Please Sir, May I Fill my Pen?

Firstly, thank you everyone for your kind wishes - I am feeling much better this morning.

When I woke, I realised it was May - and hope that perhaps now we will see some better weather. This blip has absolutely nothing to do with the month of May!

Got thinking about "may" which reminded me of an English teacher at school, who when we said (as we had to in those days) "Please sir, can I fill my pen?" would retort in his drawling voice, "I don't know, CAN you? Don't you mean, 'MAY I fill my pen?" We then had to say, "Please sir, MAY I fill my pen?" and he always said, "Of course, you may!"

We all liked Mervyn Comrie - nicknamed "Merv" (and mainly called this by the boys); he NEVER had to shout at us like certain other teachers did. His lessons were always interesting and we worked hard for him. I remember he used to be the Careers Adviser and had a little room at the top of the stairs, which was always full of cigarette smoke, as he smoked like a chimney - but of course, that wouldn't be allowed these days. This was back in the late 50s and early 60s though, well before the smoking ban came into force.

I can't say my school days were particularly happy, but I did like Mr. Comrie - and also Mr. Whiteley, who taught Maths. They were both kind and encouraging and that was as important then as it is now because we all thrive on encouragement. Strange the things you remember about school too - I remember Mr. Comrie always put 3 dots under his initials and I can see that on my report!

I searched through all my old photographs and found my school report, an old school magazine and a Speech Day programme and had to include my Parker pen, which you may remember I lost a while ago, but thankfully found it again. I am pleased that this page on my report says "This is an encouraging report" as some of them weren't as good, but I did have a lot of time off as I was in and out of hospital, not that many of the teachers took account of that when they commented! Sadly, my parents would never pay for a school photograph, but I remember many of my teachers and school friends by looking through my autograph book - I wonder if children still use these nowadays - I doubt it, in this age of mobile phones. Sad really, as mine brought back lots of memories.

The verse in Proverbs came to my mind:
Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 22:6
King James Version

When I am in a coffee shop and hear someone asking for a coffee and saying "Can I get a latte?" I often think of Mr. Comrie and always say, "Please MAY I have a latte?"