I was really touched to find a photograph online of my paternal grandfather at the Australian War Memorial website. He died in June 1963 and sadly I only met him once and in secret, for fear my grandmother would find out. She was extremely vindictive and unforgiving. I was denied having further face to face contact with him and he sadly died alone in a Ascot Vale boarding house. He evidently was a brave and gallant soldier and was decorated with the M.M. and the French Croix de Guerre, besides being mentioned in dispatches.
He was totally different to the lurid description of my grandmother and I am finding out more about her background from her family, which I have also found online. Because of the marriage breakdown, which happened before I was born, there were scant details about my paternal grandfather's family. The internet is peeling all that away and I do hope to one day meet the family, that even my father was unable to do. I am very sad that he is no longer with me to share this momentous discovery. Fortunately they did meet in secret when Dad went to Melbourne on business and was slowly able to repair the breech yet Time and Fate intervened.
Robin
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