Lamb - Love has no Boundaries

LOVE

HAS NO

BOUNDARIES

A true love story of WWII

KAREN LAMB

Love Has No Boundaries by Karen Lamb

First published by Impact Press 2015

PO Box 780 Edgecliff

NSW 2027

AUSTRALIA

www.impactpress.com.au

Copyright Karen Lamb, 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any other information storage retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry

Author: Lamb, Karen.

Title: Love Has No Boundaries

Subtitle: A true love story of WW1

ISBN: 978-1-925183-50-4 (print edition)

ISBN: 978-1-925384-88-8 (Epub edition)

Cover images: provided by the author

Cover design and internal: Shannon Browning

Editorial: Lara Zembekis

Production: Jasmine Standfield

Printed in Australia by McPhersons Printing Group

This book is in honour of,

and dedicated to,

my grandparents

George and Lucy Bidwell.

--------------

May they both rest at peace

in each others arms,

through all eternity.

LOVE HAS NO BOUNDARIES

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast;

it is not arrogant or rude.

It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong doing, but rejoices with the truth.

LOVE HAS NO BOUNDARIES

A few years ago, I first heard about some priceless handwritten letters that my Grandfather Bidwell wrote to my Nana. These jewels from the past were written during WWII, when life must have been so uncertain and people felt vulnerable and unsure of the future.

I never had any idea that these timeless gifts to humanity existed within my family. Our family has always been a close knit onesharing the daily dramas, laughing, crying, supporting and caring for each other as best we can, as families do. I have always enjoyed family life. I felt safe, cared for and provided for but, as a lot of us must feel sometimes, emotionally disconnected; as if something was missing. By delving into our ancestors lives, by honouring them and their life journeys, we feel connected to them via an invisible thread that is woven within us. When we take the time to unravel these threads, timeless stories, great gifts and, most of all, unconditional love is experienced.

On my Nanas death these timeless letters with some of her other treasured belongings (namely her wedding ring, a set of pearls and a beautiful silver brooch of a Chinese rickshaw sent to her by the family when we lived in Singapore) were given to my Mum by her brother after my Nanas funeral. He asked her if she wanted them and without hesitation she said yes please. She brought them back to Australia with her for our family to share.

The letters had been kept in their original envelopes with stamps and postmarks still clearly shown on them. They were all in excellent condition even though they are nearly seventy years old! For many years these letters had been treasured and held onto as the only physical connection between a husband and wife separated too soon by deaths jaws. Little did they know that in years to come a proud granddaughter would feel the connection to the letters and bring them back to lifenot only for herself and family, but for everyone worldwide to enjoy them and to understand that love is timeless and without boundaries. We can also feel connected to those who have passed years before making us open to their love, knowledge and wisdom.

My mum revealed to me that when her dad died she and her family lived with her grandma (her dads mum) for nine months. After that they lived in a new Council house. Being an inquisitive young girl she found her dads letters in a box in one of her mums bedroom wardrobes.

As a teenager she would read the letters when her mum was at work. The letters held an invisible thread between father and daughter all those years later.

Granddad would never have been aware at the time of writing the letters how important a role they would play in his wifes and daughters futures. Or would he, at some level?

I first became aware of the letters in 1998 when my mother returned from my Nanas funeral in England. For myself at this time, out of respect, I felt uneasy and unsure about asking Mum if I could read the letters. Obviously, the timing wasnt quite right; these words had to be left unread for the time being. I knew that I would one day open and read them, so I put the idea to the back of my mind and waited for the appropriate opportunity to ariseas we know it always does.

Life continued on as normal, until a few years later in 2011, when out of the blue I thought a cruise for my husbands birthday would be a wonderful way for him to relax and unwind. At first he was reluctant stating that there wouldnt be enough to do! However, a seed was sown and a few weeks later a cruise to New Zealand was booked. We discovered the delights of a cruise trip and the beautiful scenery of New Zealand for the very first time.

On booking the cruise, and enthusiastically telling my mum where we were heading off to, I suddenly remembered that my granddad had been on a Merchant Navy ship in New Zealand during the war. The strong feelings arose again to finally read his letters and to bring to life my grandparents story. Again, I felt uncertain about asking mum if I could read them. On asking her, she was more than happy to pass them over to me. So with great anticipation I looked forward to opening the letters still in their original envelopes. How long had these words been hidden away? What might I find, feel and experience on reading them? I never had the pleasure of meeting my granddad as he died before I was born. I had no idea what to expect!

Every night before going to sleep I read and re-read one letter. I did this for each letter on consecutive evenings over twenty-four nights. I felt his whole entity being revealed before me. I could sense the situation, concern and love he felt at the time the letter was written. Funnily though, no return letters exist. Theres nothing to reveal my Nanas thoughts and emotions. She, however, would have been consumed with the everyday dramas of bringing up two small children on her own. She also found out she was pregnant with her third child whilst her husband was over the other side of the world doing his bit for freedom. I can only imagine her feelings of fear, sadness and loneliness at this time in her life.

My Nanas life was one of loss and grief, but with many moments of true unconditional love. She knew how to love unconditionally and how to empathise and support others in their loss. Her many testing life experiences gave her that knowledge and wisdom.

Nana was born Lucy Elizabeth Martin on the 10 February 1911 at Dartford, Kent, England. Both her parents died within nine months of each other in 1931 and 1932 when she was only twenty years of age.

Following the death of her parents Lucy went to live with her paternal aunt Kitty McGrath and her husband Harry. Lucys cousin Dorrie was courting Arthur Bidwell and Lucy was introduced to Arthurs brother George Bidwell. They were married at the Holy Trinity Parish Church in Dartford on 14 September 1935 when my Nan was twenty-four years old.

Their first child, my mum Ann Margaret Bidwell, was born on 9 December 1936 and her brother David George was born on 30 May 1939. Mums baby sister, Lucie Joy Bidwell, was born on 3 February 1945eight months before the end of the war.