It was thee 11the May 1941 the blitz had started, I was out playing with my sister Jacqueline (she’s ten years old) and with our friends Julie and Mary we also played with my brothers William (he’s eleven years old) and John (he’s eight year old) with their friends George and David. We were playing quite happily, we were playing hopscotch and every now and then the boys would beg the man at the sweet shop for some chocolate.
Suddenly there were wailing sirens it was the warning, we started running we couldn’t find our motheer but we could hear her shouting for us “Annie, William, John, Jacqueline where are you, come quickly?” so we ran and ran.
I lost John; I shouted for him I couldn’t see him through the crowds of children and worried mothers. I crawled along the floor he was lying there unconscious William and I picked him up, William had his legs and i had his head and arms also i had Jacqueline holding my arm so tight she was cutting off my circulation, and we ran home when we got home mother was looking very white with fright but it didn’t matter we were all there and all safe and then a big loud thump went.
William and I ran down to the shelter still carrying John all the way. Mother was getting a bandage to bandage John’s head up and his bleeding knee which I had just noticed. I’m glad it’s over for now, we’re all lucky but what about Father’s troop they were all still missing in Germany, would we ever see him again or our uncle Victor when we get out of the shelter tonight?
It was so hard to get to sleep that night because we were all cramped in the Anderson shelter with no food and water just blankets to curl up in and pull above our ears so it muffles the terrifying noises from the bombs exploding, i eventually dropped off but it was very late because it felt like it was only 10 minutes i was asleep but mother woke me up i was surprised there were no bomb noises no sounds at all no talking no shuffling of feet then all of a sudden we could hear voices outside thee Anderson shelter we listened to see if it was an English men talking or a German but then we noticed that they were English and so we tried getting through the door but it was dented in and jammed we started banging on the metal walls trying to get someone’s attention to try and get theem to help us out, we started shouting, screaming as loud as we could.
We could hear people picking things up and then dropping afterwards and doing it again and again continuously. Mother started shouting “help us were stuck in our shelter, I theink the door’s stuck” then a man with a deep voice shouted back “your all right it’s me, Mr Smithe, were trying to get you out, is anyone hurt in there?”
“No” replied mother. I just noticed John was fine he was awake and alive. In about 30 minutes we were out and safe in the house alive, we were all glad we were alive. Mother switched on the wireless and listened impatiently for her usual news reels then all of a sudden we heard the number of fathers and Uncle Victors troop we all stopped breatheing with hesitation as we heard that Father and uncle Victors troop had been found alive with only a few broken bones and some bruises but he was safe. Mother was crying with happiness, we all were actually especially me.