He began his letter to his mother on Boxing Day, noting sadly that she could see by the date that Christmas was now all over. He had given Pips a full description of it, so felt there was no need to repeat it. But he did think to tell her  how much he had appreciated the pudding she had sent – in fact, it had ‘saved the situation, because no one else got any puddings, and none were issued in rations’. He had also enjoyed a ‘very jolly time’ with the RE officers – ‘they are such a nice set of men I wish I could get with them. I wrote a note to their Adjutant asking how my transfer was going through, but I have not heard anything as yet’.

The New Year would soon be upon them he wrote, and he had now spent nearly three months in France. The time had gone very quickly, but he feared that there was little chance of him getting leave soon, unless the battalion were to go into rest , in which case others ahead of him might get their chance. For his part, he was longing for leave to come:

‘…I am longing for those 8 days freedom to wander about with you all at home just like I spent my leave pending gazette – it will be a glorious time [to] which I shall look forward every day I am out here. I imagine how lovely every sensation must be on the journey home, getting into the train over here – the feeling, which must be of intense happiness, as the train goes off on the homeward journey – the voyage across and then the voyage to London and the great day when I meet you at Charing Cross or somewhere – it is almost too good to think about…’

Although he ended the portion of the letter written on Boxing Day with these reveries of returning home, a postscript added the next morning was much less happy, bearing the news that he had feared for several weeks:

‘I must stop abruptly now, dear, as this morning I have just got a letter from our battalion telling me I am being relieved this morning. So, goodbye dear until I have the opportunity of writing again.’

[Next letter: 28 December]