mary burch was five and had been off school with an illness, until the day before the bombing-wednesday,20th january 1943
she says;
that morning, i begged my mom to let me stay at school for lunch, i'd made friends with 3 other little girls,i wanted to sit with them while i ate.
my mom said no, my bro said-go on mom-i'll look after her-he was 10-she said no, my brother said id be ok
i sat at with my friends at the table, we had jam tarts for dessert, a plane flew low, past the window,we saw the pilot, we waved, he waved back, but as we waved i saw the german markings on the wing.
someone shouted for us to dive under the tables,as i jumped my jam tart fell, i saw my brother running past the table and i called his name.
As he turned, the bomb fell and i was buried. i couldnt breathe or move,i remember trying to call for help
i remember the relief of the bricks being lifted from my face.
the next thing i knew, i was lying on the cold hard pavement outside, someone was saying 'she hasnt got long' i didnt know what that meant.
my jaw was fractured and there was wood protruding from my head and back.
i got transfered to the QM in sidcup.
i remember my dad at my bedside-i asked for my brother john-i was told he'd gone to live in the countryside.
i was in hospital 2 years
i still didnt know my brother john was dead.
i returned home eventually-i heard two women saying when they saw me- 'it was her brother that was killed'
that was when i learned the truth.
for years after, if i was naughty my mom would say 'the wrong one lived'
she never forgave me
and the night before my own sons christening, she took the baby from my arms and said..
'you dont deserve a son because you killed mine'
f*ck me! isnt that sad
everyones got a story to tell
but that womans mom never forgave her-she was 5 when the germans bombed
5 years of age
what a memory to carry..
she says;
that morning, i begged my mom to let me stay at school for lunch, i'd made friends with 3 other little girls,i wanted to sit with them while i ate.
my mom said no, my bro said-go on mom-i'll look after her-he was 10-she said no, my brother said id be ok
i sat at with my friends at the table, we had jam tarts for dessert, a plane flew low, past the window,we saw the pilot, we waved, he waved back, but as we waved i saw the german markings on the wing.
someone shouted for us to dive under the tables,as i jumped my jam tart fell, i saw my brother running past the table and i called his name.
As he turned, the bomb fell and i was buried. i couldnt breathe or move,i remember trying to call for help
i remember the relief of the bricks being lifted from my face.
the next thing i knew, i was lying on the cold hard pavement outside, someone was saying 'she hasnt got long' i didnt know what that meant.
my jaw was fractured and there was wood protruding from my head and back.
i got transfered to the QM in sidcup.
i remember my dad at my bedside-i asked for my brother john-i was told he'd gone to live in the countryside.
i was in hospital 2 years
i still didnt know my brother john was dead.
i returned home eventually-i heard two women saying when they saw me- 'it was her brother that was killed'
that was when i learned the truth.
for years after, if i was naughty my mom would say 'the wrong one lived'
she never forgave me
and the night before my own sons christening, she took the baby from my arms and said..
'you dont deserve a son because you killed mine'
f*ck me! isnt that sad
everyones got a story to tell
but that womans mom never forgave her-she was 5 when the germans bombed
5 years of age
what a memory to carry..
