大象传媒

There is no humour in this memory of my Mother鈥檚 war as told to me, our neighbour was an elderly lady who was stone deaf and unable to hear the siren (air-raid warning) but she had worked out a system with my Mother that enabled my mother to warn her to take cover. When the alarm sounded my mother would lean over the fence, and with a stick especially kept for the purpose, tap repeatedly on her window, unable to hear the siren she nevertheless could feel the vibrations caused by this action, and would collect her things and come across to our shelter. On one occasion she arrived on our doorstep blanket and belongings in hand to the complete bafflement of my Mother who had not given the alarm, as no siren had been sounded. When she was informed of this she asked my Mother why she had tapped on the window if all was clear. Not having done so mother was at a loss to explain what had happened and could only conclude that someone else had sounded the alarm and decided to investigate. On going into the garden mother was horrified to see, hanging from the large tree near the window a parachute to which was attached a mine, gently swinging in the breeze and tapping against the window.

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