Beryl's Story of two ornaments and a dog

My father and Mother lived on Surrey Docks, London, when we were bombed out. My mother was in St Olave's hospital having me in September 1940. There was nowhere for us to go to when we came out of hospital. All our possessions had gone and I only had a shawl. So we went to Dorking to live with one of my mother's sisters who had a tea room there. We had to sleep on the floor in the café.

Three weeks later, my Dad went to look for our dog, Tiny, and to see if there was anything left. Well my Grandmother (we lived with her) had a clock on her mantelpiece with two figures, one a lady and one a man sitting beside it. When my Dad was looking to see what was left after the bomb, the only thing he found were these two figures (now on Beryl's mantelpiece). They were black with soot and dirt so he picked them up and put one in each pocket. He didn't find the clock and he thought it had been looted. There was looting going on. Then at last the dog Tiny turned up.

My Mum said that when she was in the hospital having me she looked out of the window and there were so many German planes you couldn't put a pin between them. My Dad and his brothers had three parrots which lived in the boiler room - they were all singed.

My Dad was a stevedore at the docks then he was injured so joined his father who had a hairdressing shop - My Grandad was a hairdresser, my Dad became one though he hadn't wanted to when he was young. He ended up owning his own salon. I became a hairdresser, so did my daughter and my granddaughter! My grandparents had gone to Deptford but we had a flat. Eventually we got a council house in Dorking. I remember when I was about 2 or 3 my Dad put me in a siren suit and took me out to show me all the searchlights. One plane landed on the main road in Dorking.

When he brought them back, the two ornaments went to my auntie. She had a budgie who kept sitting on them so when I get my house she gave them to me and I have told my daughter to never let them go - they are an important part of our family history.

My grandmother was Sarah Ann Parker, then Glaum.

I also have a cut glass vase that my Dad's brother won dancing. Victor Sylvester was playing with his orchestra. They were all good dancers in that family. My son is now. I went to a little church school in Dorking. The teashop was on Flint Hill. The building is still there but its not a tea room any more.

There were Canadians soldiers in Dorking. My aunt used to go dancing and theydances with the Canadians.

My Dad's side all went to Deptford. My Uncle Cecil (tho we called him John as he hated Cecil) was five years in the desert in the war. They wouldn't let him come home not even for his Mum's funeral. He was driving lorries full of petrol and when they were bombs they had to hide under the lorries!!

When the sirens sounded in Dorking my family always used to go to the shelter. Noone else did but we were very frightened.

I remember playing in the kitchen in Dorking when the siren went and I hid behind the door. Auntie said no you can't hide there hide under the table. It was a good thing we did because the blast from the bomb blew the kitchen door right up the stairs and we would have got that.

I remember that in rationing, my Mum used to be given a packet of mince for Sunday lunch and a little bit of butter and sweets were rationed. My family didn't know anything about growing things - you couldn't do that at Surrey Docks. People used to say to us go back to where you came from. We had a close community where we came from.

My mother's family were Palmer, my mother's name was Glaum. I know they took my Gran's railings for the war.