We've had an unusually busy few months with some lovely weekends away. By far the most memorable was the one we spent in Guernsey at the beginning of October. Earlier this year we joined The Charybdis Association which is to do with the ship..HMS Charybdis on which my husband's uncle was lost in 1943 during WW2. It was torpedoed off the coast of France together with HMS Limbourne and a total of 500 were lost. The bodies of 21 Royal Navy and Royal Marines were washed up on German occupied Guernsey others in Jersey and France. The Germans carried out a funeral service with full military honours, the Islanders seized on this occasion to show their loyalty to Britain and respect for those who had died. Five thousand islanders attended in silent defiance and 900 wreaths were laid over the area, it was the first opportunity for mass solidarity and made a huge impression on the Islanders which is still remembered today.
Every October the Association is made very welcome by the people of Guernsey when Charybdis weekend is celebrated. The weekend started with a formal dinner which was attended by The First Sea Lord, other Naval Officers and Guernsey dignitaries and carried on a pace with receptions, coffee mornings and lunches, church service, march and wreath laying at the cemetery and a final concert by the Royal Marines. It was all very emotional and probably one of the most moving things was witnessing the laying of a wreath at sea by the eight survivors of the sinking.
These guys, all now in their late eighties, had amazing stories to tell and enjoyed having us newbies there who hadn't heard them before! One of them had been a signalman who worked alongside our uncle who was also a signalman, talking with him really brought alive the memory of an uncle who died before we were born.
Here is the most important part of my holiday packing!
We are off on Tuesday next week for a three week cruise, first week in the Med then five sea days and a week in the Caribbean. We've been on several cruises but never such a long one and feel rather concerned about leaving our elderly mums for so long.
I hope I've got enough knitting and reading..the socks were supposed to be for my husband as he chose the yarn but somehow they just aren't big enough for him, so youngest daughter Lucy who's feet are bigger than mine is delighted to be next in line. The scrummy pink Merino is for a bolero each for our two granddaughters Abi and Ellie..cousins who love to dress alike. I'm looking forward to reading Kate Morton and Debbie Macomber is a firm favourite
