大象传媒

I was born during 1930 in Monmouth. A sleepy market town on the South Wales border. At the tender age of nine years old, war was declared. Very little changed to begin with, except our big summer camp was taken over by the Ministry of Defence. Barbed wire fences were erected and the area was patrolled by sentries. We had to walk to and from school, a good two miles each way. On the way home from school, a group of us used to climb a stile which went into a meadow, then to jump the brook up to the lane leading to the camp. This was stopped one day when the stile was covered with barbed wire.

The school days were filled with air-raid warnings as well as the three R鈥檚. When the siren sounded we had to assemble in the playground and then in files go different houses to shelter. By the time we got there the all-clear would sound.

At home there were five of us to look after. There were no family allowances or rent rebates to help our Mum, as Dad died when I was three years old. We were brought up to be self supporting. This helped us when the war started. Our back garden was huge with a stream running along the edge, so we had some ducks. We also kept a number of chickens and few rabbits. The garden was well cultivated, so we all had our jobs to do.

The two elder sisters and mum with the help of a male neighbour, dug the garden vegetable patch. I was piggy in the middle and packed and planted the seeds in the trays. Our two younger brothers helped out by carrying the weed buckets to the compost heaps. They also helped by watering the plants. When it was warm we wore swimming costumes. That was great fun. I cannot remember water shortages. Everything we grew was salted down in large jars. We had no freezers in those days.

The rationing of food was awful. There was not enough of anything for a growing family. We were lucky to have out own little farmyard. When the chickens did not lay, the reconstituted eggs were disgusting. Our Mum was a marvel, after few experimental efforts, all sorts of herbs were added which made it tastier.

Monmouth was in the flight path for Hereford Ammunition Factories. At night the drones of engines was frightening. When the sirens started mum used to get us to go down under a big kitchen table. We only had two bombs dropped fortunately, no great damage and no deaths.

After Dunkirk our camp was used for the wounded. Our house was filled with bandages and slings. Mum worked as a Red Cross nurse. She was also expected to work in the Munitions factory in Hereford. While she was away our elder sister was in charge until our mum got back. Woe betide us if we didn鈥檛 behave.

At fourteen I left school and worked in a grocery shop as a cashier. I had the tedious job at the end of each week to count and record all the food coupons for the Ministry of Food.

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