Scotland In Wartime.

[ChrisKelly]

Today is my second anniversary with GMIC.

It's been Boffo! 

Educational, enlightening and entertaining.

Thanks to all.

 

Story from a popular American magazine about my dad's land of birth during the Second World War.  He was living in Greenock, at six years of age, when it was published.

 

Enjoy.

 

Edited November 29 by ChrisKelly

[Megan]

Interesting... my mother grew up in Edinburgh and entered the University there in September 1939, certain that the outbreak of war was going to ruin her student experience! She made the most of it, however. Apparently the Poles were friendly although they thought that if you smiled at them you were making advances... She also spoke about the remarkable number of young men who felt a call to enter the church as they came to the end of their degrees, thus postponing their conscription for a few years as they went through theological training (and then served as chaplains rather than combatants)!

 

During university holidays, she worked in the Land Army, doing agricultural work. Tales from then include having her foot stood on by a carthorse and almost fighting over butter... the faster eaters scoffed the lot, until they divided it up and gave everyone an individual portion rather than sharing a butter dish in the middle of the table.

 

After a 3-year MA degree, she too stayed a further year to take a diploma in social work. Although she wasn't conscripted into the military, she was directed to 'war work' and ended up in the personnel department at a Handley-Pages aircraft factory - work she hated! Eventually she managed to transfer into the Civil Service and worked in the Ministry of Labour.

 

In 1949 she went on a course which was apparently very boring so she started sizing up the talent... her eye lit on my father, and the rest is history🤓