大象传媒

My father was a foundling. He joined the regular army before the War of 1939 - 1945 and served in India as an infantryman. He left the army and married my mother in 1938/9 but was called up, as an ex-regular soldier, very early. Like me he liked clothes; smart shoes, suits, silk shirts and so on. During the latter part of the war he was involved in setting up the camps for D-Day. He went A.W.O.L. a few days before D-Day but fortunately was not found out! If he had been I might not be here. My mother had persuaded him to be a medic but that didn鈥檛 stop her sewing a chamois leather pistol holster inside his tunic. He was around Caen, drove a truck close to the 鈥淏ridge to Far鈥� (but had to reverse) and helped out at a concentration camp; it may have been Belsen. I am here because he made it back. I am one of six of his offspring with an elder sister, two older brothers and two younger sisters.

Why do I write? He not only did 鈥渉is bit鈥� but also, subliminally, instilled in me, and I have no doubt others, his ethos.

He rarely talked about his experiences and, when he did, it was always in a deprecating and amusing manner. Until his death in the late 1970鈥檚 he remained involved in the running of his ex-comrades association. I remember well the sessions at the Yeoman Warders Club at HM Tower of London and the Mess at the Royal Hospital Chelsea. On one occasion my Mother held me responsible for getting him and a former comrade drunk one Friday evening in the 1960鈥檚; I was 18 at the time and he could drink my brothers and I under the table without blinking an eyelid. Needless to say he was out of harms way when she twigged the true situation.

After moving from requisitioned property my family lived on a council estate in an inner London borough. My father became involved in the running of the Tenants (Residents) Association as well as being heavily involved in the trade union movement.

The seminal incident that occurred was shortly after the heating and hot water system on the estate was converted from solid fuel to gas and, as a result, the number of porter/stokers was reduced. As a result the first non-WASP was appointed. This was in the early 1960鈥檚 and there were dark mutterings from an individual about not allowing ethnic minorities on to the estate. During one exchange I recall my Father responding 鈥淚f we are going to get rid of them we shall need to get rid of the Jews as well!鈥�. The exchange actually used the derogatory terms W*gs, N****rs and Y*ds There was no response from his audience but I recall my Father鈥檚 fury lasting for days!

I recall one Sunday in the 1950鈥檚 when a classmate came to our home for tea. My Father welcomed both him and, later, his father. The fact they were Tamils from Ceylon (Sri Lanka) gave my Father a degree of satisfaction. In later years my younger sister entertained school friends who came from Eastern Europe although my Father continued to prefer Gordon鈥檚 Gin to Wybrowka.

My Father鈥檚 example taught me to treat all men as equal and deserving of respect until their behaviour or attitude justified otherwise. He taught me to give people the benefit of the doubt but always tempered with awareness of what was right and proper. These lessons were absorbed by example and not by lecture or dictat. I have to admit I have not always lived up to his standards but I do try.

What do I owe to my Father?

For one thing my penchant to collect clothes; although I envy him his small feet. I hope I have inherited his tolerance, morals and ethics. One regret I have is I did not inherit his musicality. He was a musician, and although I like, appreciate and understand most styles of music, I am unable to play a note!

I must have absorbed something other than genes from him as I have had the privilege of contributing, in a small way, to the development of the third world. I think he would have approved.

The D-Day generation sacrificed so much. They gave us our freedom and the opportunity to make change. I am not convinced later generations have lived up to their expectations but I know we have not done justice to their sacrifice.

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