大象传媒

INTRODUCTION: My late mother, Reta Vaughan, (9 March 1919 to 5 August 1988) was a shy retiring person and would say that her story is not worth adding to the website. Having been involved for the best part of a year as a volunteer for the People's War website, with Age Concern Shropshire Telford & Wrekin, I truly believe that everybody has a story to tell. My late father's story "The War Diary of a Royal Engineer with the Forgotten Army" has been submitted in 2 parts, and can be found at A6955815 and A6990069. My story "From Daddy with Love" can be found at A7570046.

***

Phil and I were married on the 27 July 1940. (See photograph at A8851674 " Wartime Wedding")
He enlisted on the 20 February 1941, just after his 23rd birthday. Muriel was born in April 1942 and Phil was granted 4 days compassionate leave. I was very lucky that my mother-in-law decided to visit - she delivered her first grandaughter! Muriel was such a skinny little thing that I gave her the whole of the butter ration.

In December 1942 Phil was granted a period of privilege leave; and we went to London. Phil was always reminding Muriel that she wet his trousers outside the Tower of London!

In March 1943 we had to say goodbye, at Halifax Station. We did not know when or even if we would see each other again.

Towards the end of the War I worked at the War Time Nursery Class at Meanwood School, Rochdale; during the absence of a Child Care Reservist. After which I did the necessary training and became a qualified child care nurse and worked at another Nursery in the town.

Phil wrote as often as possible and after Muriel's first birthday he started to send her cables and airgraphs of her own, she didn't always have to share with me.

An event that I can't remember but she insisted that she could, was the occassion when I trapped her finger in the hood of her pram. I had parked her pram outside the butcher's shop and thought that she was crying because she was fed up of waiting for me to finish shopping.

In March 1945, our friend and Muriel's Godfather, Harold Kay, arrived home from Egypt and came to visit.

When I received a cable from Phil to let me know that he had been granted 28 days home leave in the summer of 1945, I decided to "stipple" the wallpaper in our bedroom. I, also, decided that at 3+ Muriel was old enough to sleep in a bed. When I went upstairs later that night to check on her, I found that she had drawn over the newly stippled walls with my lipstick! Never has a cot been re-assembled and a child put back to bed so quickly!

Muriel's recollection of this event is that when I found out what she had done, that she was brought downstairs to meet visitors and that she played with a toy elephant that Phil had sent her from India! (see Note 1)

On the 26th July I went to Rochdale Station to meet the train that Phil was travelling on; he had been given 28 days home leave. His train got into the station at 10.33 pm; (the time is recorded in Phil's War Diary). I helped him to get his kit home, fortunately it was not very far from the Station to our house. Phil's mother and father, and my mother were at the house waiting. I brought Muriel downstairs to meet her father but she was quite poorly with a bad ear.

We had a wonderful month together as a family, but too soon it was time for Phil to return to Burma. Muriel and I went to Rochdale Station to say goodbye. When Phil arrived in Liverpool he found out that he was not leaving until the following day. He phoned his sister Gladys up and asked her to bring us to Liverpool.

We arrived in Liverpool at 3 pm, and went on the Ferry to New Brighton. We went to the fairground and had tea in New Brighton. We caught the 9 pm Ferry back to Liverpool, and had supper in Liverpool. We then took Phil to Prescot in Gladys'car. We really enjoyed this extra day but were both broken-hearted to have to say "goodbye" again. (see Note 2)

(See photograph at A8851908 "Mother and Daughter" that Phil took back with him to Burma.)

On the 18th April, 1946 Phil sent me a cable to say that he was being repatriated. He got back to England in June, was granted release leave on 20th July, and was demobilised on the 12th October, 1946.

Our second daughter Margaret was born in April 1948.

***

Note 1: In my father's War Diary the purchase of the elephant is recorded on Friday, 1st September, 1944. (My father had been granted a few days leave after having been in Hospital with malaria for 10 days in August.) "Went into Cal again at 9am. Shopping. Bought Reet some Dress Material & Handbag. Elephant for Muriel, Table Cloths for Mother, Dressing Table Set for Gladys. Sideboard Set for Ma Stott. Returned at 4.30pm."

Note 2: Having read and re-read my father's Diary I often wonder what both he and my mother went through and thought when he had to return to his Unit after his home leave in August 1945. AFTER BOTH VE DAY AND VJ DAY. It must, in some ways, have been more difficult than the parting on the 13th March, 1943.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.