|
What has an
event that happened in
2001 got to do with my 627 Squadron activities in 1944-45? I will tell
you.
Right now I occupy a lot of my retired time
helping to fight for the second time the Battle For Britain. A great
number of our beloved politicians are hell bent on banishing the word
England from a map of Europe and killing our own system of democracy
and
Sovereignty, and handing it over to a foreign power. To that aim I
assist where I can any anti European organisation that is aiming to
prevent that disaster from happening. One day in June I think it was
when a friend of mine asked me if
I would help on a stall in the local market on behalf of the
Conservatives. I refused, remarking that they had got us into our
troubles in the first place. However, we were friends and I allowed him
to persuade me to give a half
hearted hour, but not to expect much help from me.
So came the day, and I was dragging my feet
towards where I knew the stall was. And as I approached I saw the stall
festooned with large posters and banners saying “Join the Conservatives
and Save the Pound”. Well of all the impudence and cheek
As I was standing there fuming, a little
elderly lady approached and engaged me in conversation about the
advantages of joining the Conservatives. I let her carry on a while
because I was going to pull her leg by expounding on the good things of
joining the
European Union, assuming I could think of any good thing.
At some way in her conversation I said “Hang
on there, I don’t recognise your accent – is it Welsh?”
No”, she said vehemently, “I am German”.
“Good gracious”, I said, “whatever are you
doing behind a Conservative stall?”.
She replied “I am astonished and amazed at
all the freedoms you English have got, and I want to help to keep it
that way”. At that point the conversation began to take an interesting
line. I questioned her about her war years.
“Yes”, she said, “I am all too familiar with
Hitler and the Youth Groups and the Gliding Clubs he arranged, and I
know all about Magna Carta”. She was in her early teens during the war
years.
“Good heavens” I replied, “I was a bomber
pilot all during those war years”. She said “Don’t let that worry you,
that was a necessity to get rid of the cancer that was Hitler”.
“And where did you live in Germany?” I asked.
“Dresden, with my parents and brother and
sister” she replied.
“Good heavens” I said, somewhat taken aback,
“Were you in Dresden when we visited you?”
“Yes”, she said, “I was aged 14 cowering in
a cellar with my parents and brother and sister”.
“Good Lord” I replied, “I was on that raid.
By the grace of God it was not my turn but my Pathfinder squadron
was leading the raid”.
“Yes, I know all about Pathfinders, they
used to drop Christmas Trees as we Germans called your marker bombs.”
Further conversation revealed that she
married an English Commando and they have been living together in
England for 40 years or so. I thought that this lady would be an
interesting person for 627 Squadron to meet, so I was able to take her
and her husband to our annual reunion at Horncastle in Lincolnshire.
There I was able to introduce them, and you will hardly believe this,
as Mr and Mrs Churchill.
So this is one of life’s quirks. There is
this little frightened young girl cowering in a cellar whilst we aim to
bomb the hell out of her and her kind (how she must have hated us at
that time), to finish up some years later, married to an Englishman and
living in England and with the name of our great wartime leader,
helping to defend our way of life.
|