´óÏó´«Ã½

By kind permission of the Author

You couldn’t shop just anywhere you know.
Not in the War. You had to register.
And bring your Ration Book. And queue.
And give your coupons in for everything.
We were loyal Co-op customers.
Three shops in a row, the Dairy first,
Then Groceries, the Butcher to the right,
And even Groceries divided up,
With separate tills, the dry goods on the left,
Ahead the tins and jars. And bacon and brawn,
Black pudding and corned beef the other side.
Dairy was butter, cheese and milk. And eggs,
I don’t know why. Bloody sawdust on the floor
Next door. The Fish and Greengrocers beyond
The chemist, and the chandlers further on,
A queue for each. Shopping was a marathon.
You queued
And queued
And queued again.

‘This story was submitted to the People’s War site by ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio Merseyside’s People’s War team on behalf of the author and has been added to the site with his/ her permission. The author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.’

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