JOHN W BIRD

Story

By his first year in school, John W. had a stutter and little self-confidence. Alice M, his mother believed his younger brother Eric\’s precocious fluency had exacerbated this state. John\’s school results disappointed his father. By migrating to a Closer Settlement scheme in 1923, John F. Bird Sr. set his eldest son up for a life of physical work. At the age of 15, John Jr. was tossed into the deep end of learning to be a farmer. Instead of rebelling against the vocation he became committed to it.

After the family bought Bass Park homestead and 900 acres, they began tennis days. In 1931 the family of Dr J McLean, GP at San Remo, played and John (then 23) and Doreen (19) became friends. Doreen\’s capacity to listen calmed John\’s stutter.

Despite the Great Depression, John and Doreen married in 1933 They lived on the family\’s initial 80 acre block, hand milking first 16, later 20 cows, bought, in full milk, on credit. John\’s arms often cramped and Doreen learnt to milk in a hurry. Then John Bird Sr., announced he had bought Wye River Guest House/Hotel and that the properties were going back to the Settlement Board. Dismayed, John and Doreen took a loss. John was granted relief employment at the Koala Sanctuary fence on Phillip Island and they lived with Doreen\’s parents at San Remo until six weeks after Marilla was born (Sept. 1934.) Then they rented a small, rabbit infested farm near Cowes. John had a small milk run and a lttle income from drying chicory. Graham was born in December 1935, a ‘touch and go’ forceps birth by an inexperienced GP with Doreen\’s father fuming in the background. In 1937 with debts increasing, they applied for farm work as a couple at Narre Warren. Doreen said ‘A hard man É We were there 13 months, a record, his wife told me. ‘ On three other farms, their jobs disappeared when unemployed family members returned .

For the 1938-39 summer they shared the workload at Wye River. In autumn, they returned to Doreen\’s family at Cowes. John again worked on the ‘bear fence’. Then in August, with family help for the deposit, they bought a 16 ha. dairy farm at Pakenham with an old weatherboard house. The property and Jersey Stud were named ‘Rosewynne’. They could not afford a car, so used bicycles and a wagonette. Through the war years John worked as a truck driver or labourer to bring in extra income. In January 1944, during a long drought, a fierce grass fire burnt through the farm. John and a passing motorist saved the tinder dry house, but not the cowshed. They struggled through the recovery.

Doreen was now robust, so they felt able to complete their family with the births of Jean in May 1944 and Sue, in March 1946.

In 1947 Alice, John\’s mother, and brother Eric sold the Wye River hotel and could now do farm work and some child care. John had a Studebaker car and shared the Pakenham house while searching for a farm. They chose one of 31 ha. at Pakenham Upper. Then Alice died suddenly aged 62. Eric, considered at risk of a ‘breakdown’, joined the family household and a business partnership to use the farms together. The success of the partnership, including the moves to properties at Jindivick and Labertouche, is sketched in Eric\’s story (Frederic Bird). By the early 1970\’s, they had a second house built and employed a farmhand. Under Eric\’s critical eyes the men did not settle so they sold out and moved to Warragul at the beginning of 1977. Eric became sicker and died of stomach cancer that September.

John\’s stuttering diminished noticeably and John and Doreen had a golden decade of good health and works. They made love as regularly as brewing the morning cuppa, became known as the ‘The Walking Birds’ and learnt yoga. They travelled to distant children and the many grandchildren and went on a group camping trip to Northern Australia. They were active in their church and community; distributed Meals on Wheels and the Red Cross aged care aids. By 81 John was slowing down and had warning signs of heart trouble . .. then one day, after their ‘morning song’, John had a major stroke and was gone by night. Doreen, after 56 years of marriage, and now faced with his large absence, was pleased he did not suffer a long illness. Love, faith and the intimacy of ‘bed-talk and listening’ had transcended his fears.

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