Letter: Remember there is more that unites us than divides us

Over the last two days I have been watching the services that have taken place for the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. Some of the moments have been very touching when the forces are remembering what it was like when they landed in France. Last night I said to my husband I wonder where my dad was on D-Day.

My dad enlisted in the navy, he was in a protected industry, that being Newton Chambers at Thorncliffe. His name was Ronald Foster and he was Chief Petty Officer Articifer on HMS Rodney.

As a child he used to tell us about his navy days and it is only now I realised that he only told us the funny stories and never any of the atrocities that he witnessed. For my generation, i.e. kids born late 40s, 50s and early 60s we probably knew less of the war than kids nowadays, my theory being we were born too soon after the war and the older generation didn’t want to talk about it.

After making that statement to my husband I googled HMS Rodney to see where it was when the landings took place and there was small bits of information about it but the main thing was, it did take part in the landings. I would love to know if my dad was part of the crew when this took place. My dad wouldn’t have been engaged in combat he would have been in the engine room keeping the ship going.

I think the thing that surprised me most was the fact that in two months I will be 65 and this thought has only just occurred to me.

I believe in the innocence of childhood, that’s how it should be, but as I have got older I just wish I knew more about things that happened “in the olden days”. It pays us all to listen to what these veterans are saying because their numbers are dwindling and soon there will be no one left to listen to and the memories will be gone.

I hope that our politicians and the people of the wider world are taking stock of the stories that are being told to make sure that this never happens again. Remember there is more that unites us than divides us

Thank you to all the people who lived through this battle and remember those that died or were badly injured, so that we can live the life we have now.