Throwing It “Back” To School
← Blog + Saturday, August 29th, 2015
I’m an 80s child who grew up in Kingston, Jamaica. That means that Back To School was dreaded. If there are any Jamaicans reading this, you must have a slight clue! Come on, do the phrases “wash out,” “herb tea,” or “worm medicine” ring a bell? I know you remember it like it was yesterday.
I laugh and cringe as I remember the orange/ brown coloured package that would be left on the kitchen counter in mid to late August. Insert *deep breath* here.
So, after the administering of this awful substance (that I had to sip while covering my nose) you’d think that was it?! That’s a negative ghost rider. You stayed at home for about 3 days. And when I write stayed at home, I mean you stayed at home. My sister and I weren’t even blessed with a drive out to the foot of the hill; we barely made it to the gate with our bicycles. Everything that needed to come out of our systems did so.
Today, Zentel does the trick at any time in the year. There’s nothing auspicious about August anymore. Lucky children of today!
Around the same time you got the tea, you were sent to bed early to “practice” the back to school bedtime routine. This was usually at 8:00 p.m. promptly in our house and took place after a cup of Mom’s Milo Milkshake (that was also important before each Sports Day because that along with the “track shoes” made you win your race, forget skills).
This was the official end to Summer along with your parents supervising you and the wrapping of school books in that lovely brown paper. Double double sigh. Where did my parents even buy this? All I see today is the plastic sticky wrap in neon colours. Clearly kids can’t wrap their own books because it is awfully hard for even me to use with a masters degree in education.
Anyway, we were involved in Back To School a lot.
Back to the “worm medicine.” I’m beginning to think that it may have done more than it claimed, because I can’t remember getting sick a lot or even missing school that often. Older folk did believe that a good “wash out” would keep you healthier for school. Makes you wonder if some good old fashioned Jamaican style “wash outs” may do the trick for our children today? What do you think?
Rachael McDonald
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Yes Aunty Rachel, I remember the senna contrat that was give, My memories of it though was that I actually liked it…..(must have been crazy) and it did do the traickm we were not ill often neither did we have worms….so I guessed it works. Fond memeories though of first day, with new bag, new shoes and sometimes not so new books because at athat time, books were handed down. Tha general anticipation of seeing who would get what and who went where for their vacation, (remeber those essays “how I spent my Simmer holidays”. It is interesting though even though there was anticipation of a new school year we definately miised the laid back days of summer.
Wash outttttttt. I can remember every kid in the community getting back to school washout except me…the lucky one….
Think my parents hated it more than I did…even though to this day I have no clue what it’s about…
Hello Rachael. Confirming that Zavier will be attending school for the Xmas term. Thanks.