A Day Out in WW2

To go for a day out on my bike with a friend was one of my great pleasures when I was in my early teens. To set off early in the morning with a packet of sandwiches, a flask of tea in my saddlebag and the open road ahead was wonderful. It appealed to the gypsy in me.
We would set off early in the morning and cycle towards Battlesbridge where we would cross the bridge over the River Crouch. Once over we were in what was to us distant country, far from home. The roads were quiet and the miles sped by. On and on we would go. It was wonderful. We even got as far as the River Blackwater on one outing which was amazing. On that occasion we spotted a tank moving about near the river so we beat a hasty retreat! We did not want to get caught up in army manoeuvres of some sort. Remember, this was wartime.
Although I remember those days as being always sunny I know that there were occasions when the rain poured down. There was the time when there was pelting rain for the last fifteen miles or so of the journey home. This must have been after the war had ended as we were rowed across the river by Mr Swanborough who regularly ferried people, bikes and all, from Burnham to the opposite side of the Crouch and vice versa of course. I know I was a drowned rat by the time I arrived home. Even so, the memory is of a happy day.
The whole atmosphere of those days out was the feeling of freedom that we had. There was little traffic on the roads, and for a few hours we were away from any sort of worry. I don’t think it would be possible to find that feeling in many places these days. There is tension in the air.

An Edwardian Wedding

I think this is a beautiful old family wedding photograph. The young girl with the lovely white hat is my mother. In the back row standing up higher than the others is my Uncle Dick.

Then and Now

As it seems fashionable at present to consider whether one is a survivor or not here are some memories of my very distant child hood.



Here are some of the things I did as a child and as a young adult which would be considered highly dangerous these days.

I would ride my bicycle without a helmet,
Climb very high trees.
Ride on horse back without a helmet,
Roller skate through the village on the main road,
Explore woods and marshlands by a river,
Go out for a whole day with a friend and a packet of sandwiches, again exploring so that no one would know where we were,
Paddle in a river having no idea how deep it might be and of the danger of drowning,
I remember the great pleasure of hanging on the back of a horse drawn milk float on my roller skates. As the side roads were all unmade in those distant days anything to do with roller skates had to be on the Main Road

As a young adult during WW2 I walked home from dances and the cinema with friends while anti aircraft guns were firing and shrapnel was falling on the pavements along which we were walking.

I was in a First Aid group at the age of sixteen. The group was short of one steel helmet and as I was the youngest I did not have one. I borrowed my Dad’s. As things turned out I did not need it.

As I am a very ancient lady indeed I think I must be a survivor. It amuses me to compare “then and now”.