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Toad in Stomach, Beetle in River - Ron Stockton

Page history last edited by Henry Hamburger 10 years, 7 months ago

 

     Jane and I were at Machakos Boys' School in 1965 when the Ministry of Education asked secondary teachers to monitor Standard 8 school leaving examinations.  I was assigned to Kitui, well off the main roads.  Kitui had a reputation among our students as a center of witchcraft.  When I mentioned my assignment to a class, three students took me aside with great concern.  They suggested that I not expel students caught cheating or they might put a toad in my stomach.  Since I did not want a toad in my stomach, I was very cautious about my behavior while in Kitui.

 

     I drove up with my colleague Ed Christensen in his VW Beetle.  Beetles were the perfect car for Kenya.  They had an advertising campaign that showed a sedan beside a Land Rover.  The slogan was, “You need two cars, or a Volkswagen.”  Beetles were amazing.  They could go over mountains or ford streams or cross the bush (as long as you did not run over a thorn).  If they got stuck in the ditch, two men could push them out.  What they could not do was cross a river.   I know because Ed and I tried.  The streams had become rivers because of the rains so our road was blocked. When this happened, you had three options: go back, sit there until the rains ended, or swim across and trade cars with someone on the other side. We decided to try option four, to carry on.

 

            That Beetle was as determined as it could be and did great until it got stuck in the mud mid-stream. Ed and I pushed on that sucker for several minutes, but it would not budge. We could see the bubbles coming out of the exhaust pipe as the  faithful engine  kept chugging away but finally it choked and gave up the ghost.  Alas, we had no Plan B for being stuck in the middle of a raging stream.

 

            Meanwhile, a crowd of curious people had gathered, watching our futile efforts.  Ed went over and asked if they could help.  They were not inclined to push but one offered his cow.  We “rented” the cow and tied it to the VW and pulled it out.  Ed paid a reasonable fee, and we were off to Kitui.  Fortunately, there were no toads.

 

Ron and Jane Stockton, Machakos, Kenya 1964-66

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