Today I had the opportunity to speak with a resident who is originally from Belgium. She came down seeking information about her account and one thing led to another and she started telling me about when she was a young woman during WWII.
I sat fascinated as she recounted story after interesting story. I will try and share just a little bit of what I learned.
When she was about 16, her father who was a officer in the Belgium military was taken captive by German soliders. He was taken to a camp near the Germany and Poland borders, she couldn't remember the name. The prisoners soon realized that they wouldn't be leaving alive and decided to designate one person they would try and save to tell their families what happened. The prisoners gave food and clothing to this officer and ultimately gave their lives and when the British and American soliders arrived, he was the only one to walk out of the gates alive. He came and spoke of the terrors of the camp, of having to place the bodies in the furnace. Her father died in that camp... The man who survived, lived two months after being freed.
She was living with her mother in an apartment building on the third floor. There was an elderly German woman who lived beneath them and eventually a German officer moved in with her. She told me that when they were in the elevator, she would turn her back to him and never spoke to him. It was out of fear and hatred!
When she was 18, she received a summons/order to report to the German Camp. She called upon a friend of her father's whom she trusted and shared the order. She told him how she never worked a day in her life and couldn't understand why they would want her! She said that this friend looked at her and with sad eyes explained that she was blonde and blue eyed and just what the Germans where looking for to reproduce the perfect German. This friend then told her that she should report, via letter, that she is working for him and actually start "working" for him immediately. She was to report to his office every day in case they investigated this claim.
She told me that he eventually helped three additional girls and about seven young men. She said that some of the men disappeared and they were too scared to even ask questions. She said that one of the girls came from a farm and every week she brought fresh eggs and a slice of bread per person for them to share. She stated that the food she shared was rare and precious! She spoke of a little mouse that would come around at least twice a week and became a friend of this group... when the time arrived that they were able to leave, she was sad she couldn't take her mouse friend with her.
She eventually married an American Officer and became a US Citizen. Her sister, the only living person left in her family, disowned her when she became a citizen. She doesn't know if she is still alive or if she has passed.
After spending quite some time sharing this with me she said, "Always find the laughter in life, it's what will help you survive all the misery and pain!" She wanted to make sure that I understood that even through the war she made sure that she laughed and laughed often. Otherwise, the sadness can swallow you whole.
It was only a short while that she was in my office, but what she said had an impact on me. I work in an environment that is rich with history of the world! I hope that as I continue to work there, more stories will be told and I will still take the time to listen.
The Bridge Over San Luis Rey
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