Sunday, 22 October, 1944 - Two Letters from Stan

2364226                                                                  
Sergt. S. Bristow
Headquarters
15 L of C Signals
Cen. Med. Forces

22 Oct. 44.                                                                          224.

My Very Own Darling,

The end of another week & the beginning of yet another.  I’m not sorry to see the end of this week, neither, for its been a disastrous week – you know the sort of week when nothing has gone right!  I suppose you have them in hospital, too.

Well, Sunday’s almost gone & there’s not been a letter from you – not had one for four days in fact.  I think I owe you an apology, Darling, I think its about four days since I last wrote to you, which is the longest period I’ve gone without writing to you.  So, if I’ve kept you waiting for this letter, Dear, I’m sorry.

By yesterday teatime I was quite fed up of the office, the Amy & everything that goes with it, so I trotted off to the pictures to rid myself of the depression.

I saw Greer Garson in the picture “Pride and Prejudice” and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.  It was a period picture & so quite a change from what we have been seeing of late.  She is a very fine actress, isn’t she?

I’m having a quiet evening tonight.  I’m in my bedroom sitting on my bed writing this, with quite a nice musical programme on the wireless – in fact just the right atmosphere.  I’ve got sixpennorth of roast chestnuts from the stall at the end of the street & am having a good “scoff”!

I wish you were here to enjoy this little bit of peace with me Darling.  I have thought a lot about you to-day.  I went for a “short stroll” just before tea and made myself quite homesick thinking about the walks we have had together on Sunday afternoons.  My “short stroll” turned out to be about seven miles!  I was walking on and on with my thoughts way back in England that I didn’t realize just how far I had walked.  I’m beginning to realize it now, however, for I am quite stiff.  Just shows how badly out of training I am.  I can’t tell you how much I wished that I was at home at Grimethorpe walking by your side through the gorse & bracken of Brierley Common, although I think I remember you saying that they had ploughed quite a lot of it up.

Things seem to be warming up in the Far East, don’t they?  The latest landing on the Philippines has brought the war much closer to Japan, hasn’t it?  The news of the British Fleet’s move out to those waters is very good news.  I note that the BBC announce that four aircraft carriers are among the ships.  I immediately thought about your brother.  Is he still in England or has he been whisked away, Dear?

Well, I seem to have some more to write about so I’ll go onto another page.

Lots of love until the next page.  Your own Stan xxxxxxx

2364226                                                                  
Sergt. S. Bristow
Headquarters
15 L of C Signals                                                                 No. 2
Cen. Med. Forces

22 Oct. 44.                                                                          225.

Hello again Darling,

When you’ve really got something to write about there’s not enough room on one of these things*, is there, so I’ve “overflowed”.  I know you won’t mind receiving two letters in one day, will you?

Have you ever nursed any Germans since the Second Front started, Dear?  Last night after the pictures I went to the Sergeants Club, where a friend of mine introduced me to a quite interesting person.  He has been friendly with a Polish Jewess for some little time.  She is a member of a Palestinian Nursing company & she was telling me about a couple of German officers they have in their hospital.

Despite the fact that they were fairly badly wounded when they reached the hospital, they were full of bombast & refused to have morphine when it was offered to them, saying that Germans didn’t have things like that!  They apparently changed their minds later in the day & were crying out for it, so the Matron (who is apparently a typical Matron) “cheered them up” by saying “Oh the Jewish nurses will see to you when they come on duty tonight.”

You can just imagine what ran through the German’s minds at that, can’t you?  They were very sheepish towards the Jewish nurses & wouldn’t even speak to them for days on end, despite the fact that this girl speaks fluent German.

She was driven out of Poland into Russia in '39 & made her way through Turkey & Iran to Palestine, where she joined this nursing company.

Of course, like a true nurse, she said the people she nursed were all alike despite the fact that she hates the Germans.  All the same if I was a German, I don’t think I should be very comfortable to have a Jew or Jewess nursing me.  What do you say?

Oh dear!  The atmosphere I described in the other letter has been shattered!!!  The blankety-blank electricity has failed.  I think the first thing the Italians want to do when the war is over is to get cracking and get a decent power & lighting system working.

Still, Darling, it would be quite romantic if you were here now.  Our emergency lighting plant (two candles in empty beer bottles) is now working & shedding a pale light over everything.  Just enough to let me finish this letter anyway.

You’ll have been at home for a good few days, I suppose when you get this.  How I wish I could be sharing your holiday with you!

If you’ve any spare pieces of love left over Darling, share it amongst your family and in my case give them my best wishes.

And to you as always my Precious, I send all my love and lots of kisses.

Always your own, Stan  xxxxxxxxxxxx

* 'one of these things' is an airmail form