CHRISTMAS 1941
in the Egyptian desert close to the border with Libya
"If I were to record all my adventures of the desert, it would prove terribly boring. It was one mad rushing here and there with plenty of dust. I will, however, make note of some items which may be interesting
Christmas Day, 1941, saw us at a place known as Point 20Y. This was near Halfaya Pass and was an old fort where the enemy was holding out. The weather at that time was extremely cold. Our Christmas Day rations consisted of bully and biscuits as usual.
We were promised a Christmas dinner by our officers who told us they expected it to arrive some time later on. We were denied this however and where the feed went nobody seemed to know. In spite of this, we managed to enjoy ourselves to a certain extent. During the evening, we played cards and tried to imagine it was Christmas."
~ from the PoW diaries of my dad Bert Martin,
a signaller in 67th Med Regt., Royal Artillery
Poor men, what a miserable Christmas compared with the excess of the present day! Even so I expect it was the simple things that made your dad & his comrades happy.
This is very moving, Hazel, to think of these young men, so far from home, in a desolate and unfriendly country, trying to come up with some activity to help them remember that it is Christmas. A lovely holiday photo, too.
Trinda - hope your dad had a good life after the war. Yes, my dad was taken prisoner at Tobruk in 1942, Today I've posted his Christmas that year http://365project.org/quietpurplehaze/365/2015-12-22 and the next two days I'll post the 2 further Christmasses he spent as a PoW.
Fav.
Trinda - hope your dad had a good life after the war. Yes, my dad was taken prisoner at Tobruk in 1942, Today I've posted his Christmas that year http://365project.org/quietpurplehaze/365/2015-12-22 and the next two days I'll post the 2 further Christmasses he spent as a PoW.