Shelter

A Memory of Deal.

How could I forget these shelters (there were two of them)? We moved to North Deal in 1954 when I was 10. The shelter at the top of Farrier Street was nearest to me - a place to stand in a storm, I practised hitting hockey balls against the concrete steps, my beloved Granny used to sit on one side and watch the sea, our tenant, in Indian Army officer (retired and without much money) used to sit in the shelter too, very lonely I think, remembering better times. They were the refuge of lovers at night, of fishermen at dawn, of mothers with prams and toddlers on hot summer days. Last time I was in Deal (2007) 'my' shelter was pretty well derelict, the glass all gone, the walls defaced with graffiti. My son couldn't understand why I would stand in such a place staring at the sea, tears in my eyes; or why, without a word, I jumped from the sea wall onto the shingle and went down to the waves. It's what I always did.