francene--blog. Year 2013
  • Home
  • Blog

February 25th

2/25/2013

 
Today, BBC News remembers the shelter ordinary people used during the bombing of London. War is a terrible thing, which I won't talk about. At the time, I lived safe and free in South Australia.

February 25, 1940: With the Second World War in full flow on this day in 1940, the Anderson air raid shelter was make public across Britain to protect civilians from the constant bombing. Constructed from corrugated iron and covered with earth, the first 'Andersons' appeared in Islington, North London. Two-point-five million shelters were used in Britain during the conflict. Click here to see old Pathe wartime footage about the shelter.

Picture
bearseverywhere.com
My husband lived with his mother in Inslington during this time while his father was away fighting. At about four years old, with a younger brother, he was sent away to live with strangers like all the other children in London. At the assembly point, they wore name tickets pinned to their shirts or around their necks like Paddington Bear.

However, little B didn't meet a good fete. His host family often locked them in a cupboard for hours when they were naughty. He still has nightmares about being confined in a dark space.

His mother took them back to London, where they survived despite close buildings vanishing into rubble overnight. He tells me stories of playing on bomb sites. On one occasion, he and his friends took turns to slide down an unexploded bomb until a warden found them and sent them away.


Picture
bombsite.org
Little B didn't live in a house with a garden big enough for an Anderson shelter. The family rented one floor of a large converted Victorian building. They used the underground train stations during air raids. When the siren wailed everyone would gather supplies and head for their closest entrance. Little B spent a lot of time underground—often sleeping there. Sometimes, his mother would rush outside and return with food—at great risk to herself.

Big B is a self-reliant man who takes care of me, shops, cleans, plans the meals and cooks without complaint. I put that down to his survival skills. He's still strong, fit and filled with enthusiasm after living for 74 years.

Do you think life's tests make us stronger people?


Alana link
2/26/2013 09:15:14 am

I think life's tests do make us stronger people. On the theme of WWII, my best friend's mother is a concentration camp survivor. Now, in her 90's, she is descending into dementia but - she has always been a kind, generous - and strong - person. As is my friend, who survived one cancer when she was 29 and is now in remission from a 2nd cancer, just in time for her husband to be diagnosed with cancer earlier this month. My friend is going to need all her strength. And you sound like you have a most wonderful husband!

Francene Stanley link
3/2/2013 06:20:35 pm

You never know how you'll respond to a test until something dire faces you.


Comments are closed.

    Author

    Francene Stanley, author of many published novels. If you like my writing, why not consider purchasing one of my books? You'll see them on the sidebar below.
    Born in Australia, I moved to Britain half way through my long life.

    Picture

    Archives

    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Catastrophe
    Creativity
    Family
    Life Experiences
    Mother
    News
    Novel Writing
    Novel-writing
    Retirement
    World

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photo used under Creative Commons from Parker Knight