Major P.C. Benham,

G Branch

HQ 1 Corps District

BAOR

Friday 4 Jan 46

10.15 pm.

My own most precious darling,

One whole working day has been and come and gone and has left me flatter than any pancake – I just could not take any sort of interest though towards the evening I was beginning to pick up the threads and I’ve no doubt that before long I shall get back into the swing of things.  I need hardly say that my one and only interest today has been centred on the question of demob and the latest gen, but during my absence very little has come in that I didn’t know before, but on my own very secret ‘net’ I have heard things which make it quite clear that my date of the 20^th was a fairly pessimistic one and all being well I should be out within the first fortnight in March but you know what these things are and I think we should be unwise to bank on it – one encouraging thing is that I gather my replacement has been asked for on the grounds that ‘training’ will go on forever and someone, a regular, who is staying on must be trained in air matters, I am definitely NOT going on the Air Support Course!!  Otherwise nothing much has happened so far as I can make out.  I didn’t hurry up to the office this am and arrived there at about 9.45!  it’s been a bitterly cold day and I’m not sorry to be back in my own room which is beautifully warm, but this evening, much against my will, I was dragged along to a farewell party though I didn’t stay very long, slipping off early on the pretence that my long journey had completely exhausted me, and I must be early to bed!

There are a couple of things which I would be most grateful if you could do for me, the first is to let Nora King know, only if you see her, that the letters she gave me will be on their way to Hamburg tomorrow, a friend of mine is taking them up, the second is to tell Eric Brough that the 2 books I am anxious to get are WILSHERE’S COMMON LAW and RIVINGTON’S LAW OF PROPERTY – if you could let him know I would be most grateful, I ought to write to him but have a whole host of letters to write these next few days, several of my ex – 1 Corps pals wrote to me at Christmas including my old friend Charles Woodford who asked after you.

Darling I just can’t tell you how much I miss being with you at the flat but every nook, every cranny, is so engraven on my mind that I have only to close my eyes and I’m right there with you, it makes me a hundred times keener to get home, knowing what a heavenly place you have made of it.  You could never have been more wrong when you said to me one day ‘I’m afraid this isn’t what you expected when you came home’ – every second of our time I loved, never, never think I mind doing a few odd chores – I got a real kick out of the small things I did, even polishing the silver!  The things we did together which were complete heaven are far too numerous to mention but outstanding were our evenings by the old fireside, our parties in the flat and that wonderful dance at which I felt so very proud of my sweet wiz, you looked and were, so terribly sweet – if I had never seen you before I should have fallen in love with you all over again.  I’m just longing to hear from you, and know that you are being kept going as I am by the marvellous thought that in 10 weeks time, maybe less, our D day will be here, it seems almost too marvellous to be true, but there it is and roll on March.  Now dearest heart, I must leave you, I love you, darling – more, far more, than ever – thank you again for such a heavenly leave.  God bless and keep you always.  Yours and yours alone.  With all my love

                        for ever

                        Peter

In envelope headed ‘O A S’ addressed to Mrs Peter C Benham, 9 Vint Crescent Colchester Essex.

Postmarked FIELD POST OFFICE 734 dated 4 JA 46.  Signed P.C. Benham.     

On front of envelope 4 Jan.

On the back of the envelope Major P.C. Benham, G Branch, HQ 1 Corps District, BAOR