PROPUESTAS PARA LA FORMACIÓN EN DOCENCIA EN INGLÉS EN LA EDUCACIÓN SUPERIOR

Paul and Rosanna McEvedey left New Zealand for financial and personal reasons in April 1969. Paul was offered a higher paying job in Western Australia. The majority of his

econometrician classmates already worked overseas and the McEvedeys saw the job offer as the first stage of an extended working holiday. More importantly, moving offered the young couple the opportunity to leave behind difficult family relationships, particularly their fraught connection with Paul‘s mother.

Paul had more reasons to leave than Rosanna but the couple decided jointly that he should apply for the job in Perth. Rosanna wrote that it took mere moments for the two of them to decide that he should respond to the job advertisement in The Dominion when they saw the size of the salary offered.1 Paul felt he ‗stuffed up‘ his interview so was surprised to receive a telegram three weeks later offering him a job and asking him to start in two weeks. He

estimated that it actually took five to six weeks to wrap up loose ends and leave New Zealand. Preparations were necessarily hasty; Paul reflected, ‗We actually didn‘t notify as

many people as we could because we [were] concerned in getting on the plane. And we didn‘t think about it anywhere near as thoroughly [as] perhaps we could have.2

The McEvedeys rushed to make the necessary preparations before departure. Although Paul‘s Australian employer paid their travel expenses the couple researched comparative boat and plane fares. They made no plans for after their arrival in Australia; instead they focused on wrapping up their New Zealand affairs. They stored or threw out most of their possessions. Apart from personal effects, they took with them only a few chairs, tea boxes, and wedding presents. The most important cargo was their cat, Itty Bitty. Rosanna worked at the

Department of Agriculture in Wellington and through her contacts she organized the cat‘s emigration. The McEvedeys cancelled their Wellington flat‘s lease and sorted out the

finances for a section they owned in Ilam, Christchurch. Although building was presently too expensive they aimed to keep the land as an investment and construct a home when they returned. Paul and Rosanna planned to travel for five years, spending two years in Australia and then moving on to the United Kingdom and possibly France. The other main

organizational issue related to Paul‘s car, a bright yellow Riley Elf Mini Cooper. Paul had

1 _{Rosanna McEvedey, written narrative sent to author, 31 August 2009.}

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been given the car by his father‘s trustees while at university.3

The wrangle over ownership of the car was frustrating for him:

The trustees said ―You can‘t take that car to Australia‖. I objected furiously but I was too young – 22 and a bit – to really fight it. Now, the car was in my name, it had been transferred. It had certainly been paid for by estate funds but when it came to me it was mine. And they said, ―No we want it back‖. Probably a week and a half got tied away in just the sheer bullshit of arguing about what happened to the car, where it went, who had rights to it.4

Even to this day, Paul bemoaned the loss of his beloved car. Once the McEvedeys finished packing up they travelled to Christchurch, flying from there to Perth via Sydney and Melbourne.

Emotional responses to the McEvedeys‘ migration differed. Paul‘s father was positive about the move. The couple‘s friends were unsurprised and supportive. By April 1969 almost all of Paul‘s classmates had moved away from Christchurch to Canada, Australia, the UK, and the United States. Rosanna‘s family felt ‗shocked and sad‘ at her departure although they

reconciled themselves to her decision. The main opponent was Paul‘s mother with whom the couple had a difficult relationship. Paul‘s mother – a strong Catholic – had never forgiven Paul‘s father for separating from her. When Paul‘s father served her with divorce papers three days after Paul and Rosanna‘s wedding, she blamed Rosanna. In spite of her bitterness, Paul‘s mother opposed the McEvedeys‘ migration. Paul remembers that after he telegrammed his mother about their decision to move to Australia, she sent an ex-girlfriend to their

address, without telling the poor girl he was already married. It was an awkward situation for all involved. His mother then involved his extended family:

My mother sent Michael [Paul‘s cousin whom he disliked] to have a go at me that I was deserting my mother, and basically this simply wasn‘t done. And my Aunt, who was my godmother and Michael‘s mother said, ―Don‘t listen to that stupid git. We love you anyway. Get on the plane and go‖. So yeah, weird cross currents.5

Given the difficulties with his mother, unsurprisingly Paul‘s main emotion on leaving was overwhelming relief. The concept of he and Rosanna being free to make their own life was a ‗heady brew‘. Rosanna‘s feelings were more mixed: she was close to her two sisters and regretted leaving her family behind. However, Rosanna knew migration offered her the chance to ‗get some much needed distance‘ from her mother-in-law.

3 _{Paul‘s alcoholic father was made a ward of the court due to his financial irresponsibility with the McEvedey}

family trust

4

Paul McEvedey, interview.

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