During the morning
of Sunday 9th February 2014 I answered a telephone call and heard
“Hello Elliot it's Phil Barling”.
That's nothing
special you are possibly thinking – but it is. It was over forty
years ago that I last spoke to him.
He and I were
friends at our secondary school and after I moved to Stelling Minnis
in Kent, his home village, in 1964 our friendship grew stronger. I
enlisted into the army in October 1967. I think I last saw him in
early 1968. I've often wondered what he might have been doing since I
left.
In the summer of
2010 I made a return trip to the area to see if he was still living
in the bungalow next to the local shop. The only information I
obtained – wrong as it now turns out – was that he had moved to
Folkestone, my early childhood town. I used the internet to try to locate him. I Googled his
name along with 'Folkestone' – but no joy. I tried
'friendsreunited.co.uk', in particular our old school of Brockhill in
Saltwood, Kent – but no joy.
In November 2013 I
came across the Stelling Minnis Village Website and the Parish
Magazine. I wrote to the Editor in the hope that through the website
or the magazine I might obtain details of Phil's whereabouts. My
letter, entitled 'Can you help' was published in the January 2014
issue.
On the 20th January
I received an email from a lady called Evelyn Simpson: “Have you
managed to track down Phil Barling? I used to play with Phil’s
sister, Jill in the mid 60’s, and I may be able to track his
whereabouts through her daughter.” I
confirmed I needed her help.
On
the 30th January, Evelyn wrote to me again giving me Phil's email
address, which she had obtained from his niece.
I
wrote to him on the 1st February: “...I thought it could be good
to be in contact and reminisce about those times [our teenage years up to October 1967] and what our lives
have been since then. I started to draft a long email about my past
but decided I wouldn't send it, at this time, because you may not be
interested. It would be good to hear from you, but can understand if
you choose not to reply.”
One
week passed
and I hadn't received a
reply. I began to assume that
as I had been the one to break up our friendship he didn't want to
get back in contact.
His
telephone call on Sunday 9th February proved me wrong. It was
fantastic to speak to him. We chatted for forty minutes as if it had
only been forty weeks – not forty years – since we'd talked. It
won't be the last time.
I've
already expressed my thanks direct to Nick Smith of the Stelling
Minnis Parish Magazine, and the good-hearted Evelyn Simpson. However,
I want to thank them publicly; for without their assistance I would
still be searching for a long-lost friend.
© Elliot Sampford 2014
© Elliot Sampford 2014
