大象传媒

When the bombs first started in May. I went to Harrowby Road Drill Hall with my Dad and I got sixpence for getting up on the stage.
When I left the hall there was an air raid on
and we had to go to the nearest shelter. I dropped my sixpence, so I refused to go into the shelter until I found it, I searched and searched, but in the end Mr. Body the ARP Warden said 'I've found it' (I don't know to this day whether he found it or gave me his own money.
With the sixpence I took my sister to the Argyle Theatre, we even had enough for some sweets and even had a halfpenny each left over.
A little while later my sister and I were evacuated to Welshpool, but we were sent to different locations.
My sad memories of this time are hard to forget because I was made to look after the lady's 4 year old son I had to get him up washed dressed fed and take him to school and then go myself to school. His mother always stayed in bed.
When I returned from school one day she informed me that she had got me a job delivering newspapers, which I had to do before I went to School, plus everything for her son as usual. I was always in trouble at school because I was late.
On my return from school one day she said she had another job for me in a chip shop 6 until 9 comming home in the dark in the countryside was quite scary.
After all this I was really looking forward to my summer holidays I was longing to play out with my school friends but no, another job was found for me potato picking on the local farm.
I wondered why the lady always called at the jobs I was doing on a Friday I thought she was checking up on me to see I had been doing them, but she was collecting my wages, which I might add I never saw, not even pocket money.
I thought I would be having Saturday afternoons off but no I had to do all the washing by hand. Even Sundays I had to attend Sunday School and Church in the evening.
After staying for over 9 months I managed to get paper from school, I cannot remember how I got an envelope, but unfortunately no stamp
I risked sending the letter to my mother with no stamp, I had been writing each week to my mother, but the lady stood over me while I wrote, and used to post it for me so I could not tell my mother the truth.
When my mother received my letter she came to fetch both me and my sister home, although my sister had been ok.
We stayed home for a few months but the air raids were getting worse so we were again evacuated but this time both my sister and I were at the same place in Bala, much happier than before, and we had two very happy years there until we were reunited with our family in Birkenhead.
Bala was paradise compared with Welshpool,
After this experience I promised myself if I ever had children of my own, and god forbid they were going to be evacuated for any reason, I would refuse to let them go, we would stay as a family together.

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