A Paddle in Hockley Brook. Ron Smith (Paperback) 1988

A PADDLE IN HOCKLEY BROOK by Ron Smith.

Memories, memories of Hockley through a child's eye. This Hockley was my home, my town, my village, it was everything to the innocence of childhood. All the dreams, whether at night or just day dreams, were of my small world. Like the child in the country, they knew nothing other than gree fields, streams, leafy lanes, clear blue skies, and a closeness to God's animals either on farms or living free in the woods or forests of their particular location. My world of hustle, bustle, the noise of factories, tramcars, buses, cars, the acrid smoke and grime were, through my eyes, love and comfort. Like the country child I knew nothing other than this way of life and to me it was beautiful. The love and kindness shown by most of the people living in Hockley was another character of that particular era, but I do believe this was created by our sharing one particular common cause - POVERTY. Like everywhere else I imagine this particular situation was prevalent, but we can only think, write, or talk about our own locality. This has been handed down from generation to generation and will continue to be so. The saying to sum it up I would think is, give kindness, respect and truth to all others, hoping to God they will reciprocate.

A paperback published in 1988 by Weldon Press Ltd of Brierly Hill, Westy Midlands.