JOY, HARDSHIP AND BLESSINGS (page 2) by Harmina Dijk-Pesman (October 2000 ©) Immigration Because of the war and losing our business many things, yes our whole life, changed. We had done our utmost to build up the business again, we could not save our business. There were high taxes and not enough stock to build up the business again. All the factories were empty, stolen by the enemy; there was nothing to buy. It was very hard. After ten years of trying we gave up and sold the business. My husband went to work for his brother in the Hague and we followed two years later. But…my husband did not feel up to start something else in the Netherlands. Before the war we did English lessons with a group of friends. We had lots of fun and it helped us later. Our family ended up being the only person in the club who migrated. Queensland was my husband's choice; he disliked the cold weather in Holland and looked forward to go to a warm country. We did not get much sunshine in Holland, especially in the summer of 1956. Many people in Holland will remember that sunless summer. Having a large family we did not want to migrate if one of the children would stay behind. They all decided to go; we were a very close family. So we went to Sunny Queensland. It was a very big step for us all. I was not very impressed with my husband's plans to immigrate. My dear mother was still alive and my daughters were growing up. The elder girls had good jobs in The Hague and the others were still at school. I tried to change my husband's mind but he did not feel up to start some other business in the Netherlands. So we came to an agreement. We were sponsored by the Reformed Church in Brisbane who promised to find us work and housing. We were very pleased that we would have a church to go to in that new country. Later on we made very many friends there and are still good friends now. The boat trip to Australia in April 1957 We decided to go by boat, then we would have time for a rest and prepare ourselves a bit more for the change in our lives. We needed to relax after all the stress and tension of the month of preparation. My husband's brothers brought us to the boat in Rotterdam. They were very sad to see us go. The ship, the Waterman, was waiting for us and for many, many other migrants from different places in Holland. Also a very large group from Hungary who immigrated to Sydney after the revolution of 1956. Those people had suffered so much. Our girls made friends with many Hungarian students. There also was a young married couple from Amsterdam who became our friends. They had a very good time on the boat. Once there was a scary moment. All the alarms went off, bells ringing very loud. I asked what was happening: somebody had fallen overboard, they said. Panic set in because I had seven people who could have fallen overboard. Luckily it was just an exercise for the crew and we were so relieved. Because of the war in the Suez Canal we had to go via Capetown and the Canary Islands. Everything was so new to us all. We had a look around the island and later on we went to Capetown and did some sightseeing there. The evenings were most beautiful. All the stars were shining brightly in the firmament. God's creation in all its splendour! In the evenings my husband and I went on deck for a walk. When we were still young and before we married, he told me once about his stars, a constellation called Cassiopeia (the form of a W and an M). My husband's name is Wouter and my name is Mien.The 'W' is for my name, he had said, and when you look the other way it becomes an 'M' for your name. Now we were a married couple with six children and were on our way to a strange country and we looked at our stars for the last time. They went down in the starlit sky over the horizon never to be seen again in the Southern Hemisphere. Me and my sisters with friend on the Waterman We had a lovely trip to Fremantle; no storms, no really unpleasant things happened to us. The girls had a good time with their newfound friends. In Fremantle we were welcomed by a friendly couple who took us to their lovely home. Later they drove us through the lovely city of Perth with its beautiful parks and the lovely Swan River. One of my daughters was so overwhelmed by the beauty of the land of Australia. It was as if a heavy load fell off her shoulders. All the sunshine and the blue sky after all the sunless days in the Netherlands, especially the sunless summer of the year 1956. Many Dutch people will remember that summer that was not really a summer. I was thinking of that poem of de Genested: O land van mist and mest en vieze vuile regen, gij niet of mijn verzoek ontworsteld aan de zee. After we left Perth we had a big storm in the Great Australia Bight. Two of our children were very seasick and we were happy to arrive in the beautiful harbour of Sydney. From there we travelled by train to Brisbane. That was in itself an experience. When we arrived in Brisbane at the station, the minister of the Reformed Church, Rev Westera, was there to welcome us... Hillie's imageEnation Homepage