veldskoens

And of course, there was Bata, shoe store to the nation, where farmers bought their veldskoens (fawn-colored, rough suede “veld” shoes) and white kids bought rubber Slip Slop sandals and blacks and whites alike bought takkies (white plimsolls), which we all wore till our toes protruded from the sides.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

Dad was in his uniform of khaki pants, a thin, much-mended khaki shirt with a Parker pen and a packet of Madisons his new brand in the pocket, a floppy khaki hat, and veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

Dad was in his uniform of khaki pants, a thin, much-mended khaki shirt with a Parker pen and a packet of Madisons his new brand in the pocket, a floppy khaki hat, and veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

So I and a fuming Dad had gone to the Alps on our own and had climbed a mountain in veldskoens and takkies and cotton clothing and been caught in a sleet shower on the way down and been unable to grip and, in a very real way, had contemplated falling to our deaths in the icy river several hundred feet below for more hours than I care to remember.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

We lit candles in silence while Dad grabbed his FN and hurriedly put on his veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

And of course, there was Bata, shoe store to the nation, where farmers bought their veldskoens (fawn-colored, rough suede “veld” shoes) and white kids bought rubber Slip Slop sandals and blacks and whites alike bought takkies (white plimsolls), which we all wore till our toes protruded from the sides.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

Not surprisingly, he ended up pouring methyl bromide, a highly toxic fumigant, into his veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

We lit candles in silence while Dad grabbed his FN and hurriedly put on his veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

So I and a fuming Dad had gone to the Alps on our own and had climbed a mountain in veldskoens and takkies and cotton clothing and been caught in a sleet shower on the way down and been unable to grip and, in a very real way, had contemplated falling to our deaths in the icy river several hundred feet below for more hours than I care to remember.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007

Not surprisingly, he ended up pouring methyl bromide, a highly toxic fumigant, into his veldskoens.

Rainbow’s End Lauren St John 2007