When we were in school a typical day was as follows: We got up shortly before our parents came back from milking and did some chores such as feeding chickens and rabbits, etc. Then we had breakfast with the whole family and then finished our chores, changed our clothes and were ready to catch the bus. When the weather was bad, we could wait inside since we could see the bus coming from quite a distance and the bus stop was right in front of our house. The bus was usually there around 8:20 and then we had a 20-minute ride and then a five-to-ten-minute walk to the school so we arrived just before starting time. One of the teachers also rode the bus, probably to control our behaviour and to keep us from loitering after getting off the bus. School was let out at 3:30 and the bus left at 3:45 so we were home shortly after 4:00. Then chores were waiting again.

When the war broke out there were 12 children in our family. Five had already left school. Highschool was not considered in those days. Adam and Steina were working and living at other farms then and Jaap, Jannie and Geertje helped at home. Four of us went to school and the others were too young yet. We often had to help our neighbours and when the next-door neighbour’s only son had to go into the army I had to help there after school doing chores. Soon the bus didn’t go anymore because gasoline was too expensive and then we went to school by bike, me with Bep on the back of my bike. Hank and Ju had their own bikes. When winter came there was so much snow and ice that year that Dad decided we should switch schools and from then on we went to the Christian school in Stolwijk, our own village. We liked it much better there and it was so much closer, just a 20- or 25-minute walk.

Although dad and his family belonged to a very conservative church, they were not afraid of trying new inventions. They were the first in their neighbourhood, and perhaps even the town to buy a wash machine. They had a phone long before many others, and even one of the first ‘showers’. The ‘shower’ consisted of a large container of warm water that you raised via pulleys to empty into another vat with small holes.