Eating humble pie after my silly joke

WHeN I was 15, it was 1944 and I was working on houses that had been bombed by the Germans. Our job was to clear the rubble, put tarpaper where the windows used to be and make the roof rainproof so families could get back into their homes. One day I went into a cafe for a quick cup of tea. An old boy came in for a tuppenny meat pie. ‘Could you put gravy over it, please?’ he asked. ‘We ain’t got no gravy,’ replied the girl behind the counter. ‘I have trouble eating the thick pastry,’ the man explained. ‘Could you put hot water on it, please?’ ‘We ain’t got no hot water,’ said the girl. ‘Well, could you put cold water on it, then?’ ‘Do you want the damn pie or not?’ asked the girl. He took the dry pie to a nearby table. Suddenly, we heard the sound of a Doodlebug overhead. The engine stopped and we all dived for cover. There was a terrific explosion, all the windows were blown in and the ceiling came down. I climbed out from under a table and saw the old man brushing the rubble off his table to get to his pie. I pointed to it and said ‘Well, you’ve got it softened up now’ and roared with laughter. He looked at me and I could see tears in his eyes. I’ve never in all my life felt so ashamed. Brian V. Reynolds,

Herne Bay, Kent.