The most valuable things I learned at university were how to organise an event – this taught me the art of delegation.          I also learned the ineffectiveness of the lecture as a teaching tool. For many years, in many countries, I carried out recall trials to confirm this finding.          For many years I…

         One birthday I received a fancy gift-boxed, Harley – Davidson set, consisting of a black nylon parka and a bottle of French aftershave – a strange combination.          “I didn’t know you knew I owned a Harley-Davidson motorbike”, I said to my son-in-law, Charles Lambert.          He was impressed. But if he had seen…

I have been asked what my favourite Pacific Island country having worked in or visited a large number of them.          Having worked in Samoa four times, once for five months after cyclone Ofa and my last visit was for an Australian aid mission. I enjoyed my stay but it wouldn’t be my first choice.…

Q&A – Moss Memories 35 – Spirit Voices          Most people do not realize that at one stage we were expecting an invasion by the Japanese as their forces swept south. Australia was being bombed. Sydney Harbour was invaded by Japanese submarines.          in 1942, at the age of sixteen, I was a Lance Corporal…

What and where is Flock House?          It was a farm training centre 14km South of Bull’s village situated on 3,000 acres of land.          Apart from the Rural Field Cadets course run by State Advances,  it probably gave the best practical training in agricultural skills in New Zealand. It was set up in 1924…

Cats have played a big part in my life. I have never purchased one. Our children usually brought them home or left them behind when they traveled.           Cats in New Zealand and in Asia seem to have different personalities. The Asian cats move faster and are not so fussy eaters. In New Zealand, they…

It’s hard for people today to visualize the hardships that backcountry farmers endured during the depression years. Many worked from daylight to dusk, seven days a week only to walk off their farms destitute.          After the initial bush burns, there was a steady decline in soil fertility followed by an influx of weeds, and…

One day an official-looking letter arrived addressed to Geoffrey Moss, Cane Collector. People have called me unusual names at times but Cane collector was a new designation.          When I opened it up I found an embossed invitation to attend a function put on by the Hon. Josiah Beeman, the United States Ambassador to New…

For many years, for many reasons, I spent much time traveling the South Island of New Zealand staying in country pubs. They weren’t comfortable but they were homely. If you arrived late after the cook had gone home you were invariably told to go into the kitchen and make yourself a meal.         At one…

Bangladesh 1985/86         This country had a serious set back right from the start. During  December 1971 the departing Pakistan troops rounded up many  intellectuals and leaders and shot them, setting the country back more than a generation.          Most of the country is a huge delta formed by two large rivers,  the Ganges and…