wouldn’t fall on them and smash them as he staggered to and from the privy. Lizzie had shuddered when she’d uttered the word. ‘I just dread to think what
that place
is like!’
Both women were desperately trying to get together enough food to put a decent dinner on the table on Christmas Day but it was far from easy. Nearly all the ingredients for both the pudding and the mince pies were unobtainable for rationing hadn’t been relaxed, let alone abolished.
‘I’ll be lucky if I can get a bit of meat – any kind of meat at all for the dinner,’ Martha had complained after they’d stood for hours in the queue at the butcher’s, only to learn there would be not the slightest chance of a turkey, goose, duck or even a very small chicken, unless you knew someone who lived in the country and kept them, the butcher had stated morosely. He was having to bear the brunt of his disgruntled customers’ outraged disappointment.
‘I ask you, Lizzie, who around here knows anyone who lives in the country? The man’s a fool! You’ll see, we’ll finish up with a few pathetic sausages if we’re lucky.’
‘We’ll have potatoes and veg, we’ll manage, Martha. We always do,’ Lizzie had replied, but without much conviction. They were both very disappointed; they’d thought now that the war was over this Christmas would be a big improvement on the last six.
She was bemoaning the fact later that evening to Jim and the girls, wondering if they could manage between them tosave their rations of flour, margarine, sugar and eggs to make a plain Victoria sponge which could take the place of the traditional pudding. There would be no jam to go in it, of course.
Sophie had been hemming a pair of tiny red and white gingham curtains for the kitchen of the dolls’ house but she pondered the dilemma as she rethreaded her needle. ‘I wonder if we wrote to Mrs Sayle – she’s the wife of the farmer Maria worked for when she was a Land Girl – and sent her the money, would she let us have a goose? They’ve always kept chickens and geese. If she parcelled it up well in straw and cardboard she could send it across on the steam packet and one of us could go down and pick it up,’ she suggested.
Lizzie looked at her with astonishment before her face became wreathed in smiles. ‘A goose! A whole goose! Lord above! We haven’t had one for years and years. That would be the best Christmas present ever, Sophie! Do you think she would let us have one?’
‘Who would let us have what?’ Maria asked, catching the end of the conversation. She was going out to the cinema in town with Ben Seddon and looked very smart in her black and white tweed coat and the small green hat with the black feather that she’d saved up her coupons to purchase at Heaton’s (although she’d added the black feather herself ).
‘Will you write to Mrs Sayle and beg her to let us have a goose for the Christmas dinner? We’ll send her the money.You know you always got on well with her and Aunty Lizzie is having a terrible time trying to get
anything
to make some sort of a festival meal.’
‘Oh, please, Maria? It would be such a
treat
,’ Lizzie pleaded.
Maria smiled. ‘I’ll write when I get in later tonight and then you can post it in the morning, Aunty Lizzie. We’ll need something festive to cheer us up; it’s our first Christmas away from the island. That will be Ben now, see you later.’ Maria picked up her bag and went into the lobby. She liked Ben Seddon but that was all. She often went out with him, mainly to the cinema or a dance, but there was no romance in the offing. Not on her part anyway. She’d realised weeks ago that this Christmas would bring back very painful memories. It would be the first one away from the island and her mam, and without Hans, and writing to Maude Sayle would only make her think of the times she’d spent working beside him in the fields.
Sophie carried on with her tasks while Lizzie made a pot of tea and
that place
is like!’
Both women were desperately trying to get together enough food to put a decent dinner on the table on Christmas Day but it was far from easy. Nearly all the ingredients for both the pudding and the mince pies were unobtainable for rationing hadn’t been relaxed, let alone abolished.
‘I’ll be lucky if I can get a bit of meat – any kind of meat at all for the dinner,’ Martha had complained after they’d stood for hours in the queue at the butcher’s, only to learn there would be not the slightest chance of a turkey, goose, duck or even a very small chicken, unless you knew someone who lived in the country and kept them, the butcher had stated morosely. He was having to bear the brunt of his disgruntled customers’ outraged disappointment.
‘I ask you, Lizzie, who around here knows anyone who lives in the country? The man’s a fool! You’ll see, we’ll finish up with a few pathetic sausages if we’re lucky.’
‘We’ll have potatoes and veg, we’ll manage, Martha. We always do,’ Lizzie had replied, but without much conviction. They were both very disappointed; they’d thought now that the war was over this Christmas would be a big improvement on the last six.
She was bemoaning the fact later that evening to Jim and the girls, wondering if they could manage between them tosave their rations of flour, margarine, sugar and eggs to make a plain Victoria sponge which could take the place of the traditional pudding. There would be no jam to go in it, of course.
Sophie had been hemming a pair of tiny red and white gingham curtains for the kitchen of the dolls’ house but she pondered the dilemma as she rethreaded her needle. ‘I wonder if we wrote to Mrs Sayle – she’s the wife of the farmer Maria worked for when she was a Land Girl – and sent her the money, would she let us have a goose? They’ve always kept chickens and geese. If she parcelled it up well in straw and cardboard she could send it across on the steam packet and one of us could go down and pick it up,’ she suggested.
Lizzie looked at her with astonishment before her face became wreathed in smiles. ‘A goose! A whole goose! Lord above! We haven’t had one for years and years. That would be the best Christmas present ever, Sophie! Do you think she would let us have one?’
‘Who would let us have what?’ Maria asked, catching the end of the conversation. She was going out to the cinema in town with Ben Seddon and looked very smart in her black and white tweed coat and the small green hat with the black feather that she’d saved up her coupons to purchase at Heaton’s (although she’d added the black feather herself ).
‘Will you write to Mrs Sayle and beg her to let us have a goose for the Christmas dinner? We’ll send her the money.You know you always got on well with her and Aunty Lizzie is having a terrible time trying to get
anything
to make some sort of a festival meal.’
‘Oh, please, Maria? It would be such a
treat
,’ Lizzie pleaded.
Maria smiled. ‘I’ll write when I get in later tonight and then you can post it in the morning, Aunty Lizzie. We’ll need something festive to cheer us up; it’s our first Christmas away from the island. That will be Ben now, see you later.’ Maria picked up her bag and went into the lobby. She liked Ben Seddon but that was all. She often went out with him, mainly to the cinema or a dance, but there was no romance in the offing. Not on her part anyway. She’d realised weeks ago that this Christmas would bring back very painful memories. It would be the first one away from the island and her mam, and without Hans, and writing to Maude Sayle would only make her think of the times she’d spent working beside him in the fields.
Sophie carried on with her tasks while Lizzie made a pot of tea and
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