RITA

By Rita McLaren

Throughout her lifetime, Rita McLaren has documented her experiences in journals and on scrap paper. Now in a collection of short stories, poems, and photographs, Rita shares colorful insights into her unique journey through life that began on Corsie Hill in Perth, Scotland and carried her across an ocean and a continent to settle in Vancouver, B.C. Canada.

In a vivid portrayal, Rita captures the history of her life that led her across two continents and through six decades from 1935 to the present day. She begins by detailing the beginning of her life while living in her family’s two-hundred-year-old heritage home on Corsie Hill, spending her days running wild and swimming in the River Tay with her twin sister and other siblings. As she leads others through her experiences from childhood to today via images and writings, Rita proves that an adventurous life is the best life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Jul 31, 2023
• ISBN: 9781665745031

Rita McLaren

Rita McLaren was born and raised in the beautiful countryside of Perth, Scotland. She lived in the family’s two-hundred-year-old heritage home on Corsie Hill with her mother Elizabeth, father Daniel, and seven siblings. The home had stone floors, no running water, and wood fires for cooking and heating, but it was big enough for their family of ten. Rita spent her childhood running wild on Corsie Hill and swimming in the river Tay with her identical twin sister Marion and their siblings. When Rita was twenty-one, her sense of adventure brought her to New York to visit her life-long pen pal, before she eventually settled in British Columbia. There she met the love of her life, Walter Agabob and together they raised three boys, Marty, Greg and Keith. Rita’s curiosity led her to a passion for many creative pursuits, including calligraphy, ceramics, Hawaiian dance, gardening, painting, and most certainly writing stories and poetry.

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Copyright © 2023 Rita McLaren.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author

and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of

the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of

people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

Archway Publishing

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or

links contained in this book may have changed since publication and

may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those

of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher,

and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are

models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Interior Image Credit: Family Photos in Rita’s collection

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4504-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4502-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4503-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023910283

Archway Publishing rev. date: 07/18/2023

CONTENTS

My Letter to You

Dedication

Acknowledgement

My Childhood Memories and My Family

Circle of Time

Marion and Rita

Our Home

Home

Growing Up

The Most Influential Person in My Life

Memories

School Time

Speech

Housewife

A Day in Scotland

Scotland

Children’s Play

People and Houses

Home

Happy Day—A Trip to the Sma Glen

Memories of England in a Dance Hall

Saturday Night

The Enchantment of a Drive-In Movie

21st Birthday

Essay on Brother Shooting A Hare

Winter Skating

Waiting

A Visitor

Smile

Music in the Woods

Moonlight

River

River Tay

End of Day

Impressions

Office Girl

On Work

Homeward Bound

New Job

An Office Day

Start of the Travel Bug

Another Way to Say Tall, Dark and Handsome

A New World

Report on New York

Politics

Rita

The Street Where I Live

Poems and Haiku

Eyes

Music

Violin

Midsummer Holiday

Scottish Summer

Cats

Little Boy of Three

Friendship

Rain

Life

Believe?

Mae a Lady

Fashion

Guitar Song

Evening

Connie the Talker

Silly Poem

My World

A Real World

A Moment

New World

Vancouver Hosts Expo 86

Expo 86

Expo

Lockerbie

1987 Society

Back Page News

Freedom

Lament

Rain

Wild Roses

Immigrants

After The Show

Mother Dear

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day 1992

Shot: In No-Man’s Land

90s MAN

The 90s

Aunt Nora’s Apartment

Native Rights

Intolerance

Poetry

Xmas Letter

Son Wed

Diana

Letter

Santa Is Coming

February Rain

Sensed

Tagalong

Hawaii

Me

Twin Towers

Keep Burnaby Clean

Litter Bug

Pocket Watch

Stone Child

Seabird

February

My Favourite Author

Social Media

Dance of the Jazz Addict

The Post

Unspoken Words

Dictionary

Little Mountain

Vancouver—Spring

Mirror

Perthshire

Summer Wanderings

Wind

Sunset

The Woods

Passing By

Sunday Morn

Fall

Haiku

Friendship

Spring Celebration

Summer Garden

Season of Leaves

Christmas Memories

Winter Wonderings

Grandma’s House

Stories For My Grandchildren

Kaleidoscope Bird

Natasha and the Crystal Necklace

Nergard the Teddy Bear

About The Author

MY LETTER TO YOU

Dear Grandchildren:

I am writing this, my story, to you as a letter because I have written letters all of my life. I want you to know my story and how it came about. You were born Canadian and not Scottish. Through my letters, you will gain insight about me and, as result, about your heritage. The past is with you at all times and the future is yours. Having made notes and written this, I will include stories for you, so you can glimpse what life was like in my time. Understand, one never really knows a person. What is revealed is what yourself has come to know.

G’ma

Image%2053.jpg

Rita and her Grandchildren

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this book to my loving husband Wally, my three handsome boys Marty, Greg, and Keith, and all my amazing grandchildren and family, without who there would be no story.

Thank you, Wally, for changing my life! Together we created new and wonderful adventures in Canada.

IMAGE%2032%20BWupscale.jpg

Marty, Greg, Keith, Rita and Wally 1972

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This book was written by Rita throughout her life in journals and on scrap pieces of paper.

Years later, it was lovingly compiled by Karen Agabob and Lisa Chan.

Special thanks to Marty Agabob at Levitated Lens for his assistance with the photos and to the many who helped proof read and edit the stories.

MY

CHILDHOOD

MEMORIES

AND MY

FAMILY

CIRCLE OF TIME

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First hours to nevermore, I came screaming into the world, followed by my twin.

Another set of twins, Mrs. McLaren. The nurse smiled.

We had joined the family circle.

My twin brothers were two years and two months older. My eldest sister told me that she would march us down the street, one boy, one girl, just to see the reaction to double double vision!

I never thought of myself as I; it was always we. Many names we were called—the Scottish weans, meaning bairns (small child), was computed to