Living History

The best times

I was born in 1949 in Box Hill, Melbourne. My father was in the Army and had been fighting in World War II. Though I can’t really remember any of the 40s because they were over by the time I was 8 months old, I can remember how exciting it was to be a teenager during the 60s. I remember going to Rock and Roll dances with the person who I was dating at the time. I also used to attend square dancing classes in the Box Hill area.

I attended Melbourne University where I studied Journalism and graduated in 1973. One of my most vivid memories was in 1974 when, in my first year of working as a Journalist, I was sent to assist a senior Journalist in covering the aftermath of Cyclone Tracy in Darwin. I had never seen so much destruction, an entire city flattened. Reporting on something so horrible so early in my career set the tone for my writing for many years after that. It was difficult to view things negatively after seeing something like cyclone Tracey.

For me, being born in the forties was very much about being young and vibrant at one of the best times in Australian history. Everything about being a teenager in the sixties was great, from being able to have your say on things that you previously wouldn’t have been able to, to seeing the country changing around you, even down to the music. Yes, the music was great.

Richard, Sandringham, Victoria

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