Another brilliant piece from a GUNNAS WRITING MASTERCLASS writer.
Once upon a time, in the rural hamlet of Bunyip, a young lady named Betsy fell in love. Betsy worked in the Bunyip tobacco sheds, rolling and packing cigarettes as part of the war effort in order to provide support and comfort to the brave soldiers who were fighting on the frontline to protect us all. Betsy dreamt what those soldiers looked like, their names and where they were from. She hoped her efforts offered, albeit small relief to their fears when going into battle and during the long days and nights not knowing when they would have to face the enemy.
Betsy herself had faced one or two enemies during her time in the tobacco sheds. She had dated a man named Bruce who had been declared unfit to fight in active service on account of his “deteriorating” eyesight. Bruce was tall, handsome and strong and he hated the nips and the hun in general. He talked with incessant fervour about what he would do if he was ever confronted by them. At first this talk alarmed, but very quickly started to bore Betsy. Realising what life would be like if she settled down with someone who was both so hateful in the absence of any real experience alarmed her.
After Bruce, Betsy then met a man named Bobby. Bobby was a gun shearer, but was considered too old to fight overseas. He enlisted in the home guard to protect the home front, much of which seemed to be centred on the Bunyip tobacco sheds. Bobby was the sort of man who liked to have a long sit on the toilet every morning after a coffee and one of Betsy’s hand rolled cigarettes. Betsy thought it best not to encourage Bobby so she introduced him to her friend Beryl. Beryl had confessed her great admiration for the brave men in their home guard uniforms. The Bunyip Tobacco Company hosted their wedding shortly after to Betsy’s relief and Beryl and Bobby’s great joy.
One day, while working in the tobacco shed, Betsy was thinking about the brave boys on the front line and she decided to write a message of hope and love on one of her freshly rolled cigarettes: “to whomever gets to enjoy this smoke, I hope you come home safely to your loved ones. Betsy, from Bunyip, Victoria, Australia”.
Shortly before the war ended, Betsy was at work one day when a man appeared at the door to the shed. He was a rugged little nugget of a man, with a split chin, three fingers missing, a mermaid tattoo and a slight limp in his left leg. Betsy saw him speaking to Big Barb, the cutting and rolling supervisor while she was having a fag near at the entrance to the shed and sending him in her direction. The nuggety man walked to Betsy, his blue Naval bellbottoms swaying as he limped. He stopped in front of Betsy, took out a cigarette tin and removed the cigarette with the message she had written 3 years earlier.
Their romance was short and sweet and the following year, Betsy gave birth to a beautiful baby boy that she named Bertie. Bertie was adorable in every sense. He was small, plump, happy and in every way lovable. He was the apple of Betsy’s adoring eye and the image of his fallen, but very brave father. Betsy felt like she was the most loved and loving woman in the world.
Julia Cusack (sandj123@hotmail.com)