大象传媒

Here's a magical tale of thanks.

In the summer of 1945, I returned from service in the Far East. I hadn't seen my wife for more than three years, eight months and 28 days -- a wife I had only married four days before being sent abroad. It was an emotional reunion -- we didn't know if we'd be the same people we'd been before we left. I had been twenty at the time.

We went to Bournemouth for a honeymoon. We had a good holiday. But one thing puzzled me. We used a taxi to take trips here and there, but the taxi driver kept telling us that we needn't pay our bill until the end of the holiday.

Well, we came to check out on the final day, and there was no taxi fare on the final bill. I asked the receptionist, who then went to get the manager. He came to the desk -- a nice chap -- and said "Oh, no, Mr Lipman -- an anonymous gentleman paid the bill for you."

This meant a lot to me -- a way of thanking me, and all the others, who had fought for freedom.

But in a strange way, history then repeated itself. To mark the sixtieth anniversary of the end of the war, I was one of the soldiers invited to have lunch with the Queen at Buckingham Palace. On the way there, my wife and I shared a taxi with two ladies. When we got out, I went to pay -- but the younger lady refused point blank to allow it. She said that it was to thank us for fighting in the war.

And then, after the lunch, my wife and I sat on a little bench in Green Park. It was a beautiful afternoon. Some adults and children came up to me, and asked about my medals. I told them about it, and one boy sat there in silence, just looking up at me. And after I'd finished, he looked at me and said "Thank you, mister, for fighting in the war."

THIS IS AN ACCOUNT OF A TAPED FEATURE THAT APPEARED ON 大象传媒 SOUTH EAST TODAY TO MARK VJ DAY, PRODUCED BY JOHN YOUNG OF 大象传媒 SOUTH EAST. SIDNEY LIPMAN UNDERSTANDS THIS SITE'S TERMS AND CONDITIONS.

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