大象传媒

This story has been entered by Jenny on behalf of Shirley Woosnam who fully understands the conditions-

My cousins and I were playing shop while our parents were listening attentively to the radio. Maureen and I were playing very nicely but I remember my younger cousins, Pat and Michael, were spoiling our game, that I had set out very neatly. I was not impressed.
My father and mother were sitting in the living room with my aunt and uncle around the radio; it was then that war was officially announced. My uncle was in tears. This made a big impression on me as it was the first time I saw a man cry. He knew he鈥檇 be sent to war. My father however wasn鈥檛 sent to war as he had had Polio when he was young and had a slight limp.
When the war started there were many changes to my life, I lived in East Grinstead and many children were evacuated but my mother didn鈥檛 feel it was necessary at that time. One thing that has stuck in my mind is the rationing of bananas which were my favourite fruit. These were of short supply so only children under 5 were allowed them; I was distraught as I was 5.
I was not evacuated but my family had an evacuated boy named Charlie. He and his mother stayed with us and his father came up sometimes from London on the weekends. Charlie was a few years older than me so we didn鈥檛 talk much.
We didn鈥檛 have an Anderson shelter until the final year of the war when my mother decided it was too much when there were more dangerous bombs. Previously we just hid under the stairs from the bombs. My mother took me to the public shelter if we were out and the air raid sounded. There was a bombing in the middle of my 11 plus exam and we had to hide under the tables.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.