do for years but didn't know where to find me.
Towards the end of the event, the guys did something that brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. After a speech, they made a presentation to me which was a large envelope with the words "Thank You" beautifully engraved on it. It was when I got home and opened it that I realised they had made a "silver collection " for me with a note saying" no need to thank us, you deserve a lot more " I couldn't believe the amount they gave me, suffice to say it was about the same I had spent since arriving in London
I guess it pays to be humble and respectful and not arrogant, entitled and not believing yourself to be the most intelligent being, for respect is earned and not demanded.
By tradition, where two or three Odade3s are gathered, they always end with a raptious rendition of our school anthem "Happy are we, Studious are we, Students of Presbyterian Secondary School" .
I'm sure a lot of the neighbours were wondering what was going on.
Thank you a section of UK Presecans for such a great honour; I've never felt such gratitude and pride in my life for this has definitely been a fitting climax to my visit leaving me with memories I will cherish for life.
Tomorrow I will tell you about a very old friend I found.
My brother told me that we would be visiting a friend at Wimbledon later in the afternoon and at about 1530hrs we set off from our Fulham base. When we got there I mentally noted that there appeared to be a lot of cars parked around but I didn't think too much about it. Ringing the bell and the door being opened by a charming young Ghanaian girl, we were directed to the back garden. At that moment my brother asked me to go ahead since he wanted to use the washroom.
I got to the garden and was a little perplexed because no one seemed to be around and there I was alone standing an empty backyard. All of a sudden I heard a loud " S U R P R I S E!!!!!" and from all hidden places came a crowd of people shaking my hand, slapping my back and hugging me like there was no tomorrow.
After my momentary confusion it dawned on me that these were all Presecans(Odade3s) including some of my mates whom had heard I was in town and decided to throw a surprise party in my honor and my brother was in the thick of the plot. Some were my classmates, a few were my seniors whilst a lot were my juniors. Some I recognised but had forgotten the names whilst other I couldn't remember; it had been so long since school. I counted over thirty people with others arriving later.
Anyway the party was in no time in full swing with a Ghanaian caterer materialising and setting up shop with a variety of Ghanaian dished such as fufu with various soups, jollof, apex and palaver sauce, ofam, banku, kenkey etc. There were also Ghanaian drinks such as Ekumfi fruit juice, Club and Star beers supported by the usual whisky, brandy and other stuff.
Before we started our meal, someone insisted we sung our Presec Sunday evening prayer hymn " Be Present at Our Table Lord"..... which we all happily did with our croaking voices.
When a group of old students meet, we all become school boys again so the teasing, the nicknames, and secrets all come out. We finally found out eho the school poultry farm raiders were and also who ran off with a pan of red red which had been an outstanding mystery.
A number of guys came up to introduce themselves to me; one said he was in Form 1 when I was in Form 5 whilst others were in the same House 5 with me. Over the years faces change but names don't. One thing they all had in common was a deep sense of gratitude to me for the way I helped and guided them during those school years. One chap said he was about to drop out of school in form 3 but then I used to drag him along with me to study and would lash him if he refused. He said after I left the spirit of learning and discipline was instilled in him and he went on to obtain a distinction at his O levels and has never looked back since. Today he is an engineer with a PhD and had come over all the way from Manchester when he got wind of the event just to thank me; something he'd been wanting to do for years but didn't know where to find me.
Towards the end of the event, the guys did something that brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. After a speech, they made a presentation to me which was a large envelope with the words "Thank You" beautifully engraved on it. It was when I got home and opened it that I realised they had made a "silver collection " for me with a note saying" no need to thank us, you deserve a lot more " I couldn't believe the amount they gave me, suffice to say it was about the same I had spent since arriving in London
I guess it pays to be humble and respectful and not arrogant, entitled and not believing yourself to be the most intelligent being, for respect is earned and not demanded.
By tradition, where two or three Odade3s are gathered, they always end with a raptious rendition of our school anthem "Happy are we, Studious are we, Students of Presbyterian Secondary School" .
I'm sure a lot of the neighbours were wondering what was going on.
Thank you a section of UK Presecans for such a great honour; I've never felt such gratitude and pride in my life for this has definitely been a fitting climax to my visit leaving me with memories I will cherish for life.
Tomorrow I will tell you about a very old friend I found.
Respond to it
Nuff Respect