I am often in trouble owing to my bad memory and it irt^ furiates some people that I forget so many things. I am often referred to as a "scatterbrain" when I forget things, and a lot of less desirable names ! CAROLE LOCKER, 3A. A VISIT During the holidays I spent many days at Richmond Ice Rink. As I am not an expert at skating, I fell many times. Each time I fell, I reached out helplessly, only to pull innocent passers-by down with me. After I had spent over an hour at the rink, 1 left with my friend. When we arrived at the bridge, we crossed it and walked down the other side until we reached a large park. This park has many animals which you can feed; and we always buy peanuts to feed the squirrels. LESLEY MAY, 3C. THE RIVER AT WOOLWICH The Thames rolls on, taking with it the filth and impurities of London. On its meandering course, it passes through grimy Woolwich with its many buildings, monotonously alike, and sombre factories. Huge cranes point their skinny necks up towards the clouds and sometimes nod informal greetings to the surrounding scenery. These cranes tower above panting ferries that cross incessantly from bank to bank. Boats, seemingly angry, yell warning cries to objects in their path. The vile smell of factories, of diesel fumes and of the river itself, merge and produce a pungent odour, especially on a hot summer's day. The very roads leading to the river are alive with traffic going to and fro the river. Even at night the town never rests as machines continue throbbing, and the river, too, never sleeps. ANNETTE DEREHAM, 4C. MEMORIES I often wonder what it would be like to be a first-former again. Looking at the tiny specimens scurrying about now, 1 cannot remember ever having been so small. Time creeps by so slowly; it seems to have been 1966 for an age; and yet the terms seem to flit by in such quick succession that I feel sure I have not experienced half of them. I can remember, in my far-off first-form days, thinking that fifth-formers were very "grown-up" and sophisticated. They seemed like gods to us then, but now I am one myself I seem no 32 different. The change, to me, has been so subtle as to be almost unnoticeable- Each year in the school has left its own impression on me. I was quiet in the first year, more talkative in the second year, giggly in the third and oh, these last two years are too recent to comment upon ! The only obvious change that I have noticed is that everyone of my own age has grown a lot or is it just that younger people are getting smaller these days? The years are slipping by; I am getting old; oh to be young again ! THE AREA IN WHICH I LIVE I live in an area which is a relatively new suburb of London, the capital of England. "Suburb" is a word composed of two Latin ones: "sub" meaning 'less than', and 'urbs" meaning 'city' The City of London is in reality a small area, surrounded by many suburbs of varying sizes. In Medieval days Greenford was among many villages which together formed the Hundreds of Elthorne. Then, as now, the County of Middlesex was divided into six Hundreds. Greenford was the property of a wealthy landowner, the Abbot of Westminster. Far more important a landowner, however, was Geoffrey de Mandeville. This man owned Northolt, Perivale (Greenford Parva), Edmonton, Enfield, Hadley and Ickenham. In Northolt, as it is now, one of the most important roads is called Mandeville Road. In the present day, people tend to forget the history of their own town, and many interesting hours can be spent in finding out the history of neighbouring towns. In Greenford, the Parish Church is that of the Holy Cross. At the present there are two churches in the Churchyard; one is large, wooden and relatively new, the other is the original 'Holy Cross' and is small, built cf irregular stone blocks. It is believed to have been built in the 14th Century. There is one farm still in existence at Greenford Green, and, although no farming can be done the buildings remain. The modern part of Greenford is surrounded by neighbouring factories and trading estates. There is a large trading estate at Perivale that accommodates the factories of many large firms. A quick and easy route to the City of London is provided by the Central Line of the Underground Railway. This extends from Ongar and Woodford in Essex to West Ruislip, in Middlesex. In Medieval days transport along the few, poor roads was very difficult. In pre-Industrial Revolution times, the Grand Union Canal was an important waterway, and barges were in constant use for transporting goods. With the advent of the railways, however, barges and canals fell into disuse, and transport of goods 33