HE spent his last days sitting in the library, flicking the pages of old copies of the newspapers. After 38 years at the Guyana Chronicle, Aubrey Harricharran aka “Son Son,” believes that his discipline on the job would be his most memorable trait as he reminisced on his time at the newspaper.

Harricharran entered the world of work not at this newspaper.

At 16, as a young man aiming for the stars, he went to the Uitvlugt Sugar Estate, West Coast Demerara, where he we was offered employment as a cane-harvester.
“I use to cut cane at the estate before coming to the Chronicle. I use to cut cane six days each week and I use to have to go to work for four ‘o’ clock in the morning,” he recalled.
He said he would wake up early and head to the estate to catch the punts which would take him and his workmates some 25 miles down into the “back dam.”
Some days the gang would walk and according to him, meeting to work on time was important. He said he worked each day from 04:00hrs until 11:00hrs for three years at the sugar estate.

When he was 19-years-old, Harricharran moved to the city to live with his grandmother, a few corners away from the offices of the newspaper. He said he started out as a circulation assistant and his job was mainly packing the newspapers for resale during the night.
“I use to pack the papers and distribute to various regions. I use to work only night time,” he said.

Harricharran spent the next 37 years of his life in the Circulation Department. He said he would rest during the day on most days. Around 1983, he started a family and the union saw his wife giving birth to three children. Unfortunately, Harricharran’s wife died several years ago, but that did not deter him from fulfilling his tasks as a father.

At work, he said he never “give anybody any problem.” Harricharran got along well with everyone in each department. “I never get into any problem, here,” he reiterated, noting that if he needed to be corrected, he would listen and heed the advice given.

Harricharran is known for wearing slippers to and from work. He said it was a custom he brought along with him from his days at the sugar estate. But he cautioned that he never came to work barefooted. “This is an office you know,” he exclaimed.

Last week, during an interview at his desk in the library, he said that in the years ahead, he will be taking care of his family’s properties across the West Coast of Demerara. In addition, he plans to take restful days at home and with a smile, he said he may look for another wife, to the amusement of others around him.