My Mum, Ruth Brush, didn't talk very much about her time in the ATS or Land Army after the war. Nor did my Father talk about his service as a gunner in the Royal Artillery. There was the occasional story of funny things that happened, but very little about their day-to-day lives. Now that they are both gone, I wish I had started writing about them years ago; especially my Mum's story.
My Mum turned 13 just days after the War was declared in 1939. A year later, her 3 younger sisters had already been evacuated to Canada with their Mother. Then, her father "disappeared" she was told that he had gone to Canada to support the family. By now, it was 1941 and Mum was just 14 and living in Coventry at the time. A relative suggested that she join up and, somehow, modified her papers (birth certificate?) to indicate that she was 16. So, at not quite 15, she was in the ATS.
Although she was born in Ireland, she was allowed to wear Canada flashes on her shoulders. I don't know whether it was because she was considered "Canadian" or because her family was in Canada for the duration. The family had moved to Canada in 1928, when Mum was 2 but moved back to England in 1938. At any rate, the British Army trained her and, later, for that reason, wouldn't let her transfer to a Canadian regiment, where she would have been paid more money. Some time in 1941/42, she met my Father, while on KP duty and, in late September 1942, they married in uniform. She had only just turned 16. After this, came the rest of the War, post-war life, separation, reconciliation, rebuilding a marriage, parenthood, and starting over by moving to Canada in the late '50s.
Now that I am in my own later years, I look back on what I have accomplished in my life and realize that my Mum's years in the ATS and Land Army defined her and instilled in me, independence, perseverance, and reliability, among many other fine traits. I only wish I had told her.
