The next day Emm, Anne and Lil had to leave. As Anne was saying goodbye we heard her say to Mum that she wanted to get married soon, as Bill was being posted away. Mum looked surprised, as Anne had only known Bill for a short while. Mum asked Anne if she was sure she wanted to get married, as she was worried that Anne was rushing into marriage because of the uncertain times we lived in. During the war people were getting married after a short acquaintance, as in those days it was unheard of to live together unmarried. The couples who dared to live together were said to be ‘living in sin’. Anne assured Mum she wanted to marry Bill, so Mum agreed they could get married quickly.
The house seemed very quiet after everyone had left. As we had school the next day, we collected the water and wood, so Mum had plenty to clean the house and do all the extra washing. The next morning Mum asked us to get the shopping after school, as she would not have time to go to the village. It was very difficult to buy food during the war, as the shops had such a limited supply of everything. Even though we had ration books for the basic foods such as bread, sugar, tea, margarine and eggs, what you actually received depended on what stocks the shops had managed to obtain.
While we were waiting in the grocer shop to get served, there was quite an argument going on between the owner and one of the customers. She was holding one egg in her hand and shouting at the shopkeeper: “This is the only egg I’ve had this month, what am I supposed to do with it, cut it in to bloody quarters? The shopkeeper told her there was no need for that sort of language in front of children, and that he was trying to be fair to everybody. It must have been very difficult to try and please all his customers. As we came out of the grocers we noticed a queue at the hardware shop. During the war people joined any queue in the hope of buying something extra, either in the way of food or for the home – so we decided to queue in case we could buy some extra candles for Mum.
When we asked a lady who was coming out of the shop with a package, she said the shopkeeper had received a delivery of mugs, and he was allowing two per person. On hearing this we left the queue, as we knew Mum could not afford money for mugs, and made our way home.
Mum now had the problem of Anne’s wedding, as there was so little time to save any food coupons for the reception. Lil said she would save hers, as she had meals where she worked. Anne said she and Bill could bring the drinks and some extra food, and told Mum not to worry as it was only going to be a quiet wedding. The ceremony was held in the village church where Emm had married. Once again we could not attend, due to the lack of decent clothes. Mum wore the outfit she had bought for Emm’s wedding. Anne and Bill were wearing their uniforms. I had only seen Bill once before, and on seeing him again I was surprised at how much he looked like Anne. They were both fair-haired with blue eyes, and had the same build. They could have been mistaken for twins.
When they arrived back from the church, Mum and Lil made tea, and told everybody to help themselves to the food. People were just sitting about talking and eating. Kit was unable to come as she had a concert, and without her singing it seemed very boring to us. However, towards the evening some of Bill and Anne’s friends who were stationed in the same camp, began to arrive. Luckily, they brought their own food and drink with them, as we certainly did not have any to spare. They soon had everyone dancing and singing along with Mum playing the piano. Then they organised some party games, which even my younger brothers could join in. Whoever won was given a small bar of chocolate or a few sweets. We really enjoyed ourselves, and was sorry when Mum said it was time for bed. The party went on for a long time after we went to bed. So much for Anne’s ‘quiet wedding’.
