Memories from German School Children
March 17, 2008 – 6:00 amRecently, friends brought me a newspaper from Sarasota, Florida, which contained information on a recently published book, Kaleidoscope: German School Girls During World War II, Memories and Emotions, by Marianne Herdani-Lombard.
While attending a reunion of her 1949 graduating class at Ceiliens-shule in Dussesldorf-Oberkassel, the author interviewed twelve of the surviving women. She had often wondered if her classmates had been troubled by the same memories that haunted her. Indeed they had.
They recalled how it felt to awake in the morning realizing they were still alive after a night of bombing. They often wondered if they would see their friends in the morning; if they would have enough to eat; if they would have clothes to wear.
The author tells of being bombed night after night and the great damage done to their town. Finally, in 1944, school stopped because there were no buildings left, although some students found a teacher who taught them privately.
Other memories include the propaganda of grade school Hitler Youth camps, growing disillusion during the war, and the terrible tragedy of Nazi policies against the Jewish citizens, many of them their friends.
These stories reminded me of the final four stories in my book, We Knew We Were at War: Women Remember World War II, in which I record the memories of two women from England, one from Germany, and one from Poland.
These women endured much of the same deprivations. London was bombed night after night and these women also wondered if they would be alive in the morning. Large portions of the city were bombed out, homes they once lived in were flattened, and going to school (when there was school) was a major project. My German friend also recalls night after night of bombing when neighbors were not as lucky as she was. Again, buildings, including churches, were demolished. Obtaining food and fuel was a major problem. And the family from Poland suffered almost unbearable hardships. Another day I will attempt to do justice to that story.
To read more about World War II, go to www.peggeorge.com
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