大象传媒

I was married in August 1939 in Port Talbot South Wales and when Geofrey and I got back from our honey moon, war was declared three days later. We had met at Aberystwyth University, and we both had First Class Honours, Jeffrey鈥檚 in Geography and mine in Botany. Following our wedding we went to live in Brigg, North Lincolnshire as my husband was teaching in a grammar school there.
Teachers weren鈥檛 called up at first and it was 1940 when he was called in to the Voluntary Fire Service, much against his wishes as he wanted to join the Air Force, but he also belonged to the local riffle club and was also an extremely good shot.
He was stationed at Grimsby and as I was expecting my first baby I went to stay with my brother in law at Llanfyllin, near Lake Vyrnwy, where I stayed until my son was six months old. Life was lonely in Brigg, being on my own much of the time, and not knowing any one and you had to be in before dark because of the black outs. The baby and I slept under the dining room table each night there was bombing. We had continuous bombing and I remember seeing Hull going up in flames and the following morning, there were hundred of bills from Hull鈥檚 big store strewn all over our garden. (My mother witnessed Swansea being bombed from Port Talbot). The night Coventry was bombed there was a night of noise and bombing for hours and we were fearful that stray bombs may be dropped in our area.
1944 I had my second son. A year later when my eldest had started school, the boys caught whooping cough and I would have lost the baby but for the help and kindness of a neighbour who was a nurse and eventually the baby went in to Grimsby hospital, where Penicillin saved him.
It was 1946/7 when my husband came home, but he didn鈥檛 talk much about it all, as some of it had been so horrible. Worst of all were the incendiary bombs which caught roofs and attics and were totally unpredictable.
My third son was born in 1948 and when he was 8yrs old I returned to part time teaching at the convent school in Brigg.
I was 85 when I came to live in Shrewsbury to be near my eldest son, now retired as in fact are all my sons! All three sons have been extremely kind to me. My husband died in 1979, after being in a coma for a year, due to a mistake by a hospital nurse. His pension died with him, I was left very poor, but my sons helped me.

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