# Yesterdays Child. War and Evacuation....... Chapter 4 .........Part 1



## Maywalk (Jan 15, 2022)

I am putting this chapter up in two parts because it may be too long for anyone reading it.
Please let me know if you want me to carry on with my musings.
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WAR AND EVACUATION… Chapter 4

I never got to know my family of two older brothers and an elder sister until I was let out of the home on a weekly basis from the age of six. I was finally sent home in 1937 in time for the Jubilee celebrations.
My family had moved back to London in 1932 from where they originated from to 218 Neate Street in Camberwell, South East London.
I recall having a flag put in my hand to wave about and the good old "knees up" as the Londoners called it. I began school at Coburg Road with one eye still covered up to try and make the bad one work. I had to wear a patch over one eye ever since I started to crawl because of the eye trouble that the illness left me with.
It had made me very unhappy because of the names that the children called me, such as Popeye or Nelson and it made me very aggressive in my character. I silently vowed that I would never hurt anyone like that when I grew up.
As I got settled in with the family I soon found out that my mother and father were always at each other’s throats. We never had one day go past without a row of some sort. I got used to the arguing and pot throwing over the years.
Funnily enough if anyone interfered with them and perhaps would ask them to calm down my mother would tell them to “Sod off ! When I want any help from you I will ask. Meanwhile this is between me and my husband.”
When things were alright between them and money was not so tight they used to take me to New Cross Dog Track on the Saturday night.
Our journey would take us along The Old Kent Road. We would stop at the Lord Nelson first where they would stop to wet their whistles as they told me but being naïve I could never fathom out where their whistles were. I had never seen them use one.
My mother would be dressed in a large picture hat with a dress that had beaded petals falling from the waist over a full skirt and Dad would be dressed up in his “whistle and flute” as he called his best suit.
As we moved further on down The Old Kent Road we would call in at the Thomas a Beckett public house.
This was where all the famous boxers trained.
I was very often patted on the head by them as I sat on the step waiting for my parents to come out.
I hated these trips to the dog track. I would much rather have been at home picking out tunes on the piano which incidentally I learnt to play quite well over the years.

During the summer of 1939 I was hearing talk of a nasty man called Adolf Hitler. It was snatches of conversation that I heard when the grown-ups were talking together and I had been told to go and play in the passage ( a long narrow hallway in the house ).
Children were being sent away from their parents to safety areas, whatever they were.
It seemed very strange to me that as soon as I got to know someone as a friend they were sent off to the country. Houses were being issued with funny corrugated shapes that were called Anderson air-raid shelters that had to be put in a hole that was dug out in the back garden, if you had one.
Gasmasks were issued and everyone had an identity card.
We had practised at school with our gasmask’s for ten minutes every day and were told if the air-raid siren went off to get under our desks.

This poem tells of the times we had to practise putting the masks on………………….


Everyone had an identity card and a gas mask too
Nasty horrible things to wear, stuck to you like glue.
It was a daily ritual to practice wearing that gas mask
None of us liked doing it because it really was a task
Teacher would then come round to see if it fitted snug
Pulling at the head strap she would give it quite a tug.
I wouldn't mind but it was supposed to keep us alive,
But how if we had to wear it long would we all survive?
I was glad when we finally stopped that daily routine
But we still had to carry it no matter where we'd been.
We were never parted from it even when visiting the loo
But as soon as the war ended they disappeared from view

copyright---Maisie Walker 2005--- all copyrights reserved.

September 3rd 1939 was a lovely sunny Sunday morning and to me there seemed to be a hush over everything. At 11am it came over the relay wireless that Mr Chamberlain had said we were now in a state of war with Germany. I can still hear my mothers anguished voice saying " Oh sweet mother of mercy! My boys, my boys."
The hush from outside suddenly became a cacophony of voices. All the neighbours gathered on their doorsteps talking about what would happen if old Hitler got to England. I felt terrified in case I was sent back to the Sisters of Mercy home.
I was relieved when my mother said that Hitler or no bleeding Hitler she was still going hop-picking the next day and taking her kids with her.
It was a well known thing for Londoners to go for about three weeks hop-picking every year. They classed it as a working holiday that got them away from the London smog and they could see a bit of green countryside.

It was during the third week that we were there when a German plane got through our defences ( such as they were).
He spotted us working and decided to use us as target practise. We all dived into the hop-vines for cover and Thank God there were no casualties because one of our fighters came along and a terrific dog fight was going on above us when the Spitfire shot the Jerry down.
We were all excited when we saw him bail out of his plane because it was on fire and came floating down in to the adjoining field.
Everyone left what they were doing and ran to the next field armed with whatever they could find to clobber the pilot with. He was still extricating himself out of his parachute so he had no chance to run anywhere.
It was a phoney war up until the June 1940. Everything was still going on as usual apart from railings and various other things like old pots and pans being given up for the war effort. We still had to take our gasmask’s every where we went but up to that time it was like the sword of Damocles waiting to strike. Posters were put up saying "Careless talk cost lives". There was the blackout to contend with and things were beginning to get in short supply.

My father came home from the docks one day with a beautiful blue grey kitten that had been abandoned by its mother.
My mother took to that kitten and it became her shadow.
She would share her rations with "Blue" as she called him and when he got wounded by shrapnel she would nurse him back to health.
She would not have it put to sleep like many pets in the London area were because of the bombing raids. This was in case the animal ran off in fear and most probably getting killed or wounded in a gruesome way.
It must have been a terrible decision to make for all who had and loved their pets.
It was after Dunkirk when the bombing started in earnest and it got steadily worse as the days turned into months. It was a nightly ritual to get the flask of tea, blankets, candle and sandwiches ready to take down the Anderson shelter which incidentally was always swimming in six inches of water.
We could tell by the sound of the engines of the planes whether they were friend or foe. "Blue" always gave us warning at least 10 minutes before the siren went by clawing at the door or what was left of it. We knew that we had time to grab everything to make our way down the shelter. It was a living nightmare to go through the continual bombing night after night. My mother was continually praying with her rosary in her hands. When we emerged each morning still alive it was a miracle. It was better still if we could have a cup of tea and a wash to take the grime out of our eyes from continual dust and smoke of the fires and buildings that had collapsed.


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## jujube (Jan 15, 2022)

Maybank, I am thoroughly enjoying your posts.


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## Maywalk (Jan 15, 2022)

Thanks for getting back to me jujube. It seems as though you are the only one who is, apart from Pinky and one or two more nice folk. 
To be honest I am surprised that no one has had any questions to ask me about that era BUT it could be that many on the forum are from the USA and not really into English History.
I think I had better back off and not bother with any follow up tales. 
God Bless.


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## Sliverfox (Jan 15, 2022)

Maywalk,, I have been reading  every chapter  of  your  life story.
Enjoying it  very much.


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## Shero (Jan 15, 2022)

Maywalk said:


> Thanks for getting back to me jujube. It seems as though you are the only one who is, apart from Pinky and one or two more nice folk.
> To be honest I am surprised that no one has had any questions to ask me about that era BUT it could be that many on the forum are from the USA and not really into English History.
> I think I had better back off and not bother with any follow up tales.
> God Bless.



Maywalk,  please continue to write. I read some of your experiences and was so interested. Do not "back off" . For myself, I have no questions at the moment maybe because I am French. I do know a lot of English history but I thought you were only relating your life history.
Keep writing - I am also a writer.
.


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## Pinky (Jan 15, 2022)

@Maywalk .. I am captivated by everything you've written. You are a talented writer. I hope you continue to post more of your experiences.


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## palides2021 (Jan 15, 2022)

Dear @Maywalk, thank you for sharing your wonderful story and poem with us! I'm assuming this is a memoir?

I just read it tonight (Ch.4), and could imagine being there. It was so vivid. Please, keep on writing. I am a writer, too. So this is something I love to do, read other writers' works. Do you plan to publish this after you're done? Just curious.

I also would like to learn more about what the narrator (you) wore, ate, any smells you remembered, etc., Also, did you feel any fear? 

Keep on writing!


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## mellowyellow (Jan 15, 2022)

I love the hops story, having read about happy Londoners having fun with their families, like this one





Three generations of the Ayres family are pictured at a Kent hop farm in 1954

Please don't stop.


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## Autumn72 (Feb 10, 2022)

Publish it


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## Autumn72 (Feb 10, 2022)

Publish it


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## Maywalk (Feb 11, 2022)

It was published over 16 years ago Autumn 72. All proceeds after printing costs are taken out goes to my local Childrens Hospice. Pleased to say its has made quite a lot of money for them to buy special equipment for these poor children.


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## mrstime (Feb 11, 2022)

Very interesting.


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