Allan's First Day at School

My mother sometimes related an anecdote that her mother told her, about an air raid. My grandmother, Beatrice Carter was a tiny lady of four foot eleven, with dark hair, dark eyes, and tonnes of energy. She sadly passed away in 1986. My mother was the youngest of three children — she was not born at the time of this story, which relates to the younger of her two brothers: Allan.
The family lived near St John’s Wood. I’m not sure where exactly. My grandmother had refused to have her two boys evacuated, saying that she would rather the family stay together.
It was Allan’s first day at school, so it must have been 1942. The sirens sounded for an air raid. My grandmother was worried that he would be frightened: an air raid, on his very first day at school! She was so worried about him that rather than head for the air raid shelter my grandfather had built in the garden, she decided to go to Allan’s school to reassure him. She fetched her bike — one of the old fashioned upright types - and set out to cycle to the school, regardless of enemy aircraft overhead. My mother told me that this meant a frantic cycle through St John’s Wood. There were anti-aircraft positions in the woods, and the men manning them were firing up at the enemy aircraft as my grandmother raced through, perched on this big old bike. They were shouting warnings such as, “Get down Love” at my grandmother as she cycled past at top speed. My grandmother told my mother that she was oblivious to the danger. All she could think was that it was Allan’s first day at school and he would be frightened, so she ducked her head down and pedalled faster.
Apparently when she arrived at the school Allan and the other children were quite happy singing songs. Presumably in an air raid shelter! My grandmother said that, after her panicked cycle ride past gunfire and aircraft, that she “Could have hit him!” With relief, we assume!

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