Depression era tale is a winner

BY RANJANI PONNUCHETTY AND ROZ DAVENPORT

The gift of a half-crown and anecdotes of tough times during the Depression inspired year 8 Renwick School pupil Claudia Murray to write the winning short story for the Elsie Locke Writing Prize for her age group.

The criteria given for the nationwide competition was to describe an incident or tell a story set in the 1930s depression.

Claudia was so inspired to write after talking with her grandparents that the hardest part of the exercise was cutting the story down to 600 words.

She found out she had won in June while in Wellington on a school camp.

She was very excited by the news but had to keep her win quiet until it was announced last Friday.

"I was really surprised when I got the call to say I had won, because it was two months after I entered, and I thought the winner had already been announced.

"It's really weird. When I received the award today I felt really special."

Claudia's parents, grandparents, teachers and her friends were at the Renwick School assembly on Friday to help celebrate her achievement.

The writing prize commemorates Elsie Locke's life, both as a writer and and advocate for peace, the environment, women's issues, and being a citizen of New Zealand. This is the second year of the competition.

Claudia won a cash award of $400 which she will put toward the purchase of an Apple computer, and book tokens to the value of $100.

Her winning entry will be published in a nationwide school journal.

 

The Half-crown - By Claudia Murray

I could see my breath clearly in the cold Canterbury air.  The frozen gravel crackled under my worn-out shoes as I walked the road that would lead me to school.

Here it was the place I stopped at every day - the Cheviot store.  As I stared at

The new book in the window, my breath left a foggy patch on the glass.  I felt tears begin to well.  The moment passed.  I pulled myself together and trudged on, eyes downcast.

A silvery glint in the grass caught my eye.  I knelt down to pick it up.  It was a coin.  I wiped off the dirt and read "New Zealand Half Crown 1934" before turning to the back, where there was engraving of George V, King and Emperor.  My heart thumped. 

I stared at it.  A half-crown! The school bell rang, jolting me to get moving.  I carefully tucked the coin into my pocket, but I couldn't stop thinking about it.  So many ideas raced through my mind.  I kept thinking about the book in the shop window.

My head was still swirling when I got home.  It was nearly dark - the night stars were already starting to twinkle.  A sound from behind the house lifted by thoughts from the coin.  Someone was chopping wood.  Maybe it was Dad, but he wasn't due home from his work gang for weeks.  I peered around the side of the woodshed.  It was an old man.  He was wearing a jacked and trousers that didn't fit him well and were full of holes.

"Mum, who's that man chopping wood?" I asked.

"He's just someone who came by looking for work in exchange for a meal," Mum replied. "Now help me get it on the table."

As we sat down for dinner, I took a good look at the man.  Although his clothes had once been smart, everything about him was dirty: his hair, his face, his hands, his clothes.  He smelt bad, but he had a kind face.

"What's your name Mister?" I asked.

Mum scolded me for asking questions, but the man didn't mind.

"My name's Jack," he said.  He ate fast and seemed in a hurry to leave.

"Where are you staying, Mister Jack?"

"Why, at the Starlight Hotel, Miss," he said proudly, "and I best be on my way."

With that, he picked up his dusty hat, thanked my mother for the meal, and headed out into the dark.

That night I slept with the half-crown under my pillow, and I dreamed of the Starlight Hotel and how grand it would be.

The next morning, Mum asked me to bring in a load of firewood.  At the woodshed, I saw the strangest thing: a foot, peeping out among the logs.  There was someone sleeping there!  As I got closer, I saw it was Jack.  But why? Shouldn't he be at his hotel?

Then I realised where the Starlight Hotel was.

I felt ashamed.  I had been thinking about how much I wanted a book when Jack didn't even have a place to sleep.

I ran to my room and grabbed the coin.  On the way back to the woolshed, I quietly said goodbye to my chance of a new book.  Carefully, without waking Jack, I slipped the half-crown into his hand.

- The Marlborough Express