It was during WW2 that women learnt what they were made of, and when men realized they needed women more than ever before.

Vi, a young woman of 16 years, went to work in an ammunition plant. She thought if she couldn’t shoot the enemy then she could make the bullets that did.

Every week a list of soldiers names would be put up on the notice board and all the women would gather around. The list were soldiers that needed letters, parcels and above all, encouragement from home. The ladies mulled over the names, some would pick the names that sounded religious or worldly, but Vi just wiggled her finger, shut her eyes and pointed and she picked a young soldier called Sidney. She muttered he is unlikely to look like Clark Gable but she wrote to him anyway.

She wrote often as did he. She sent things from home like Backwell tarts which were never intact when he got them and they became firm friends.

Finally a letter arrived letting her know Sidney was coming home on leave and he wanted to meet her at a popular attraction in the city. She wandered around and thought he had not shown up or worse still had seen her and ran. She hadn’t told him in her description of herself that she had short hair unlike many girls her age and wore glasses.

All the soldiers looked the same except one that she thought couldn’t possibly be him - he looked like the Hollywood film star Clark Gable. Sure enough it was Sidney and he saw Vi and fell head over heels in love!

They dated all of the 3 weeks of his leave and in the end he proposed. Vi said I will marry you the minute you return from the war which they did. They had 2 sons and lived happily ever after until Sidney died after 48 years of marriage and Vi missed him every day until she died some 18 years later.

Vi used to say wiggle your finger and point to make a decision and you may get Clark Gable just like she did!

Eileen Steel