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Sited next to the headmistress at the end of one of the long oak dining room tables, no meal at DWS was complete without this small and shiny gong being struck.This was done twice,usually in rapid succession with no time at all for (or any expectation of) a voiced prayer or even an 'Amen'. We would fall silent, bow our heads briefly until it was struck again and then we'd resume our chatter. Sometimes it would also be struck for an announcement, as may be seen in the linked story by Vanessa Gebbie. I asked an old friend what object would sum up our collective experience of DWS. The gong, she said!