Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents
Title
Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents
Description
Catches up on mail received and notes they are still not getting his letters to them. Enquires whether they received his last prepaid reply cable sent two weeks previously. Hopes they have adopted his suggestion of buying a new radio as present to them from him. Catches up with family/friends news and gossip. Says that he is constantly thinking of them. Writes he is looking forward to next Red Cross parcel and asks if they could send him a small airmail parcel of tea and soap.
Creator
Date
1941-12-09
Temporal Coverage
Language
Format
Two page handwritten letter
Publisher
Rights
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
Identifier
EHudsonJDHudsonP-HE411209
Transcription
Royal Air Force. 755052. Sgt. J. D. Hudson.
c/o. Consul Général des Etats Unis.
Rue Michelet.
Alger. Algéria.
Afrique du Nord.
9-12-41.
My Dear Mother & Dad,
I was very glad indeed to receive two letters from you to-day, dated Nov. 5th & 9th and also the book-mark calendar. Tony also received his and we are both very glad to have them together with the wishes. Tony is dropping a note to you. The only regret is that you are not receiving our letters. In my case I have been writing to you always twice weekly. I am wondering if you received my last pre-paid reply telegram sent about two weeks ago. I have not received a cable from you since & the usual fortnight is up. In this last cable of mine I asked you to buy a new radio-gram and accept it as a present from me for Christmas & Mother’s birthday and I am hoping most sincerely that you have adopted this suggestion, because I realise the value of a wireless to you during these days of loneliness & separation. I am sure that my credit is sufficiently good to stand the strain. I am glad to hear that Dad’s cold was getting better on Nov. 5th, but sorry to learn that Mother had the symptoms of one coming on. I hope that now you will be both well. I also hope that you will have success with the bulbs & strawberries you set in the garden. Yes I knew about Yates’s & the surroundings. I am wondering if you ever paid your week-end visit to Claytons. I cannot quite understand why John’s ambition has not been attained, & think that quite possibly it is on account of the lack of financial backing. Anyway, he does not have as much reason to feel fed up as I have. He has not arrived at the stage where
[page break]
clever, skilled grown men are exchanging with each other a few English cigarettes for 2 ozs of tea, or a loaf of bread for a tin of sardines etc. according to taste. Men who have had terrific responsibilities now arguing over a 1/4 lb of tinned butter. Which of us is really seeing life, I wonder? Well Mother you made some very beautiful [indecipherable word] in the first page of your letter of Nov. 9th, with reference to me, the anniversary of Nov 11th, & the letters you have received from me. So many times I am thankful for your sakes that things happened as they did, and as you say there is always that hope left; and chance to still look forward to the day when we shall be together again. That has not been denied us, it is true, & so perhaps we should be thankful & consider ourselves among the more fortunate ones. All the time I am here my mind is active and I never fail to think of, and about you both at home. There are pages and pages unwritten that I feel & I know you do as well. I just hope that my letters may continue to preserve the link between us, and let you know that I am well & safe and always thinking about you. The rest can wait until we are together again. Sometimes, when I write these letters I feel like a child trying to set down thoughts & impressions. My allowed scope is so limited. We are looking forward to the next Red Cross parcels which I believe are nearing their destination. Could you send me a little tea & soap by Air Mail? It has been done; has arrived in less than 3 weeks. I should very much appreciate it, if you can spare the tea. Well now I must say good-bye again for two or three days. All my wishes will be with you at Christmas, New Year, & on Mother’s birthday. As ever, all my love & thoughts.
Douglas.
c/o. Consul Général des Etats Unis.
Rue Michelet.
Alger. Algéria.
Afrique du Nord.
9-12-41.
My Dear Mother & Dad,
I was very glad indeed to receive two letters from you to-day, dated Nov. 5th & 9th and also the book-mark calendar. Tony also received his and we are both very glad to have them together with the wishes. Tony is dropping a note to you. The only regret is that you are not receiving our letters. In my case I have been writing to you always twice weekly. I am wondering if you received my last pre-paid reply telegram sent about two weeks ago. I have not received a cable from you since & the usual fortnight is up. In this last cable of mine I asked you to buy a new radio-gram and accept it as a present from me for Christmas & Mother’s birthday and I am hoping most sincerely that you have adopted this suggestion, because I realise the value of a wireless to you during these days of loneliness & separation. I am sure that my credit is sufficiently good to stand the strain. I am glad to hear that Dad’s cold was getting better on Nov. 5th, but sorry to learn that Mother had the symptoms of one coming on. I hope that now you will be both well. I also hope that you will have success with the bulbs & strawberries you set in the garden. Yes I knew about Yates’s & the surroundings. I am wondering if you ever paid your week-end visit to Claytons. I cannot quite understand why John’s ambition has not been attained, & think that quite possibly it is on account of the lack of financial backing. Anyway, he does not have as much reason to feel fed up as I have. He has not arrived at the stage where
[page break]
clever, skilled grown men are exchanging with each other a few English cigarettes for 2 ozs of tea, or a loaf of bread for a tin of sardines etc. according to taste. Men who have had terrific responsibilities now arguing over a 1/4 lb of tinned butter. Which of us is really seeing life, I wonder? Well Mother you made some very beautiful [indecipherable word] in the first page of your letter of Nov. 9th, with reference to me, the anniversary of Nov 11th, & the letters you have received from me. So many times I am thankful for your sakes that things happened as they did, and as you say there is always that hope left; and chance to still look forward to the day when we shall be together again. That has not been denied us, it is true, & so perhaps we should be thankful & consider ourselves among the more fortunate ones. All the time I am here my mind is active and I never fail to think of, and about you both at home. There are pages and pages unwritten that I feel & I know you do as well. I just hope that my letters may continue to preserve the link between us, and let you know that I am well & safe and always thinking about you. The rest can wait until we are together again. Sometimes, when I write these letters I feel like a child trying to set down thoughts & impressions. My allowed scope is so limited. We are looking forward to the next Red Cross parcels which I believe are nearing their destination. Could you send me a little tea & soap by Air Mail? It has been done; has arrived in less than 3 weeks. I should very much appreciate it, if you can spare the tea. Well now I must say good-bye again for two or three days. All my wishes will be with you at Christmas, New Year, & on Mother’s birthday. As ever, all my love & thoughts.
Douglas.
Collection
Citation
James Douglas Hudson, “Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed April 26, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/22575.
Item Relations
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