Norma Rogers Ch. 04

"Rudi, we have a saying, don't count your chickens until they are hatched. Don't start planning any victory parades down Whitehall just yet. There are a lot of British people and their allies that will have their say before that will happen."

"We shall see what happens; I don't know how they have resisted the bombers so well. By the way, what is that pin you are wearing, I don't recognize it?"

"The Order of the British Empire. I was awarded it late last year."

Rudi looked at me, "And you. Frau Rogers, are you in war work?"

I took my cue from Jim, "Captain Von Ansel, please do not use German terms to describe me. I am not and never will be a Frau, I am Mrs. Norma Rogers, and will thank you to address me as such. As to my work, I am an ambulance driver in London, a very busy occupation as you might imagine."

"Excuse me, Mrs. Rogers, I can appreciate your feelings. I must congratulate you, though, on that dress you are wearing. It is very nice, and if dresses like that are available in London, things can't be that bad. That brooch is very nice and similar to Jim's lapel pin."

The man had to have a skin as thick as leather!I must admit I just blew my top. "Captain, the dress I owe to presently being in the Irish Republic where fortunately rationing is unknown, and to the generosity of Jim's parents. I assure you that if you were to meet me in London, in all probability I would be dressed in my dark blue Ambulance uniform, metal helmet and carrying a gas mask and a medical kit. The uniform very likely would be covered with dirt, dust and the blood of the injured and dead civilian men women and children caused by the nightly bombing that your colleagues of the Luftwaffe are subjecting them to. As far as the brooch is concerned, it is the insignia of the Order of the British Empire, which I'm proud to say was conferred on Jim and me last November by King George."

"Oh, I remember reading an article in the Irish press; I didn't realize that you were the couple who completed the rescue. You were both feted as heroes, as I remember."

"That may have been what the press wrote, but we don't think of ourselves as heroes; we think of it as doing our jobs, as what we did and other much braver and difficult jobs are daily events in Britain."

He exclaimed, "But the German people are being bombed too, more and more as time goes on."

I continued, "Captain, don't expect me to have any sympathy for the German people. They, after all, are the ones who put that maniac Hitler into power and began the slide into this war. They may be just starting to be bombed, but I hope and pray that they feel it much more than Britain has. I have been through many raids where it seemed that the bombers were never going to stop, and the targets were not soldiers, or war factories, they were innocent men women and children whose only crime was to live. After having seen people machine gunned by your aircrews as they stood in the street looking at the smoking rubble of their homes, I hate your comrades of the Luftwaffe with a passion, although I must admit they at least risk being shot down by fighters or anti-aircraft guns, unlike you who sit behind a desk in Dublin."

"Mrs. Rogers, you are married to a soldier. You above all people should know that we serve as we are directed, no matter what we would like to do personally."

"There is a big difference between fighting another army and killing innocent children, as the German people are going to find out. Now, Captain, I believe our conversation is at an end. Fortunately this is a diplomatic function, otherwise I might be tempted to finish in a more forceful manner. Jim, either we dance or you take me back to our room, one or the other. I'm afraid that I find the present company, other than John and Mhairi, rather offensive."

Jim whisked me out onto the dance floor. "My god, Norma, remind me never to get on the wrong side of you! You're quite a firebrand. Are you sure you don't actually have red hair that has been colored? I felt like giving him hell, but you did more than enough for both of us."

I giggled, "Well, you know that the hair isn't red, you've seen it all. The man was absolutely insufferable. Why would a friend come on like that?"

"He wasn't always like that. Unfortunately, during the last year in school, he began to be like that. Over the holidays he had joined the Hitler Youth and went through their propaganda mill. There was also a group at the school, even though the school was in Austria, not Germany, all of them running around like good little Nazis with their salutes and goosesteps."

"You didn't tell me you had been to school in Austria."

"Well, you didn't ask. Actually, it was for good reason, as most of the schools, even boarding schools, in Ireland are run either by the Church or teach according to the views of the Church. Dad and Ma wanted me to get a more open education, so it was either England or Europe. Quite honestly, most of the boarding schools in England cater to the upper crust, and my parents wanted me to have my feet planted firmly on the ground where a farmer's feet should be."

We ended our dance and went back to rejoin Mhairi and John. Mhairi's face was a picture of mirth, almost laughing out loud. "Well, John, don't we have a spitfire for a daughter in law! Jim, you'll be well matched with this girl. I thought there would be a member of the German Embassy here tonight, 'tis a pity it wasn't the Ambassador himself, but it will get back to him, I'm sure. I was hoping to remind him that Britain is far from being counted out, as he is quite often quoted as saying. Don't forget that, while I'm a Scottish nationalist, they are bombing Scotland, too. They even bombed Dublin, which they say was by mistake, but which everyone thinks was by way of warning the Irish not to help the British. Anyway, I didn't need to do anything, Norma did it all for us."

I couldn't help it - I laughed and said, "So, my dear mother-in-law, you set up your son and your new daughter to prove a point to the Germans?"

John snorted with laughter. "Of course she did, otherwise she would have had to do it herself. Not only that, she made sure that there were several members of the press to report on it. Don't be surprised if you are in tomorrow's paper - she even made sure they knew how to spell your name properly."

Mhairi smiled, "Well, it doesn't hurt to make sure they know what they are up against. They may be winning the battles now, but come what may, we will win the war."

We all went back to our rooms, as we were planning on leaving for the farm early the next morning. Jim and I undressed and made gentle love for a while. After my encounter with Von Ansel, I was extremely uptight and needed Jim's gentleness to calm me and allow me to relax enough to sleep.

After another Irish breakfast that I really couldn't face, John had the car brought around and we started out for Loughrea, not too far from Athenry and Galway, where the family farm was situated. It was a fairly straight run from Dublin, which took us about four hours with a stop for lunch. By then I was hungry again, and I made short work of the lunch that Mhairi had the hotel pack. When we stopped, we picked up the morning papers, and John was exactly right, I had made headlines, the least of which read "Fiery London Ambulance Driver Gives German Officer Hell." Just how much I had hit the headlines I didn't realize till much later.

At the farm, I met Jim's brother John and his wife Mary. I don't know about John having to stay and look after the farm, but by the looks of Mary she wouldn't have made it to the wedding and back without giving birth. She was pretty close to nine months pregnant with their second child, and their two year old, Fiona, was a beautiful looking little girl. Once I had been sitting down a while, Mhairi fussed about the kitchen making tea. Fiona came to me after Mary told her who I was, and I found it was pretty novel to be described as Auntie Norma, again reinforcing the feeling that I had become part of another family that would be important in my life. She held her little hands out to me, saying "Up". As I lifted her, she settled into my lap as if she had been there all her short life.

Mary looked on in surprise. "Norma, you are honoured; she is usually reluctant to go to others until she knows them well. She obviously trusts you."

Jim chimed in, "She isn't the first child by any means to want to be hugged and cuddled by Norma. There are a lot of children in London who owe their health to just that. Norma inspires love and kindness in most people she deals with, and she couldn't be in a better job than she has."

Over the next six days, Jim and I spent hours walking around the farm and meeting the neighbours, with Fiona in constant attendance. I must say that I felt welcome wherever we went. The atmosphere in the small stores was as pleasant and welcoming as if I had lived there for years. I think that perhaps Mhairi had smoothed the way for me, as there didn't seem to be any of the curious stares that one sometimes gets in new surroundings.

All too soon the honeymoon came to an end, and it was time for Mhairi and John to drive us back to Dun Loaghaire to sail back to our duties. Nancy had sent a telegram letting me know that she and I had been able to rent Maisie's house when she moved out, so it meant that Jim and I would have our own room for a couple of days before he had to report to the Royal Engineers transit depot at Barton Stacey. Andrew had picked up Jim's kit from Mums and taken it to the house for us, so we didn't have to go to Bromley to get it, and after getting off the train at Euston, we went straight home.

We knew that in the next few days we would be separated once more, this time likely for a long period. Nancy made sure that we had lots of time to ourselves. Our lovemaking, while often, was slow and gentle, something that I would remember for all time. Jim was forever patting and stroking my belly, knowing that his child was growing there. I was sorry that he likely wouldn't feel the baby move before he left, but at least he knew it was there. He was adamant that I was not to let the child rule my life, that I was to take time to enjoy myself. He knew that I loved dancing and encouraged me to keep it up. I just had to remember that he was my husband and conduct myself accordingly. As he put it, "Yes, you are a married woman and society demands certain things, but just because you are married doesn't mean you have to become a nun."

My answer was, "Jim, you are my husband and my lover. I trust you to be true to me while you are gone, and you need have no concerns about my conduct while we are apart. You are all the man I need. If I didn't believe that, we would not be married and I would not be carrying your child. If I feel like going out with Nancy once in a while, that will be enough for me. Besides, no child of ours will ever be thought of as somebody tying me down."

All too soon we found ourselves standing on the platform at Waterloo station huddling together as if to preserve the last heat between us. Then as the guard started to wave his flag, Jim swung up into the carriage doorway, closed the door and leaned out the window, waving as the train drew away, neither of us knowing whether we would ever see each other again.

I walked home, automatically following the streets that I knew so well from my work, not seeing anything that happened around me, with tears streaming down my face. As I walked past Jenny's, she was cleaning the steps as all the wives on the street did. After looking at me, she grabbed me, pulled me into her house, sat me down in the kitchen and put the kettle on for the inevitable cup of tea. She even included the spoonful of tea for the pot that the Ministry of Food was so adamant against, saying that I needed all the help I could get. She passed me a face cloth to wipe away the tears, and I sat beside her hearth drinking the warm sweet tea that we drank to help pull ourselves together when we were nervous or distressed.

Jenny spoke quietly, "When will he be going? Have they given him any idea where?"

I thought for a minute about secrecy, damn it; we are wives in the same boat. "No, we haven't had any word at all, but from what we have talked about we think it will be North Africa at least. They need Engineers there for the Eighth Army."

"Bert thinks they will be sailing sometime this week. He was home on the weekend for the last time before the ship sails, and he quietly told me that they had loaded tropical gear, so it could be the Mediterranean or Far East. Wherever it is, it means he won't be home for a long time and it will be a while before this baby knows his Dad."

"I keep praying that Jim will get a posting here in the UK, but we aren't banking on it. If he did, it would be doing a lot of training of new soldiers. I would love it if he were, but it is a faint hope. More than likely he will be going overseas."

I pointed at her stomach, "Anyway, how is the baby doing? Any kicking yet?"

"No, just gentle little stirrings like a butterfly taking wing, and that's when I don't have my head in the toilet bowl. I have lots of morning and afternoon sickness this time. The other three were real football players, kicking away so bad it was hard to sleep sometimes."

"To tell you the truth, I have the same problem now."

A grin lit up her face. "So you are carrying as well! You were supposed to be able to look after me when I'm due. Don't tell me Nancy's going to have to look after both of us? When is it due?"

"Mid-August, as far as the Doctor can tell."

"Where are you going to have the baby, here or in Ireland?"

"Mhairi has told me she would love me to go over there for the last trimester, but Bromley has a nice Maternity Hospital, and I know and trust my Doctor there. I grew up in his care, so I'm thinking I will go there, then Mum can be with me as well and maybe Mhairi can come over as well. John has to come over regularly anyway."

"I've already arranged for my Mum to come and stay with me for the last few weeks. Bert certainly won't be here, and they won't send him home just for a baby. What are you planning to do about your job? They won't want pregnant women pulling buildings apart looking for survivors."

"When I go back, I'll tell the Station Officer that I'm pregnant and maybe there is something else I can do when I'm further along; I don't want to give up quite yet, as I think that there is more that I can do. Now I had better get off home and get some cleaning up done before I go back to work. As you can imagine, I didn't get a whole lot done while Jim was home," I laughed. "We found other things to do that were much more fun."

"Isn't it great when you're already pregnant? Then you don't have any worries about getting caught; it's already happened, so you can lay back and enjoy it."

"Jenny, that isn't very ladylike, is it?"

"No, but you can't deny it's true! Anyway, when your man's in the service, you take what you can get when you can, and it doesn't hurt to be a bit aggressive. Fair makes them sit up and take notice, doesn't it?"

"I'm beginning to realize that it does, and I have already surprised Jim a couple of times. Well, I'm off, don't forget to drop in for a cuppa when I'm home. You're always welcome, and besides, then I'll get some practice with the little one."

"Ooh, that's an offer I can't refuse!"

When I went back to work the next day, I got the surprise of my life. The station staff had made up a big sign that said "Welcome Back Norma", and both the firemen and the ambulance staffs were applauding me. The Chief Fire Officer came over to me and shook my hand. "Norma, we are all proud of you. The way you stood up to that Jerry officer was wonderful, you really let him know just how we all felt about him and his people."

Someone yelled 'speech', and I thought quickly about what to say. "I'm proud to be a part of this station and to work with all of you. I'm not particularly brave, but like all of you, to save life I'll do what I have to, and no German is going to stop me. That is what I told the German Captain, that he or his friends in the Luftwaffe were not going to make the British their slaves." As I walked across to the Station Officers office they applauded again.

I asked to see the Station Officer and once I was seated in her office I told her I was pregnant. She asked if I wanted to finish work, and I told her that, since Jim was going to be away, I wanted to keep my time busy and to work as long as I could. Her answer was that my just being there after the news stories was a tremendous boost to morale and that I had become the station symbol, so she wanted to keep me there as long as possible. I would stay on the ambulance for now and, if possible, I would be kept on in the office later.

At that point in her story, Norma went back to the album and showed me another clipping from the Daily Mirror, which read. "Real Life Jane Gives Jerry A Drubbing." It followed, "In Dublin two days ago one of London's heroic ambulance drivers, Mrs. Norma Rogers, happened to meet up with the German Air Attaché at a diplomatic function. After some remarks he made, she let him know in no uncertain terms that the British people are far from beaten and that, while she grudgingly acknowledged that his comrades in the Luftwaffe did face some dangers flying their aircraft, that he didn't face a whole lot flying a desk in the Embassy. She also echoed the sentiment of most of us, that we had no sympathy for the plight of the German people who are beginning to feel retribution for the trials that they have inflicted on so many in Europe and the United Kingdom. Good for our real life Jane."

Norma had to explain that 'Jane' was the star of a cartoon strip in the Daily Mirror who showed her contempt for the Germans and support for the British Forces. However, Norma wasn't impressed with her in one respect as Jane was most often pictured as rather scantily clad. Norma's story continues.

Nancy and I got together and made sure our ambulance was ready. Not long afterwards, the sirens began their nightly wailing and off out into the battered streets we went to our first calls from the ARP. It seemed like my honeymoon had never happened. I was back into the nightly grind of digging people out, treating the injured and carrying the dead to the temporary mortuaries. It went on night after night until early May. The big turning point was when Hitler's forces attacked Russia and most of the bombers seemed to be needed for that attack. Russia's misfortune was our gain as we finally got a respite from the relentless bombing. We still had raids, but not the massive ones that we had been suffering through.

By this time I was getting pretty big; too big to get behind the wheel in fact, and it was at my monthly Doctor's visit that I found out why when I heard the words, "Norma, I hear two heartbeats. You are having twins, that is why you are getting so big." At first my heart sank.Twins, how could I hope to handle twins, especially on my own?Then it filled with elation.This will be fantastic news for Jim when I get his address, to be the father of two babies.I had only had two letters from him so far, heavily blackened out, but it was obvious that he was on a ship, and mail had been taken off when the ship had made port somewhere. The big thing was that I knew that he was fit and well, and was getting lots of exercise on the ship.

Supper with my parents and the train ride back to London passed in a blur. My mind filled with plans and ideas for clothes and a twin pram. Where on earth would I find that? I would need two of everything. I was just amazed at what I was going to have to do, especially when these things are not being made any more because of the war effort. I was going to have to enlist my Mum and Mhairi to help me.