Norma Rogers Ch. 05

We went through to my office where I explained our processes to him and explained to him that I was in charge of the station for the next few weeks, so I couldn't show him much of the area, and that if he wanted to go out on the ambulances at all, I would send him with a senior driver.

"What about going with Nancy?" he asked.

"Yes, that can be arranged if she doesn't mind you being along."

"I know I shouldn't ask this, but is she spoken for? I don't want to tread on anyone's toes, but I would really like to get to know her."

I looked him square in the eyes. "Hank, You called me the Ice Queen, Nancy isn't, as you call it, spoken for, but let me be perfectly clear. She is my best friend, we share a house between us, and we have been through a lot together. What she does in her life is up to her, but be warned, if you do anything to hurt her, you make two enemies, not one, and without giving away any secrets, let me say I am able to cause you a great deal of problems if I wish."

"Norma, let me be clear also, if I ask Nancy to date it will be because I want to get to know her. She strikes me as a beautiful young woman that I want to know better, and there is no way that I will willingly make her suffer at all. I've had a good example all my life; my Mom and Dad have been together twenty-seven years now, with three of us boys and two girls. They made it pretty clear to us boys that if we dated any girl, we had to treat them with respect. I'm the youngest, and the others are all married, three with kids, and none of them had to get married. I'm not about to show Mom and Dad that I disrespect their teaching."

I couldn't help but see how serious he was and smiled. "Thank you, Hank." Then I smiled, "Alright, the serious stuff is over, let's go get a cup of tea."

Hank quickly asked, "What, no coffee?"

I was just as quick in return. "Not until you get us some, buddy."

He laughed, "Ah you do know some American, and the coffee will be here tomorrow."

He was as good as his word; the next morning he came driving intro the station with not only coffee, but also an urn to make it in, plus some sugar, which was almost like gold. He fitted in well, doing his job as well as riding the ambulances, I must say mainly Nancy's, and as an outsider watching what we did, he made some great suggestions as well as helping with useful equipment from the American Army. Some of the best things he brought were the American GI's trenching tools that he equipped all the ambulances with. They folded up for storage and were short enough to be used in close quarters, making it easier to dig and saving a lot of wear on the hands. He even got us leather work gloves, which helped even more.

His relationship with Nancy really blossomed, and they both fell hard for each other, spending most of their off duty time together, dancing or at the pictures, and sometimes seeing the occasional show. He became a staple at the house, spending many meals with us, and he happily provided quite a bit of food that he was able to get. The US Army had taken over a small hotel in Islington, and he was given quarters there, sharing with another officer. Often he and Nancy would look after the twins, who became quite fond of Unca Hank as they began to talk. I had a picture of Jim in uniform on the mantel, and often took it down and showed it to them, saying 'Daddy' and pointing to the picture. Once, John pointed at Hank in uniform and said, "Daddy?" and it was Hank who told him, "No, this is Daddy," as he pointed at the photo.

At work, we seemed to be doing an increase in transfers. By now the British Eighth Army and the American Second Army had linked together in North Africa after fierce fighting, and while most of the wounded were treated in hospitals in North Africa, many were sent home by hospital ship to be treated and convalesce in Britain, so we transported many wounded from the hospital ships to hospitals on land. This work increased markedly as the Allies invaded Sicily and Italy, and the opposition became all German after Italy surrendered.

Occasionally, when I could arrange for someone to stay with the babies, I went out with Hank and Nancy, either for dinner, to dances or just to the pub. Sometimes Tony Jacobs, Hank's roommate, would come along if he wasn't doing anything else; he was engaged to a girl back home in the States. Hank had warned him that I was married and not looking for any affairs, and Tony, being a really quiet country boy and already engaged, behaved accordingly. At least he was until his girl sent him what he called a Dear John letter, telling him that she had started going out with another local boy who was in a reserved occupation. Then shortly after that he got a letter from his mother telling him that the girl had fallen pregnant and had to get married.

After this, he became quite the life of the party for a while, but then he began to tell me that he was falling in love with me and that he wanted to take me back to the States with him. I tried to joke him out of it, but in the end I finally just stopped him from talking and told him, "Tony, I'm sorry that you got this letter from your girl friend, and I know that you are feeling rotten about it, but don't you see? You are asking me to do the same thing to Jim. You are a nice guy and I like you, but my feelings for you aren't even close to what I feel for Jim. You don't give me any choice but to stop going out if you are going to be there. He apologized to me and left. He apparently asked for a transfer to an active unit as he was posted away from London within a few days

Hank had been with us about six months when Catherine called me into her office and told me to sit down. It was obvious that she had been crying and she talked through tears, "I've just had notification from the Haslar Royal Naval Hospital, Dennis my husband was severely injured in a brush between his destroyer and a group of E Boats. A lucky shot hit the bridge of the destroyer and Dennis was the only survivor on the bridge. He was badly burned and has a number of broken bones and will need a lot of nursing. As I was a nurse before we married, I am going to be one of his special nurses."

"Who will take charge here?" I asked.

"I have been in touch with HQ," she continued. "You are to take over as Station Officer and arrangements will be made to accommodate your ATS duties." She handed me the keys to her office and files and said, "Good Luck with your new duties. I have to leave for Portsmouth."

I couldn't stop myself; I stepped forward and hugged her. "Catherine, look after yourself and look after Dennis, he is really going to need you now. Keep in touch with us; you are a friend as well as a boss."

She left, and I sat in her chair, wondering if I could come close to filling her shoes. I knew what to do, but I wondered if I could do it as smoothly as she did.

Hank was with us for about a year and a half, riding with the ambulances, working with the ARP on rescues and training, and travelling with me to any American units where I was to do any teaching, smoothing the way for me, the mere woman who was going to teach the trained men of the US Army how to handle the wounded. Eventually he was transferred to an Ambulance unit that was beginning to train for the invasion. Shortly before he was transferred, I was pleased to be asked by Nancy to be her bridesmaid and witness at the Registry Office when they married. After the wedding, he was at the house every opportunity that he got for the next year, even if he could only make it for the day.

Before Hank was transferred, he and Nancy had gone to the cinema one night while I stayed at home and put my feet up for a rest after a really busy day. Suddenly the two of them came dashing in, both of them really excited. Nancy was just about bursting to talk, "Norma, you have to go to the Roxy this week, Jim is on Pathe News. They had a segment on building airfields in India, Assam I think, and Jim is on there as large as life giving instructions to the Army engineers."

Hank continued, "They are building airfields for the US Army Air Force planes that are flying supplies and weapons over the Hump into China for the Nationalist Chinese Army. My cousin Jeff is one of the pilots doing the flying. If you like, I'll send him a letter asking him if he can contact Jim."

I thanked Hank, asking if he would do that as the only news that I got was that he was well and busy. The next night, I was sitting in the Roxy when the news film came on. When the segment on India started, I could see Jim right away, he looked really tanned, but had lost weight. I couldn't believe it when he put his jacket on and I could see the insignia of a Major. We had thought it fantastic when he was promoted to Captain, so this must be something new. He hadn't told me of any promotion but his allowances to me had been increased recently. After seeing him, I broke down, partly due to happiness at seeing him, and partly because I missed my man so much. I just quietly cried, and the tears flowed for about ten minutes. For a short time, I wasn't the ATS officer in charge of those ambulances; I was just an ordinary wife missing her husband.

I was surprised on a Sunday morning about six weeks later when I got up to answer a knock on the door and found a short man in the uniform of a US Army Captain standing there. I asked if I could help him.

"Ma-am do I have the right address for Mrs. Norma Rogers?"

"Yes, I'm Norma Rogers, how can I help you?"

"Well, Mrs. Rogers, maybe I can help you - I'm Hank's cousin Jeff. He wrote me about your husband, and the fates must have been good to you. His unit was working on my base making and extending runways for bigger planes. I had gotten to know him pretty well, and we even shared the same foxhole a couple of times. When he found out that I was being posted to a bomber group here in England, he asked me to deliver a package for him. I stopped off Stateside on the way here to remind my family of what I look like; otherwise I would have been here sooner."

"Please come in and have a drink, and please call me Norma. Mrs. Rogers sounds so formal. Hank's wife, Nancy, will be in shortly, and she would love to meet you, but Hank is with his unit near Farnborough.

Jeff came in and sat with me in the kitchen as we waited for the coffee to brew (another thing to thank Hank for). I just couldn't wait to ask, "How was Jim when you left? How is he holding up?"

"He told me what you have been through, and warned me not to try to make things sound better than they are, as you would see right through it. Things are rough out there where he is; they are close to the Burmese border, and Burma has been taken by the Japanese. Every so often they get a raid by the Japanese puppet army, the Burmese Liberation Army, but so far they have not been particularly well trained soldiers, so they have been beaten back fairly easily."

"Eventually, I guess the idea is to cut another road across the mountains to China and beat the Japs back. Then it will get worse, but there will be lots more men. Anyway, I have this package for you, and I had better not forget it." He grinned and went on, "Jim told me that it was worth my life if I forgot it or lost it. He handed me a bulky letter addressed to me in Jim's writing, and I tore it open in a rush, finding a letter and a small sealed envelope inside the waterproof packaging. I couldn't wait and quickly opened the letter, my hands just shaking.

Note by Pat (Norma still had the letter and she brought it out so I could include it.)

My Dearest Norma

Jeff tells me that this letter will be travelling by a circuitous but secure route without censors, so I can put in what I want and can write what I want, instead of what I am allowed, so here goes.

First of all, my dear I love you and miss you so much my entire body is aching for the day that I can hold you again. Every night as I go to my tent, my empty arms remind me of what I am missing by being out here, missing you and our babies. I long to touch you and feel you against me with your arms around me. I long to hold the babies in my arms not just see pictures of them. By the time I get home, I will have missed so much of your lives that can never be relived. The photos you have sent are beside my bed, the last thing I see at night and the first in the morning, but they can't make up for the emptiness in my arms. I can't wait until I can hold you again and finally meet our children.

I am well, but here in the hills it is difficult to stay that way, with insects and snakes. They are things that we never get used to, and even though we sleep under a mosquito net, that doesn't stop the cloud of them that follow us when we are awake and moving around. We still get sick, and anyone who doesn't take his quinine pills is a fool, as malaria isn't something enjoyable. The medical officer is probably the busiest officer in the camp. Everything in the area is either uphill or downhill, apart from the odd flat area where we have built airstrips so that the Americans can fly supplies and ammo to the Chinese Army. Even then they are talking chances of being shot down by the Japanese, who are often quite close.

As Jeff has probably told you, we were able to stop the Japanese advance short of the Indian Border, but we have had a number of small hit and run attacks which we, the British and Indian troops, have been able to handle, though it has been a near thing at times. As time goes by, we are getting a buildup of British, Indian and US troops. The plan seems to be to eventually go on the offensive against the Japanese in Burma. Whether my unit is going to be involved in that I don't know, but they are talking about building a new road, and they can't do that without Engineers, so I wouldn't be surprised if we are. Most of the Indian troops are pretty good, and we get along quite well though there have been some desertions to the Japanese . I don't think for one minute that the Indian people really want us here, but the outlook seems to be that the Divil you know is better than the Divil you don't, so rather us than the Japs. Whether it will stay that way I don't know, once the Japanese have been defeated, I don't think that the British will be able to stay on in India for long There is a man, Mahatma Ghandi whose teachings of non-violence but non co-operation seem to be getting a lot of attention.

What seems to be years ago now, I promised you a ring, and if you look in that small envelope you will find the best ring I could find. There aren't too many jewelers' shops in this part of India, and there is a story behind the ring. I had taken a couple of troops of men into Burma to destroy some bridges and slow down the Japanese advance. In the one area we came on a Rajah and his family trying to get away from the advance, which had neared his summer palace. They had no transport other than elephants, and as the Japanese got closer their servants had melted away into the jungle. Fortunately for them, we had emptied one of our lorries and had room for a lot of his possessions and his immediate family. We were able to distribute them all between the lorries as most of the men were walking anyway, watching the jungle. We brought them out and the Rajah was really grateful to all the troops and offered us a reward as thanks for our help. I chose the ring as I thought it would be beautiful on your finger as your engagement ring. Actually, he would have given me his oldest daughter as a bride, but I told him you would likely object to that, so he insisted on a ring for you.

I tore open the small envelope and tipped it up, and into my hand slid the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. It was gold with a square cut ruby centre and diamonds on each side. I could hardly believe my eyes. I had no idea of the value of it. It would not fit my ring finger at all, just my baby finger.

Jim's letter went on. I want you to get it sized to fit you as it may be a little small - the ladies in his entourage were quite tiny. I managed to get it engraved though, as you will see.

Well, Jeff wants to get away. He is itching to get home for a leave, and then get to England and get a shot at the Germans, though it will take him a while to transition he says. I guess that means learning to fly bombers and bomb instead of flying supply runs. Remember Dear, that I love you absolutely and miss you terribly; all I want is to be back with you and our children. Remember also what I said about anything happening to me. If the worst should happen to me, don't let it rule your life or the lives of the children. Keep on with your life; you have too much vitality to let my death rule your life. I just ask that you teach the children about me and keep them in touch with my family.

With all my love,

Jim.

PS Tell Jenny that Bert is safe and in good health. We are also a listening post, listening to the Japanese radios and another organization I can't talk about. Our aerials are high up so we get a lot of distance transmissions that we relay to headquarters. There were a bunch of Naval radio men available after the Repulse and Prince of Wales were sunk, so they were drafted to do that job; Bert is second in command of the naval section here. One good thing is that we are able to support each other when we are lost thinking of you and of Jenny

I looked up from the last paragraph and could hardly see Jeff through the tears. "Jeff, I owe you a debt I can never repay! Thank you so much for bringing this letter and the ring."

"Norma, the pleasure is all mine. I'm just sorry that I couldn't bring Jim back to you, though if it is any consolation, I have never met anyone more capable of looking after himself and his men. They think he is great; he is the Officer Commanding of the squadron, and there aren't too many men who would want to change outfits. They think he is the greatest officer they have had, and would follow him into hell if they had to. Now, though, I had better get to my squadron before they think I have deserted. I have a lot to learn and not much time to learn it, including flying a much different type of plane."

Just then a newly pregnant Nancy came in, and I introduced Jeff. She was most concerned that Hank had missed him, but was sure they could arrange to meet up sometime and gave Jeff Hanks' address so he could contact him. I showed her the ring and her jaw dropped, "It must be worth a fortune Norma! Where did he get something like that?" I told her the story and what Jim had written in the letter.

She hugged me, "Girl, you have an incredible husband, and I know he will come back safe to you and the children. If I didn't have Hank, I would be really jealous of you. As it is, I am glad that I married Hank. Hank is the most wonderful man that I know, but I'm sorry that when all this is over and it is time for me to go with him to America, I'll be leaving the dearest friend that I have ever had. We've been through a lot together, you and I, and we have more to go through yet. I'll miss you tremendously when I don't have you close."

I hugged her back, "Nancy, you will always be my special friend, and we really have been through hell together. Now, when we finally seem to be getting to be the winning side, I'm not about to let the Atlantic Ocean come between us. I don't know what the future holds for us, but one thing I do know, you will always be my friend."

I took the ring to a West End jeweler where it was sized correctly for my finger. I was intrigued and asked if he could give me an approximate value as I had no idea of its value for insurance. The jeweler looked it over carefully and astonished me when he said, "If Madam were to send the ring to auction, even in these days of austerity it would likely sell for around fifty thousand guineas." I just couldn't believe it; in my hand I had riches beyond belief, Jim must have really done that Rajah quite a favour!