9
A HOLIDAY
Late September 1944Pneumonia was getting the better of me. I was put on the danger list for several weeks while I dozed and woke with fitful sweats and Mum stood over the bed crying. She must have been ridden with guilt about making me play outside every day, even when it rained. We couldn’t afford the doctor ourselves but Granddad paid for two visits, probably because paying for a funeral would have cost him even more. For the third visit, as I no longer had a fever, Mum went and sat with me in the waiting-room at the doctor’s surgery turning her pockets out to see if she had the fee for the medicine. The doctor, a smart man with a Savile Row suit and a dickey bow tie, said she could have the prescription made up for free. He said that he was waiving the payment because he w
