British Women

I have wrote many times about the brave men and women of the British services, but I have missed out the wives and mothers of service men and women, who were at home trying to make ends meet in the very difficult times of World War 2. Every mother had a big part to play in bringing about the eventual victory. These magnificent British women with ration books in hand stood in endless queues to buy food for the families. They cooked the meals, looked after the children. No doubt they went short themselves, because of the many shortages of just about everything. Many women had their sons, daughters and husbands serving in the forces and many had their loved ones killed in action in the many theatres of war. Families at home were killed in the bombing of many British Towns and Cities. The grief was shared with the rest of the residents of their streets throughout the country. Whatever happened and in many cases it was sad, they could not dwell on it, because life had to carry on for the sake of the family.
The British women are a strong breed and it was proved in those dark days of World War Two. Neighbours were closely knit your problem was their problem no family had it easy. Clothes were handed down to others in the family as they got older.
During those dark years and before, child mortality was quite common. Just to use this as an example, my parents lost their first child Freda who would have been my older sister if she had lived; Freda was only 2 months of age when she died. My parents did not talk about it, but my father told me when I was a young man. He said it felt as if the the earth had opened up and swallowed him. Our family, were not on their own, because some of my school friends’ parents had similar experiences. During the war years these brave women had other children and brought them up as happy and best they could in the very trying circumstances.
One must remember the illness’s that families endured did not have the medicines etc. to combat them that we enjoy in this present day. I personally think the school children in this present age should be taught about what happened in Great Britain during the war years. Let them understand what their Great Grand Parents went through in order to give them a better life. I could write about this for evermore. Sadly I know and believe they had a very rough time and it should not be forgotten. The trouble was they still had a tough time in the post war ration book years. There was no magic wand, even with their husbands and sons back from the war they just had to grin and bear it and to their credit they just did that. The British Government should have minted a medal for those brave women, who were on the home front and valiantly put the Great in Great Britain.
Alan