Childhood memories

[Grandad]

Being completely out of the running in the Amaryllis Challenge thread, MD challenged me to introduce a topic that we could all discuss. We have sometimes mentioned how some incident can instantly remind us of something that happened many years ago even back to early childhood.
I was catching up on The Blitz series on BBC iplayer the other day and a man in Bristol recounted how he found an unexploded German incendiary bomb which was defused and he was able to keep. It reminded me of my own similar find in a public park in the city around 1941.
So, how about telling childhood and early memories of events that happened to you. If we keep each post confined to a single incident I believe we will draw out some very interesting stories and perhaps surprise ourselves how a little memory jogger brings back memories in great detail.

I will kick off with this story:-
At the age of 21 and just finishing my apprenticeship, I received my call up papers for National Service. A fellow apprentice, Ray, was convinced he would be unfit for service because he had 'flat feet'. The girlfriend of another apprentice worked in a government office in Dover. I drafted a letter, which I persuaded his girlfriend to type on official paper, advising Ray that after due consideration it was decided by the War Office that he could serve in a non combat regiment. I posted this to Ray, then the brown stuff hit the fan. Without going into every detail I had to admit my ruse to my father and get him to drive me to Maidstone military recruitment office to explain my actions to the officer in charge.

I could have been in deep water but the officer let me off with a caution after I apologised most humbly. My dad was not amused though, thought I was stupid, and would not let me use the car for months.

I actually joined the RAF for three years and enjoyed all of it and made Corporal Technician.....

[LovelyLadyLux]

Interesting tidbit or flash from the past Grandad. Always interesting to think back on how it was and I'm sure all of us having lived in times of mega social change have lots of interesting snippets of what was and what now is.

I vividly remember the big pine phone box hanging on the wall with a cup affair attached by a wire. We all had special rings and if it was our ring we could answer after being connected by a telephone operator. I don't remember our bell ring but I do remember our first phone number 448-4884 when we got a big old rotary dial phone. I don't believe way back then we even had an area code.

[Grandad]

This is a bit unpleasant but when I was about 11 a small gang of us would cycle the 6 or 7 miles to a village where one friend had grandparents living. This was very rural and at harvest time we would follow the binder with sticks to get the rabbits. The binder was one of those with the big sweeping wheel that swept the cereal into those vicious blades. Sadly some rabbits ran through the binder and cut feet off. A sad memory but the rabbit meat did not go to waste.

[Mad Dilys]

When I first started at Primary school, there was a corn field next to the playground. The corn was cut with a horse and reaper and then I clearly remember the pattern of the stooks before the horse came in with a cart this time to collect the sheaves.

We used to jump on the back of the green-grocer's cart to get a left to school - of course he slowed down as he passed us.
Good grief! I even remember the name of the horse. Heidi who we petted and groomed plaiting her mane with roses ( I bet that peeved her owner, but he never said anything.

The milk was delivered by a horse drawn chariot with a couple of churns on it. Folk would bring out their jugs and the milk would be poured in with a measuring ladle. I think he had gill measures - I have no idea how much that is, I'll look it up!

There were quite a lot of working horses around us. When I was 4years old I was lifted up onto Captain, a big black Shire horse. My legs wouldn't go across his back so they put me on his neck.

I told Mr Cummings the farmer that I was going to be a farmer when I grew up. He laughed and told me "Women don't become farmers!" so I defiantly - and rather loudly - said "Well, then I will be the first one!"

Remembering this after all these years makes me realise what a trial I must have been to my mother as child. I played and fought with the boys though I was a skinny little thing - I loved the beauty of weapons and machinery, animals and gardening and helping my father making furniture. I wasn't interested in dolls at all. My sister and mother had no interests that I liked except embroidery, which my Grandad also excelled at.

[Horus]

When I was a small child we were surrounded by farms in the small village where I lived, some were owned by relatives. Many have disappeared under housing estates or playing fields and football pitches, but like MD I can recall the stacks of wheat sheaves bound and tied with a twist of straw, neat little pyramids that made great playthings for us kids. I also remember the masses of small cuts we got on our lower legs from the sharp tops of the cut corn if we ever fell over. I too can remember the name of a farm horse that stood in a field by a lane and seemed to wait for us kids to give him handful’s of grass and yes his name was ‘Dobbin’ which strangely enough is an affectionate name I still call one of my SIL’s, it is a name I gave her when she was pregnant and it stuck ever since and better still is she knows that I will call her by that name regardless of where I happen to see her.

[Grandad]

From late 1939 to 1946 we lived in this end of terrace house while my father was away in the army.


The house to the left was the home of the local doctor. I can remember the original railings along the top of the wall being burnt away with oxy acetylene torch for the war effort. If you enlarge the picture you can still see evidence of where the railings were set into the walls coping stones.

There was a lot of effort to get recyclable materials for the war. I remember well an occasional picture show in a nearby social hut, admission to which was any old glass bottles or jars. They even provided lemonade and marmite sandwiches. I liked the marmite and still do to this day.

[LovelyLadyLux]

I vividly remember the milk horse, used to sometimes get to take kitchen scraps (like carrot tops or apples cores) out to him but can't remember his name. He was totally terrific and knew his route well stopping at each house as the milk man ran back and forth to the houses.

I lived between my Grannie (inner city mom's side) and my Grandpa (dairy farm dad's side). Hard to say now which I actually preferred although I loved all the animals on the farm and essentially lived in the barn and probably would have slept with & on my horse if given the chance.

Back then my days always started early even if I was home cause milking had to be done and all by hand and everybody fed then I was fed and off to school to return to start it all again. Riding my horse I'd travel far and wide with nobody having a clue where I was quite unlike today with the grandkids not being allowed out of the backyard.

[Grandad]

Many of my memories include some mischief on my part'

After 2 years at grammar school I opted to transfer to technical school because I was not happy in the academic environment of grammar school and wanted more practical education to suit my abilities. So at age 12 3/4 I changed schools.

This introduced me to metalwork and woodwork. In my first Autumn term in 1946 we would be making a tray in woodwork. We all had dark blue bib and brace overalls for woodwork and towards the end of that first term a pal and I got some yellow chalk and chalked a broad arrow on the palm of our left hands. We then proceeded to walk around the workshop patting our classmates on their overalls making them all look like prison inmates.

The master, Mr Bumstead (Dagwood) was not amused and put a saw through both our workpieces. He recorded our action as a 'lapse in behavior' on our reports, copy of mine for Autumn term 1946 herewith.

[LovelyLadyLux]

@Grandad - interesting on your report card they were weighing you and measuring your height! Good to know you were growing fast too!

[Grandad]

@Grandad - interesting on your report card they were weighing you and measuring your height! Good to know you were growing fast too!

I was quite tall LLL and at 13 years I was 5 ft 6 inches (and eventually got to 6 foot 2 inches), no wonder my nickname was 'Lofty'

In earlier years we didn't have a stocking at Christmas, just a large sock. There was always a tangerine orange in the toe and the stocking fillers would be things like coloured pencils, a top, a few lead soldiers, a small bag of sweets. Other presents would include an Annual, maybe The Beano or Rupert, items of clothing, a toy car or two. A board game like Ludo or Snakes and Ladders. Maybe an electric torch but that is as far that electronics went.