francene--blog. Year 2013
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May 26th

5/26/2013

 
An attack at a south London betting shop yesterday left a 55-year-old man dead. This sparked memories of the time a gunman walked into a shop where I worked.

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In 1988, I arrived in London from Australia with no job experience apart from running my own tea-rooms and working as a nanny, a job I'd taken after a 27 year marriage split. I accepted the position of caring for a baby while her parents worked at top end jobs in The City. During the day, I walked the busy streets of Camden Town with my charge in a pushchair. I toured the world with the family after 6 months, staying in Sydney, Hollywood and Singapore.

Back in London, I met my present husband in 1989. We decided to live in Australia. Although I could get casual work in catering, my new husband found doors shut. We jumped at the chance of running a pub together in a country town. The Park Hotel boasted three busy bars, a drive-through bottle shop and a restaurant. Over the period of a year, local conditions caused a loss of business and we were out of work again. Rather than continue in the declining economy of those times, we came back to England.


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I took temporary jobs in betting shops. The work required little instruction and I enjoyed the underground train travel to various parts of London.

The hold-up occurred during a quiet period in a small shop in the East End. I looked up to find a customer with a gun. The manager flashed me a nervous look.

The man said, "Give me all your money. I said ALL your money." Those words are stained on my memory.

After the manager's nod to comply, I hastened to scoop the change from the cash register into a cloth sack while the manager handed over notes from another position. I didn't feel fear, and remained calm during the two minutes the robber remained in the shop.

After he left, we sagged. The manager rang the police, who arrived within minutes. They said we did the right thing by complying with the thief's wishes.

Our employers treated us to a drink at the pub and gave us the rest of the day off. Those words rang in my head while I drifted off to sleep. I recalled the cold look in the gunman's eyes and his instructions for weeks. However, the episode didn't warp my outlook. There are good and bad situations wherever you go.

I was 47 years old and I wasn't meant to die that day. Twenty three years later, I'm still walking, although I'm more likely to be pushing a rollator than a stroller.


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Cindy Dwyer link
5/25/2013 10:18:10 pm

Oh my God. How terrifying. But I like your "I wasn't meant to die that day" attitude.

Francene Stanley link
5/26/2013 07:07:09 pm

Gung ho!

Kathryn link
5/26/2013 12:35:06 am

That would be scary. I bet others that go through a hold up also never forget it. I think I'd die from a heart attack. Great outlook on it though.

Francene Stanley link
5/26/2013 07:11:46 pm

Sometimes we're stronger than we think. You never know what you'll do in any given situation until you're faced with it.

Toy Parker link
5/26/2013 12:48:53 am

You are blessed with life to share your life experiences with the world. Thank you so much for sharing!

Francene Stanley link
5/26/2013 07:15:32 pm

Each day is a continued blessing. I'm so glad I could reveal my experience with so many poeple through the internet.

Kathy Hadley link
5/26/2013 01:09:42 am

You are still here thank goodness and situations like that give us pause and allow us to be even more truly grateful for every moment as the gift that it is.

:-)

Kathy

Francene Stanley link
5/26/2013 07:18:23 pm

What a blessing it is to be able to share my thoughts and my experiences with other people.


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    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.

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