Model Boat Mayhem

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Author Topic: They don’t make ‘em like that anymore  (Read 1021 times)

Jonty

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They don’t make ‘em like that anymore
« on: October 13, 2015, 07:22:02 pm »

 I’ve just learned of the death of an old family friend at the age of 96. This woman had a pretty eventful life. She was one of the first women to land on the Normandy beaches; her job as a nursing sister was to triage head wound victims. The ones who stood a chance went through to surgery – as many as the surgeons could cope with, that is - and the rest got morphine.

On a lighter note, and this is the naval connection, she celebrated VJ Day by having her knickers hoisted to the masthead of one of His Majesty’s cruisers in Trincomalee harbour.


As I remarked recently at the funeral of another old friend, a woman who had had an equally eventful but much more difficult life, “They don’t make ‘em like that anymore”.
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I eat my peas with honey,
I've done it all my life;
It makes the peas taste funny,
But it keeps 'em on the knife.

Fastfaz

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Re: They don’t make ‘em like that anymore
« Reply #1 on: October 13, 2015, 08:46:43 pm »

     Hear,hear. What strength of character these people showed, I can remember my mum talking to me just before I left to join the Army about one her war time experiences as a WRAC. She was 21 years old and stationed down South (she didn't disclose much other than my next few lines) her unit, all similar ages, was sent to the site of a bombed munitions factory to clean up the mess caused by a German bomb attack which had only just happened. These 21 year old girls had the awful task of trying to pair up still warm body parts ready for the ambulances to take them to the morgue, I asked her how she coped? she replied the only way we could deal with it was to make a joke of it saying to each other Sally I need a leg over here or maybe an arm.
     Prior to this she had never spoken of any war time experience and she told me her reason for telling me about it was to make me realise that if I was successful and passed my training for the Paras I could be facing similar things if a war started. Thankfully the nearest I got to such a situation was N.Ireland on a number of tours and that was certainly enough for me.
     I have nothing but great admiration for the courage and determination shown by everyone who was involved in that conflict. God bless them all.
       Regards,
           Faz.   
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