大象传媒

I was 13 years old when the Second World War began, living with my parents Sid and Win Hales, in the outskirts of Ilford in Essex. Also my sister Eileen 10 years old, and dog Jess. A week before war was declared my mother, sister and I were evacuated to my aunt and uncle's village shop in Kilmington, Wiltshire. We settled in at the village schools although found the lessons far behind our Essex schools. The shop had a bakery, the smell of fresh baked bread wafted up to our bedroom. Even now the smell of newly baked bread takes me back 66 years to those idyllic days.
We returned home three months later as everything seemed quiet - the lull before the storm. This period was called 'The Phoney War'. My sister and I returned to our schools - mine was Mayefield Girls, about 3 miles from home. I went by school bus, it often broke down or had no petrol, so we walked. We carried our gas masks and identity cards always. At school we practised putting on our gas masks (horrible things). We were told in air raids to get under our desks.
As the months passed, more men and women were called up. We were only able to attend school for 2 or 3 days or half days a week, due to teacher shortage.
We had a choice of an Anderson shelter for the garden or a Morrison for indoors. The Anderson was corrugated sheets bolted together and sunk in the garden half its depth, then covered with soil we had dug out. This is the one we had. The Morrison was an iron table the family sheltered under.
All railings and gates were removed from houses, buildings and parks etc. also kettles, saucepans, baking tins and buckets collected to make planes, boats, tanks etc. and all our vegetable peelings etc. were collected to feed pigs.
1940 - 41 the bombing raids began every night for months. We slept in the shelter from 7 pm until 6 am.
One particular night our dog Jess was to and fro to the backdoor waiting for us to go to the shelter. The anti-aircraft guns were firing at the bombers. We were about to step outside when Jess nudged my father back as pieces of shrapnel rained down and went through our dustbin lid (a lucky escape). During that night 7 houses around us were demolished. We had no gas, electricity or water, my mother cooked over the open fire.
One daylight raid when we were watching our planes diving on German bombers we saw a parachute floating down. It proved to be a German airman who landed in trees at a bakery. The Home Guard captured him. From time to time we were able to use parachutes to make underwear, it helped out with the clothes rationing. We also made coats from spare blankets.
In November 1941 we moved to Rainham in Kent.

This story was submitted to the Peoples War site by Wendy Adams and has been added to the website on behalf of Joyce Myers and she fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

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