The Notorious Miller, Porter and Brawn

There are many deeds done in this world by adults that can have long lasting consequences on innocent youth. Below is a list of the "exploits" of the three subjects named that at first view would have to be considered suspicious if not downright criminal:

1. Abduct young children and take them to an undisclosed location
2. Spend the weekend in the woods with some young boys
3. Show your "Willys" to the neighbourhood kids

Yet all three of these events happened to me before the tender age of twelve although no one ever went to jail and nothing but good ever came of the experience. How can this be? Maybe I should explain before anyone gets the wrong idea...

The first "suspect" in my story was Mr. Miller who went by the name of Walter. We lived in his house in Devon just after Dad got out of the army. Walter was a distant relative who owned a big house so we rented most of it while he and his son lived in one room as if they were just boarders. But it must have been a pretty good deal for them as Mom cooked their meals and looked after the house. Walter was a kind soul and offered to take me and my brother fishing a few times which is not unusual. What was unusual was the way he did it. Walter had a "secret" fishing hole and to get there we had to play along with his plan. We would have to crouch down on the floor in the back seat of his car and Walter would cover us with an old blanket while he drove a wild zig zag route to his secret spot. Only when we arrived at the fishing hole were we allowed to see where we were. We thought it was exciting and a real adventure and never even considered peeking. I still do not know to this day where we went but we caught a lot of fish and it was a lot of fun - as much for Walter as for us I suspect.

The next character was Mr. Brawn who was known to young and old alike as Norwood. He was an old friend of the family who ran a non-denominational People's Church that we had attended from time to time as young kids. Norwood bought an old farmhouse to convert into a bible camp which is still operating today. It is called Tay Valley Retreat. A couple of my school friends and I were invited by Norwood to go out to the site where he was just beginning to renovate the old house and clear brush etc. We jumped at the chance to spend a whole weekend cutting trees, burning brush and roughing it in the wild. Norwood allowed us to light kerosene lamps, cook on a wood stove, use real axes and even wash up in the morning in an icy stream. It was a dream come true! We all had a great time - felt like men and I think Norwood got some cheap labour out of us without us even knowing.

The final "suspect" in this little tale was named Marvin and he had an accomplice - together they were known as Mr. and Mrs. Porter. They were our next door neighbours in Devon and since I never had one, he seemed more like a grandfather to me. Lured to the scene by Mrs. Porter's home made cookies we were taken by surprise when Mr. Porter showed us his Willy! Well, to be more precise it was actually called a Willys - Mr. Porter owned a rare old car called a Willys Jeep and it was quite the antique! The only one I have ever seen let alone drive in. Mr. Porter took us for drives around the neighborhood in his Willys and always got us home on time - thanks to the wind up alarm clock he kept ticking away on the dash board. He and his wife were wonderful neighbours and treated all the neighbourhood kids like family.

Of course I am just having fun with this story but doesn't it illustrate how different the world has become? If one were to look back on these adventures with a different perspective it might appear that something sordid was happening. And believe me, I have even searched my memory over the years looking for those suppressed memories of abuse but sorry folks - it was just a case of good people showing us kids how to have fun.

Would I take young boys alone to my camp if I had one? Would I throw a tarp over two young boys in my back seat and drive around town? Would I even own a car called a Willys? I don't think so! But that is what these men did - they made us feel special and they gave us some wonderful memories. So that is why I want everyone to know about the deeds of the notorious Miller, Porter and Brawn.