Brother John L. Harris
Masroor A. Chowdhury, Dhaka
Brother John L. Harris a teacher of St. Joseph School is no more with us. The news was shocking to those who knew him here. He died on December 20. A man of medium height and handsome face, he had a pleasing personality with plenty of warmth. Once I told him that he resembled Alan Ladd, who acted in the cowboy series "Lone Ranger" and he would ask "Oh, is that so?" While the Irish Brothers of schools in India were formal and stern-looking, Brother John was informal and friendly in the typical American way. His grandparents were immigrants from Sweden and had settled in Detroit, Michigan. Among all the brothers in St. Joseph he certainly stood out. Nobody ever remembers seeing him angry. Probably he didn't have a temper at all. At times some of the boys who not being able to follow the class would stare at his face with a blank look and he would express his annoyance saying "Why are you staring at my face? Is it because my eyes are blue and my hair is blonde? Stare at the blackboard instead." That's all he would say . He taught English. He wrote a book on homophones "Words as they look and sound." It was taught in most English medium schools at that time. I have lost mine and I tried to get a copy for my two sons but I failed, as they are out of print now. He was very fond of sheesh kebab and I invited him to dinner quite a few times. Oh boy! he relished. A wonderful companion. Once the two of us went cycling all the way to Mirpur when the road was not pukka. It was a mud road at that time all the way to the residence of the Hirjis. We had lunch with them and spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with the family. When he was assigned to go to Nepal after the liberation of Bangladesh he gave me a parting gift. A beautiful paper cutting knife shaped like a sword which he said he purchased in Paris. I still have it with me. Thereafter, every time he came to Bangladesh he visited me. Dear Brother John, we will all miss you. In fact we have been missing you ever since you left this country and now you have left this world forever. I have prayed and will continue to pray for the salvation of your soul and I am sure that Almighty will grant you heaven. Amen.
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