大象传媒

The war was at a close or actually finished and as a three year old I was dispatched with my grandmother and aunt to pick potatoes in fields in the Perry Barn area,west of Bury St Edmunds along with other local women and a few elderly men.
Each day a group of about ten German POWs arrived in a R.A.F. lorry and guarded by one 'soldier'with a rifle were allowed to pick potatoes.
They were mostly young Luftwaffe air crew and during their lunch break would sit with their guard in the corner of the field and eat their lunch together each sharing their food around.It was a friendly atmosphere with the guard often having a doze.
They often called me over to them to give me a piece of chocolate or cake they had.
My fratenising was discouraged by my grandmother and aunt.They were still the enemy but I was too young to understand,'don't go near those Germans'was the order,but I summounted the furrows and eventually spoke to them.
At the end of one day as they walked back to the lorry,with the guards and prisoners carrying 'hidden potatoes'one of the younger Germans was allowed to carry the guards rifle for him.As a plane flew close by the German raised the rifle and took aim in a mock attack.BANG! BANG! BANG! he said much to the myrth of his comrades.The much annoyed guard 'cuffed' the prisoner around the ear and told him if he didn't behave he would be cleaning pigs the next day,but still allowed him to walk ahead carrying the rifle over hie shoulder.
At the end of the week they gave me a home made tennis bat with two chickens on it which pecked at the bat when a weight was swung underneath it.
I kept the'bat'for many years but often wonder after the prisoners and their friendly guard.

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