My life story by Henry J Macey (best e reader for manga .TXT) 📕

I stepped from my car to light a cigarette and found I was shaking so hard with the adrenaline running through my body I could not hold the cigarette still.

We started to lose work as the city taxis from our rival company, "Swan taxi's" came into our area. They could take up clients in the city run into our area and stay there taking up local work until they found a fair to return once again to the city.

This was thoroughly unfair in our estimation, as we were not allowed to go into their area to work. We complained to the taxi authority but were told there was nothing we do about it as their plates allowed them to do so. When this ruling was made it seemed to us that the other taxi firm deliberately loaded our area with their taxis to put us out of business.

We still had our hard-core customers to rely on but found the taxi ranks full of their taxis. We had to drive the streets in our own area to take up the passing trade. It was hard to make a living this way. I still had the taxi truck to earn a meagre living, but with our earnings from the taxi being hafted to what it should be, it was time to think about selling up and moving on.

Kelmscott had its own volunteer bush fire brigade. As taxi drivers, we could be called to a bush fire with ease. On the way, we could pick up other volunteers. As I had the taxi truck, it would be used to carry extra firefighting equipment. With the towbar, a water tank or pump could be towed. As volunteers, we came under the control of the regular fire brigade, and they gave us the training we needed. I sweated for many hours in the hot sun, putting out mock bushfires. But I never did fight a real fire; I went to several with my truck with equipment, but never to the fire line.

The day Richard nearly drowned is a day I will never forget, we had gone to the North mole at Freemantle dock to do some fishing. I had told the boys not to play on the concrete ramps that ran down the side of the mole into the water as the bottoms were coated in seaweed and were very slippery. I was setting up my fishing rod and was about to start fishing when Nicolas came running to me. He was crying and shouting that Richard had slipped into the water, and was being carried out to sea. He had left my youngest son Stuart to keep him in sight, so we could find him easily. Nicolas and I ran along the North groin until we reached Stuart, who was pointing to where Richard was floating up and down in the fast current.

I had stripped off my top clothing and went into the water without stopping. I came up beside Richard and he immediately grabbed me around the neck. We immediately sank below the surface and I had to praise him off of me. When we returned to the surface I threw him away from me towards the rocks where Nicolas and my friend had to climb down to assist me.

After several attempts, I finally was able to throw him to where they could reach him and pull him from the water. When I scrambled up onto the rocks I was exhausted and had to be dragged up to safety. To be honest, when I saw Richard was safely in the hands of my friend, I knew that I had no strength left and could have easily been carried away by the current.

Where I got the strength from I do not know, all I know is it took a great effort to reach those rocks. Even then if my friend had not stamped on my left hand breaking the small finger, I would have slipped back into the water and been swept away.  As I dried Richard I must admit I was full of emotion and held him close to me when I asked if he had swallowed any water. His reply was, “no dad I kept my mouth shut.”

Publication Date: 03-25-2018

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Dedication:
To all the friends, I've lost along the way. friends