When The Pond Froze Over

I was living at Bishopstoke and working as a lad at Cunliff Owen Aircraft during that cold war time winter when a friend that lived in Fair Oak told me that Fishers pond was frozen over and people were skating on it.  I managed to borrow a pair of boots with skates on and with my sister and a few mates from work we made our way to the pond one Saturday afternoon.
The sight was spectacular when we got there.  No snow, just a giant sheet of ice covering the pond completely from the inn into the misty distance.  I can remember about thirty brave soles were out there on skates taking advantage of the freak weather and having such fun in those drab winter war time days.  My friends and I soon joined them laughing and screaming as we slipped, slid and fell onto the ice. It was my first time but some of my friends could already skate for they did so at the rink in Southampton before the war.  Nobody came from the inn to ask us to pay as they would nowadays and no health and safety to stop the fun.  They did offer chairs to be taken onto the ice so that by holding the chair backs you could skate along with more confidence.
It was then we heard what sounded like a clap of thunder as the ice split from end to end sending everyone racing for the shore.  Nothing else seemed to happen so after a short while we ventured back onto the ice to continue our sport.  You just had to remember to lift your skate as you went over the crack.
It was a day I shall always remember for during that winter that was so cold I went to Fishers pond many times hoping to skate again but it was always covered in snow.  I had to wait several years before I had the chance to put my skates on again and that was at the new skating rink at Southampton built after the war and the ice there was a lot smoother than that on Fishers Pond.