蜜芽传媒

ABC of Infant Memories in WW2

A - Anthem

We all stood to attention when the National Anthem was played, wherever we happened to be. If in a cinema at the end of a film, there was a rush to get out of the exits before the anthem was played. Once it started to play then we all stood silently until it finished, even if it meant missing a bus home. Those very near the exits would edge very slowly towards the doors until they could slip through unnoticeably.
Then it became usual for most of the audience to see the end of the film from the gangways, standing up, ready to make a dash for it. The anthem would play to a deserted cinema save a few stalwarts and those slow on their feet.
So we were very pro-Royals and patriotic in a hypocritical way.

B - 蜜芽传媒 Messages

At exactly 9 p.m. every evening, after the Big Ben bongs, we had the cryptic 蜜芽传媒 messages on the radio, before the news. We all had to 鈥榝reeze鈥�. No noise or motion allowed. I would be undressing for bed, behind a chair, as it was too cold to change into my pyjamas upstairs. I tried to hurry before the bongs stopped but was often caught midway; with my liberty bodice half on and half off. I dare not move, speak, sneeze or hiccup.
My parents would sit hunched before the coal fire, waiting for the - messages.
A deep sombre voice would say things like:-
THE DUCK HAS FLOWN or THE WIND IS IN THE EAST or BLUE DOG
I could not understand why my parents found this to be so interesting. It went on and on sometimes. Too long, if you are stuck halfway through a liberty bodice!

C - Chilblains

What awful things they were. I wore ankle socks for all seasons, so my legs suffered in the cold. My Gran and Mother decided to apply the 鈥極ld Wives鈥� cure of plunging my feet and legs into a huge chamber pot. It was full, hot and steaming at the time! I resisted with all my might and screamed and kicked until they took the pot away.
Their next 鈥榗ure鈥� was to immerse my legs into melted candle-wax. The molten mess was as multi-coloured as the collection of old birthday candles and night lights that they had found. I noticed that the 2 mantelpiece candle holders were minus the curly, yellow candles that had always been there. So I knew that I had to go along with that sacrifice and put my chilblained legs into the concoction. They were pleased and I was relieved, when the smearing was accomplished. Whether having rainbow legs cured my chilblains or not, nobody can remember.

D - Dresses from a Parachute

My Auntie Peggy was getting married to a pilot. He was in the RAF and she was too. He was a 鈥榩ath-finder鈥� pilot. So it had to be a really nice wedding, with a white dress. My little cousin and I were to be the bridesmaids.
My mother鈥檚 nephew was a London Spiv. He had a big tie on and a shiny suit.
He said he 鈥榝ound鈥� a white parachute. It was lovely, soft and silky. All the wedding dresses were made from it. The bride and we two bridesmaids were dressed like 鈥楩airy Queens鈥� my Grandma said and 鈥渘ot a coupon for any of it!鈥�

E - Encyclopaedias

I learned to read quite early but had nothing nice to read at home. My brother was never keen on reading, so there was nothing to hand down. My mother鈥檚 novels were snatched from me, as being not right for a little girl. When I asked for some story books, I was told that there was a war on -? I had grown out of the baby books. I craved for something better. My father came to my rescue.
He let me get down one of the big encyclopaedias that were up on the bureau top. They were meant for us later but my brother was not interested. They were big and brown and beautiful, with gold letters on the cover and on the pages edge.
NEWNES PICTORIAL KNOWLEDGE they said and had numbers on them from 1 to 8.
I looked through each one, so carefully. I did not want them taken away. Each one had different subjects in. Some I didn鈥檛 understand. After looking through them all, I knew which one I liked the best, it was Volume No. 4.
I took it down most days, when it was too wet to go outside, to play. I opened it on the front room table, making sure it was all clear. About the middle of the book and there it was: Greek Legends. I could hardly breathe.
They were the most wonderful fairy stories I had ever known. The people had quite hard names to remember but I got to know them well. I don鈥檛 think that I said them the right way, in my head, but only I knew that.
I loved that Volume No. 4. It was like my secret friend.

F - Father at 蜜芽传媒

All his life my father had wanted to join the RAF. He was in the RAE at Farnborough when his own father died young from appendicitis. Being the eldest son, he was ordered home by his mother, to help support his younger siblings. That happened in those days.
Later on he married and got a job in an aircraft factory. (Handley Pages) On the onset of war, his application to join the RAF was rejected. He was of more use in aircraft manufacture. So once again his dream was shattered.
Other children were told that my father was a coward, for not fighting away in the war, by embittered mothers. Some were already widowed. So I was bullied by upset children and I told my parents. My father was so sad, but my mother was filled with fury. She had some major rows with those concerned.
I still got punched by bewildered children who had lost their fathers, but I didn鈥檛 tell my parents any more.

G - God

We knew about God and we had morning assembly at school, with a hymn and a prayer. We had to put our hands together, straight up and shut our eyes in the prayer but lots of us were peeping. Then we were told off about something by the Headmaster and marched back to our classrooms. For the rest of the day we didn鈥檛 think about God at all, unless we had to, in a lesson.
So when some family was hurt badly and our mothers said 鈥淕od help them鈥� about the children, and he didn鈥檛. I was a bit cross about that. If God was so kind then why was Hitler allowed to keep hurting people. If I was God then I would kill Hitler. Then everything would be alright.

H - Hedges

Nobody cut their privet hedges in the war time. So the bushes got bigger and bushier. We children used them as our dens. They were good hiding places if you didn鈥檛 want to go in to bed, when called.
Mothers used to part them with their hands to talk, or row, with the neighbours the other side. If children argued about playing a game in the street, then the ball was thrown into a hedge, by the loser. It took a long time to find it again.
Once we used the big red phone box on the hill, to phone up the Queen or Churchill. There used to be a phone book there with names and numbers in it. A big policeman came roaring up, on his motorbike, and we all ran and jumped into hedges. We could see him take his goggles off, but he could not see us. He looked around and used the phone to talk to someone, and then he opened the book and tore out all the good pages. We know that because we crawled out and had a look at it when he went.

I - Insurance Man

The Insurance man called weekly. I don鈥檛 know what we were insuring but we were not the only ones. He walked along the street with his book and money satchel and knocked upon the doors.
Then he started bringing children with him, who had been bombed out. Most people took some in, as they had no place to go. Some had their mothers with them; they stayed until a proper place could be found. We put chairs together to make beds as we only had a tiny house.
One day when we had some children in the house, we all caught the Chicken Pox. They couldn鈥檛 go anywhere all spotty. We all lined up in just knickers or pants, and dabbed the spots of the one in front. Then we all turned round and dabbed the spots of the one behind. We had saucers of Camomile Lotion and cotton rags. We did this many times, for days, until the spots went down.

J - Jobs

Lots of families had no Daddy at home. So the Mummies found themselves some sort of job. If they could have the children minded by someone they knew, then they could find a job as a post lady; or a dinner lady at the school.
Some did sewing making new things from old. Some grew vegetables and fruit in their garden and sold it by the pound. Some looked after babies during the day.
Some gave piano or dancing lessons in their home. Everyone tried to do something to help themselves. Not all paid by money, if they didn鈥檛 have it. They sometimes swapped coupons instead.
Mum often swapped to get more sugar, to make cakes, and then swap for something else. Dad made things if asked especially, but mended things for free.
Even big boys cut stinging nettles for the hospital they said?
I wanted a job to get some money. So Mum said I could put red Cardinal polish on the front step, if I put an apron on. I had to brush it into the cracks and then rub it off. It was a very messy job. It took me an hour. I got a penny for that.

K - Knocking

Dad had an old car to travel to the aircraft factory. He would pick up other aircraft workers on the way. He was a section leader and they had to make aeroplanes as quickly as they could, to use in the war against Hitler. So it was important to get to work in time. The old car didn鈥檛 know that, but I did.
Mum was busy with the baby (another brother) and I don鈥檛 know what my big brother鈥檚 excuse was, but it was me out there on frosty mornings helping with the car. The dressing gown over my pyjamas did not keep me warm.
Dad would have to crank the car with a handle, at the front. I had to put my foot on a pedal when it started 鈥榢nocking鈥� and pull out the choke. He would get cross if I put the pedal on too much. 鈥淛ust wait for the knocking鈥�-then do as I say. When it was 鈥榢nocking鈥� -I couldn鈥檛 hear what he said!
He would get so sweaty, cranking that old handle but I was freezing, sitting at the front. I said I couldn鈥檛 hear him when the 鈥榢nocking鈥� started up and my fingers were too cold to get the choke out right. So he let me close the car door to sort it out for myself, besides he needed a little rest.
Then again, I watched him out there cranking. His breath was like fog in the air.
I knew that when his face went very red, the 鈥榢nocking鈥� might get started.
I gently eased my foot upon the starting pedal and carefully got the choke out right until I heard a roar; then eased my foot off and on, until the engine turned. Dad took over then and I got out. He said I was his best girl (I hadn鈥檛 any sisters?) and he wiped a tear from his face but it might have been him sweating.
Afterwards, it was always me that had to help him start it. He said I was a natural driver. My brother wasn鈥檛 jealous. He鈥檇 rather stay in bed, I think.
I could start a car before I was 8, yet never learnt to drive. My lazy brother did!

L - Lights Out

We must not show any light so we had blackout curtains, or anything dark was hung over the windows. The neighbours did warden duty and called out if a light could be seen from outside.
One lady used to call out 鈥淐OO-ee! COO-ee!鈥� whenever a light was showing.
We children thought this was funny and used to lift a corner of the curtain, just to hear her call out 鈥淐OO-ee!鈥� All our friends used to do it too, so she was very busy on her turn of warden duty.

M - Measuring Feet

When the Foot Inspector came to the school, it was quite exciting. He would measure our feet to see if we needed extra coupons for shoes. Our Mums would make us wear our big thick socks if we had them, and told us to spread our toes out and squash our feet down flat. The biggest feet got the most coupons.
Some children wore 2 pairs of socks. One boy stuffed lavatory paper up into the toes! The Foot Inspector told him to take off his socks. He wasn鈥檛 cross as he was laughing, but the teacher told him off.

N - Newsreel at the Pictures

We saw moving pictures of the War on the Newsreels at the Pictures. I had to sit quiet and be still, if I went with my Mum. Then Dad would go the next time with my brother. It was too smoky to take the baby, so they took it in turns.
After the Newsreel there might be a cartoon but I got really excited when the big film was going to start. Everyone rustled getting the boiled sweets out.
Sometimes it was a big man banging a gong, or a chicken crowing in a circle. I liked the gong best as it made me shiver. Then a lot of words on a certificate and names 鈥� then a moving story picture in black and white, but still very good.

O - Oranges

One day I saw two ladies whispering in the street. They looked in a shopping bag of one of them and pulled out an orange ball. I went closer to look but they quickly put it away and one of them hurried up to the shops.
Having no one to play with at the time, I went to ask Mum about the orange ball.
She stuck the baby into his pram and ran up to the shops. I followed, as well.
She left the pram outside the Greengrocers and told me to stay there with the baby. Then I could hear her having a row about - oranges. The man went to the back and gave her a brown paper bag, after she gave him money. We went straight home. She was still a bit angry with the man. So she told my friend鈥檚 Mum, and she ran up to the shops too.
That night, after dinner, she brought out the brown paper bag with 4 oranges in it. Dad was very pleased. We learnt how to peel them and eat the juicy bits inside. We shared 2 of them and kept the other 2 for the next day.

P - Paraffin Cake

The lady next door did not have children as she worked in a shop somewhere. So she could not make cakes or cook very well. When she wanted a special cake made, she would ask my Mum to do it for her, as my Mum was a good cook.
Mum told her how much eggs and flour and butter she would have to save from her coupons to make a special cake. So she did that and brought it all round to Mum one day.
Well, Mum made that cake with powdered egg and liquid paraffin from the chemist (that made you go!) and whatever else she had. It looked alright and the lady was happy. We were happy too as we had a treat of boiled eggs with real buttered soldiers for tea!

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