Thanksgiving for Rodney

There was a fine Haileybury turn out for the Thanksgiving service for Rodney Galpin (M 1945, President OHS 1987-88) this afternoon. Past Presidents Michael Freegard (BF1947), John Palmer (E 1962)  and Donald McLeod (A 1950) were there, as was Edward Walker-Arnott (B 1952). Jean Ross, Chairman of the Education Committee of Council (and Donald's wife), was also present, as were the General Secretary, Robin Bishop (Staff 1985 - ) and the Assistant General Sceretary, Roger Woodburn (Staff 1978 -). The Rev'd Chris Briggs, (Chaplain 2000-), was with us, together with Paul Wilkinson, the Bursar, Debbie Wright his deputy, and Pauline Cassidy from the Haileybury Society Office. (I hope I have not missed anyone.)

S Peter's Church Knowle 

Edward Walker Arnott and John Palmer both wore the 'town' OH tie which was Rodney's choice. He never, apparently, wore the bright magenta or the Hearts and Wings ties.

It was a fine thanksgiving and the church, of which Rodney had been both churchwarden and treasurer in his time, was packed. The balcony where many of us ended up gave a good view, but while the seats were beautifully designed to kneel to pray, they were a bit cramped for sitting.

Our prayers for Syliva and the family and for all those who mourn Rodney.

Haileybury was mentioned as just one of a great number of Rodney's interests and commitments, but on the back of the service paper were printed the words from The Pilgrim's Progress which are round the dome in Hall:

"My sword I give to him who shall succeed me in my pilgrimage, and my courage and skill to him that can get it. My marks and scars I carry with me, to be a witness for me that I have fought His battles, who will now be my rewarder." So he passed over, and the trumpets sounded for him on the other side.

We Know The Answer, But What Was The Question?

Yesterday at match tea after the Saturday games there was quite a Hailey reunion. Peter Ansell (Ha 1976) was there with his sister and nephew who is at Merchat Taylors and who had been playing in the matches against Haileybury. Also there was Peter's father, John, (Ha 1945). We showed the chaps from Merchant Taylors that, yes, you can speak into the corners of the Hall and be heard by someone standing in the diagonally opposite niche, and reminisced about the New Guv's test.

Pete remembered a question about the obelisk. Something about 'where will you find a needle?' Neither of us could remember what the question was, but were sure the answer was the Boer War memorial. Can anyone remember the question?

Just enough to annoy

On my travels around the archdeaconry there are sometimes links with Haileybury.

I have noted before the (pre amalgamation) Haileybury arms in one of the stained glass windows of S James's church Muswell Hill.

Goodenough College is a hall of residence for graduates in the University of London on my patch. The building is by Sir Herbert Baker who was the designer of the Hall at Haileybury. The tables and benches in the dining hall at Goodenough are by Robert Thompson, signed with the carved mouse, just as at school. It is a strange experience to be in a place which is so similar, but so different.

Baker also worked at Downing College Cambridge where he completed the North Range of the college buildings, which were by William Wilkins, who was responsible for the Quad and Terrace at Haileybury. I know Wikipedia is a dangerous thing, but the article there on Baker reports the unattributed remark that Baker's work at Downing 'changed the original design just enough to annoy.'

All this allows me to quote from what remains my favourite book about Haileybury, Wilfred Blunt's Haileybury Buildings. Blunt tells us that Baker's first plan for the Memorial Dining Hall was for

"a Hall at right angles to the Terrace block at the corner opposite Bradby Hall. His design, although it continued in the Portland stone ionic character of the facade, and performed a useful function by obscuring the Bradby [which Blunt hated], proclaimed its superiority to Wilkins too loudly, and it was wisely decided to use the site behind Clock House."

Horseshoe

You Have Got to See This

The internet is an amazing place! browsing for a film to put up on the blog, I found the Movitone website. You can register for free and look at Movitone newsreels. There is a film of the opening of the Memorial Hall by the Duke and Duchess of York. The film is one of a small number recording the Duke speaking in public before he became King which, since the release of The King's Speech, are being much viewed by those interested in the real life struggle King George VI had with speaking in public.

It is Story No 102. If you search for it you have to misspell Haileybury as Haileyburgh.

The Duke says:

"Dedicated as it will be to the memory of those who fell, may the [indistinct words maybe: fair few] who come after them follow the example of fellowship and duty which they kept and may Haileybury and her sons prosper through the years to come."

You can see the grandsatnd erected around the south of the Memorial Quad, the buglers on the roof of Hall, the Archbishop of Canterbury sitting next to the Duke as he speaks and the Master, wearing his medal, preparing to make his speech.

Lift Up Your Hearts

At the Albans Trev and Lawrence dinner last Saturday I was asked to say grace. In these days of self service (which have made the food so much better) formal grace in Hall is a rarity. We were sitting down to a meal served to the tables so grace was said. 

As a CP I remember trying on the first occasion I said grace to inject meaning into the prayer with disastrous results. The duty Master - who was one if the chaplains - told me in future just to get it over with, which I duly did. "All on one breath!" was the rule. 

So last Saturday night I duly said grace all in one breath as of old. Someone asked me if I shouldn't gave given it more meaning...

There is a view in church circles that one should try and reduce ones own influence on a text by striving to remove too much meaning from the reading of a text. But even in a sung liturgy some of the inflexion of the celebrant will come through. While a reading should not be a performance, I don't think reading in a monotone helps understanding. Most churches have a better acoustic and a more forgiving audience than Hall at lunchtime, and since the Holy Spirit allows our voices to carry the Word of the Lord, He also gives grace that it may be heard. Despite our voices - or because of them. 

Narbs

Did you have lots to eat over the holiday? I learnt a new Haileybury word for good food: Narbs. My spy in the Removes was unaware that it was not current thirty years ago. 

"Good narbs" is a good nosh. "Got any narbs?' asks whether you have any tuck (a word which is still current). 

Do you know when narbs was coined?

Network Aware Resource Broker

As to the etymology, there are various possibilities. 

NARB is an acronym for Night/Day Angle Rate Bombing System or for "Network aware resource broker." I am not sure what that mans but there is an explanation here, which I have not tried to fathom. Staying in the world of IT, Narbs is also a term meaning 'narrative bits,' units of information used to build a presence on a social network site. See here. There is someone with a twitter account who is @narbs.

Narb is also an online art catalogue for which you can get an app for your iphone. 

Care might be needed as narb seems to be a 'street word.' It has two definitions here - warning, one of them is a bit rude, and the singular (a narb) has nothing to do with food and cannot be defined on a family blog. 

None of this seems to have anything to do with food, and is all narb and not narbs. Help us out anyone?

Royal Couple

Congratulations to the Royal couple. The re-use of the engagement ring recalls another jewel. When the Duke and Duchess of York opened the Hall in 1932 they had been married for nine years. Imogen Thomas relates that the key which the Duchess (later Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother) used to open the hall for the first time had a decorated fob designed to be removed and worn as a brooch. I wonder what happened to it. 

The Duke and Duchess of York with the Master & Mrs Talbot

Lift up Your Hearts

Haileybury's memorial to the fallen of the First World War was the Hall. The inscription reads:

To the Glory of God and in proud remembrance of 577 Haileyburians who served in the Great War and were faithful unto death this hall was built by their comrades in arms and others who loved the school.
Ye who come after them forget not their sacrifice. Claim as your heritage a portion of their spirit and in peace or in war take up their sword of service. So shall the living and the dead be for all time bound in one fellowship. 


The Greek inscription translates as "We lift up our hearts on our hands to the Lord."

A long time ago I heard a sermon in which the preacher enjoined us to understand that Christianity challenges a world which exalts the the survival of the fittest with the example of the sacrifice of the Best. It is all too easy to romanticize the suffering of war, which is so often in general and in particular an exercise of the survival of the fittest. Yet for all that, the example of self sacrifice so often shines out of it, cauterizing the wounds of conflict with the fire of love.

Looks Familiar?

I went recently to a meeting at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster, just round the corner from Church House.

The Building is the same shape as Hall but the same purpose as Chapel and shares many architectural details with both. It is by Sir Herbert Baker who designed Hall and remodeled the Chapel.

Lift up Your Hearts

Lots of things happen at Haileybury when the school is on holiday. This is grace before breakfast at European Youth Summer Music which is the Federation of Festivals' summer course.

Lift Up your Hearts

The inscription round the dome of Hall comes from John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. 

Then Mr. Honest called for his friends, and said unto them, I die, but shall make no will. As for my honesty, it shall go with me; let him that comes after be told of this. When the day that he was to be gone was come, he addressed himself to go over the river. Now the river at that time over-flowed its banks in some places; but Mr. Honest, in his lifetime, had spoken to one Good-conscience to meet him there, the which he also did, and lent him his hand, and so helped him over. The last words of Mr. Honest were, Grace reigns! So he left the world.

After this it was noised abroad that Mr. Valiant-for-truth was taken with a summons by the same post as the other, and had this for a token that the summons was true, "That his pitcher was broken at the fountain." When he understood it, he called for his friends, and told them of it. Then said he, I am going to my Father’s; and though with great difficulty I have got hither, yet now I do not repent me of all the trouble I have been at to arrive where I am. My sword I give to him that shall succeed me in my pilgrimage, and my courage and skill to him that can get it. My marks and scars I carry with me, to be a witness for me that I have fought His battles who will now be my rewarder. When the day that he must go hence was come, many accompanied him to the river-side, into which as he went, he said, "Death, where is thy sting?" And as he went down deeper, he said, "Grave, where is thy victory?" So he passed over, and all the trumpets sounded for him on the other side.