”Well, true. They are horribly efficient when it comes to taking lives. But it’s not like we are short of allies either. Besides, they are led by a madman, I’m pretty sure Hitler isn’t exactly packing a lot in the attic, what with his foolish ideals and all...”Anna said, snorting at the fearmongering and looked at Laura with a reassuring gaze and an easygoing smile. ”I mean, Britain may not exactly be in its prime, but we do still have some big guns.”
"Not short of allies?" said Laura. "After France surrendered, we're fresh out of them! I mean, yes, we've got the Empire and the Commonwealth. The Canadians, Australians like yourself, New Zealanders, Indians, and South Africans all do a good job, but we haven't got enough of them here, and the rest of them are half a world away! The Americans aren't going to enter the war, not for anything. We've got the RAF, and we've got the Royal Navy, but they haven't stopped them so far. Once the Jerries come ashore, we haven't got a chance!"
Anna looked at Laura dubiously, "You do know that the better part of the war happens half a world away, right? There's no reason to focus our good allies here, defending a possible invasion. It only been one night of air raids and you think Nazis are going to kick down your door and check you family history the next morning? Ma'am, it's not like us good people haven't survived through tougher wars worse than this, and we've got ol'Churchill running around. He knows what he's doing. What's the worst that could happen, they make a bomb that could blow us all to Kingdom Come?" As she looked mockingly at the sky, and snorted insultingly. "Honestly, I think there's a lot of other thing that more worth your time than the whole blasted war thing. Like tea, for example!"
"There's never been a war worse than this one,"said Laura. "Not even the last one. The Germans came close to beating France that time, but we stopped them. This time...the absolute best we can hope for is to hold them off, and I have my doubts we can. Nobody else has managed. I like Prime Minister Churchill, and he's exactly the man we need in charge right now, but he can't work miracles, and that's what it would take to actually win."
Anna, at this point. Shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I wouldn't exactly call it 'a miracle'...I mean, the Germans had only just taken down France, and I'm sure the present War Front aren't that bad. We've bombed Berlin already and there's a lot more going on at the War Front that gives us hope. We may be in for the long haul,
but we'll pull through. I'm sure of it."Anna said, with optimistic determination as she tried to bring some optimism into Laura's worldview. After all, she wouldn't be much of a doctor if she can't alleviate the sufferings of her patients now, would she?
"The first step towards despair is always doubt, Laura, have trust in our armies. They can't all be a bunch of teenagers who doesn't know the right way to hold a rifle."Anna joked.
"Do you mind to sparing a minute to listen to me ramble for a bit? I kind of want to share with you a few things from my childhood. You see, when I was young, I lived with together with my family in Australia: Me, my brother Tobias, and my parents. Well, I haven't seen my brother for a very, very, very long time. He abandoned us down in Australia for America, the land of freedom and opportunities, they said."Anna said, making an attempt to try and get Laura less depressed about the war and to temporarily distract her with an anecdote. "My estranged elder brother's got a few things going for him, I suppose, he's athletic, smart, and independent. My parents had always focused more time and attention on me than my elder brother. One of the flaws he had was the bitterness that he always held inside his heart, he always seemed to distrust those around him and expect the worst of everything. He never believed in God, and he was an extremely petty person. He's the kind guy who firmly believed in dishing out revenge excessively. I never really knew why he was like that; but that's the way he was." She sighed deeply, she's not exactly good at telling stories. Especially personal ones.
"One day, he left. He just...left. No notes; no warning. He took his clothes, basic supplies, some money, and his admission paper to some university or another." Tears glistened in Anna's eyes, but she smiled at Laura, "I didn't really know what had happened to him afterwards, but after that, I swore that I would never abandon a person who needs help, and to always look on the bright side. He had always been withdrawn and, now that I think of it, silently screaming for help. At first, I had hated him; he hadn't stopped to consider how his actions will affect his family members and only cared about himself, how could I not? But now, I guess I kind of sympathise with him a little bit, if only a little."Anna stared at Laura deep in her eyes. "Laura, you may think that everything is hopeless, but it's really not. There's always situations worse and more personal than hearing about a war happening hundreds of kilometres away. Sure, they bombed us once, but we are going to get through this mess, and we are to do that with our sanity in one piece. Hey Laura, I want to help you, but I can only do that if you are willing to accept it. Do you want to accept my help?"
"I'll join you, I think the reverent said he would focus on the Old Testament. Perhaps some spiritual solace is what we need now most...", Benjamin adds.
"Thank you, Anna," said Laura, hugging her. "You're welcome to try to help me, but I don't know how much good it will do. I can sympathise a bit with your brother too. After what the Jerries did, I'd sure like to bomb them right back! See how Berlin likes it!"
"It's a bit early for me to start services," Giles rasped when Eugene and Benjamin approached him, "but I can begin if you'd like. See if the ladies would like to join us."
OOC,I'm sorry for waiting so long, but I didn't have time to update the game last week, and my health took a sudden turn for the worse this weekend, though I'm starting to recover partially.
Laura accompanied Anna to the pews, where they joined the men. Giles Curry stepped behind the pulpit and cleared his throat before speaking. "We have all been through a terrible ordeal," he began. "It may feel like we are going through hell. But as Mr. Churchill says, when you are going through hell, keep going. There has been massive bombing, the likes of which London has never seen before. People have been killed, have been injured, have lost their homes. All of us in this room have by the grace of God survived, and it is up to us to continue to do our bit, whatever it may be. God has placed us here in this place and time for a reason. It may be disheartening to see so much death and destruction visited upon this city, but we can still be of good spirits. God has not taken us yet because He is not done with us. He still has work for us to do."
Anna grabbed a daily prayers from off the shelves and quickly chose a prayer appropriate for this situation before clasping it in her hands as she prayed silently.