Our Father's Generation

by F. M. Worden

  At the house, we sat in a porch swing to enjoy the cool evening air. She began to try to kiss me. I did my best to turn her off. Finally, I gave in a little and gave her a good kiss on the lips. Shouldn’t have done that. She was a heck of a good kisser. Thank goodness her Uncle came out and insisted we come in and listen to the Fuhrer making a radio speech.

  Hitler was saying how good it was to have all his friends and old army buddies coming to the rally. He went on and on for two hours. Boring, boring. The three of them hung on his every word. I was ready to blow my stack and throw up. I was glad when he finished and everyone wanted to go to bed.

  Up in my room, I took a long hot soaking bath. Hitler’s words rung in my head. I thought how anyone could fall for his bulls–t. I put on my pj’s and slipped into bed. Before I could turn off the light, Helga came thru the door, wearing the sheerest night-gown I had ever seen. I could see all she had and then some. God, she was a well built woman. I told her in my harshest words she should get the heck out of my room. “I promised your mother, don’t make me break it.” She paid no mind at all. The gown dropped to the floor. She slipped right into my bed stark naked. What a deal! It took all I had to resist. It was a hard time, if you know what I mean.

  I asked, “What if your Uncle and Aunt found you in my bed?”

  “They sleep downstairs and I don’t care what they think.” She sounded positive, so I jumped up, went into the bathroom and locked the door. I filled the tub with cold water and sat there for what seemed like hours, I will never know how long I sat there. It was the hardest time I had ever had, turning down this beautiful girl. It was a real challenge. When I peeked into the room, she was gone. Thank the Lord; I locked the door, fell into bed and fell asleep after awhile.

  I didn’t hear a thing until she was knocking on my room, calling for me to come to breakfast. “Hurry,” she called, “We will miss our train to Nuremberg.” I could care less, but I did get dressed, went down and had a great meal. The four of us caught the train to the rally.

  You should have been there. I never saw so many uniformed people, young and old alike. There were half a dozen bands playing as loud as they could. They played the Nazi marching song over and over. I thought I would lose my hearing. Flags were everywhere. All had a big black swastika in a white circle on a red background. There were Iron crosses on long poles carried by the Hitler youth, so Helga said.

  This whole horde of people was marching around what seemed like hours. They sang the Horst Wessel marching song too loud, I thought I would go deaf, and then things got really bad, the speeches started. There were six speakers; Heir Hitler came to the podium. The whole place jumped up, gave the Nazi salute and yelled “Heil Hitler” over and over again. Finally, he made them stop, I was dumbfounded at this display.

  The man talked for hours. When he wasn’t talking, he was yelling. He yelled and screamed like he did at the Dreesen Hotel, like he did when I met him before. He kept telling how much he loved the Fatherland and the German people. How he would never let them down and would always take care of them. By the time he finished, I was sick, sick of the whole thing. Wishing I had never come. The people went crazy when he finished. How they carried on, I could not believe.

  We four walked back downtown and went to a café Uncle Ludwig said served good meals. Indeed it did, we had a most delicious sauerkraut and franks supper. It did take some time to get served as the place was a little overcrowded

  After supper, we returned to the rally to see a night time exposition. I never had seen anything like it. All these people came marching in carrying flags, banners and torches. The marchers pranced around for over an hour. Again, there were more speeches. I want-a tell ya, I had had it by the time it was over.

  It was well after midnight by the time we got back to Uncle Ludwig’s house. I was dead tired, so were the rest of my companions. We all said good night and off to bed. Helga stopped me and said in a sweet voice, “I’m not too tired to see you later.” Holy Cow, didn’t she ever give up.

  “No,” I said, “I’m going to bed.” I locked my door, took a hot bath and hit the hay. I slept until Uncle Ludwig woke me calling me to breakfast.

  At breakfast, Helga said nothing to me. She did say in a sharp voice, “Let’s go home.” On the train, she didn’t talk at all, at least not to me. At the station, she rushed off and called her mother to come for us. On the way home, Helga said nothing to me or her mother. I tried to make some conversation to no avail. Helga said nothing to me or her mother. At the house she jumped out of the car and into the back porch slamming the door as she went.

  Bette knew Helga and I were not speaking. “What happened between you two?” she asked.

  “Nothing, absolutely nothing,” I replied.

  “Ha!” she said. “Helga tried something and you turned her down. Isn’t that right, Frank?”

  I told her, “All I wanted was to be friends with her.”

  Bette was one smart woman. She told me Helga would come around and we would be friends again.

  That did not happen; Helga would not even talk or look at me. She kept bringing men home to introduce to her folks. One was an SS man. She told her folks she was going to live with him. Her Mother and Father took her news very sadly. Helga moved in with him in an apartment uptown.

  Summer came. I looked for a job for the summer while school was out. I found one at Mrs. Dreesen’s hotel. She put me to work as a bellboy. I got to really like doing the job. Everybody said I was good at doing bellboy work.

  I had worked there about a month when I got a letter directing me to come to Gestapo headquarters the following Monday. Wow! I wondered what the heck this was all about. I went on my bike to see Rose’s father to see if he could shed some light on the situation. He had no idea. “Frank,” he said, “Come see me just before you go over there. I’ll try to find out what they’re up to. I want to see how long they keep you.” What a good friend he was to worry about me.

  “I guess they will ask a lot of questions about the people you have come in contact with while living here. If they ask about me, tell them all you know. I have nothing to hide.” I was really puzzled by his remarks.

  I told him, “All the people I know are good Germans. Most of the Jews I know are leaving or are already gone.”

  “They may be looking to see how your friends feel about the Nazi party and what they have told you.” I just stood there shaking my head. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. “If anyone has confided to you, try not to mention it to them.” I said I would keep a closed mouth.

  I thanked him and rode my bike on home. I want-a tell ya, the next few days I had bad feelings of things to come. Doctor Wolfe and all the family gave me a cool time the next few days. I had told them all where I had to go. I guess they were worried I might say bad things about them. Heck, I would never do that. I hoped all would go well for me and my friends.

  At Gestapo Headquarters, the whole thing did not amount to much. A big burley guy in a black uniform asked a lot of questions about my being in Germany. He said in a rather nasty tone, “We don’t want you Americans here. Why don’t you go home?”

  I said nothing in return. He told me in no uncertain words to get out of his office. I obliged.

  At the hotel, Mrs. Dreesen told me to get my money out of the bank and close my account. She also told me to write my Uncle not to send any more money. I took her advice.

  At home, I found the Doctor and Bette in a sad situation; both their sons were taken to a Nazi youth camp. Doctor Wolfe said very sadly, “I have lost all my children.”

  I’ve never felt so bad in my life for anyone before. It got a heck of a lot worse for me, more than I could ever imagine.

  Chapter 10

  Escape from Germany

  As the train chugged along, I could tell we were moving in a northerly direction. The sun was coming in on my right shoulder. All the men were having a high old time. All the occupants were singing, laughing and acting as if they were
bound for a party. I kept asking myself how in the world I had gotten into this mess. My dad’s words drifted back saying, “Frank, you don’t want to get caught in a war over there.” Here I was, drafted into the German army. I didn’t want to be in any army, especially not the Germany army.

  By my pocket watch, we stopped at ten a.m. and got off the train. We were made to stand in two columns facing a very stern looking Sergeant. He told us we were going to a basic training camp and would be sworn to the allegiance of the Fuhrer and the Third Reich. “You will swear to die for the Fatherland and the Fuhrer, if necessary.” I sure didn’t like the sound of that. The men all started “Seig, Heiling” and “Heil Hitler, Heil Hilter.” This went on for several minutes until the Sergeant made them stop.

  He left-faced us and we started marching on a dirt road leading off to the east thru a forest of large trees. I asked the boy beside me if he knew where we where? “We’re near the Danube River, I think. My father took me hunting in this forest when I was a small boy.” A soldier passing told us to shut up and quit talking. Singing broke out again.

  We marched in step for over an hour, then entered a camp of long low buildings. We stopped in front of one. A road went between this building and the one across the way. It looked to me to be about thirty feet between the buildings. All the structures looked new and built like tar paper shacks. We were told to break, go inside and get ourselves a sleeping cot. I found one in kind of an isolated area. It was off behind a tall green screen. It suited me just fine. We got to rest about an hour, then were told to form up outside to go to noon meal.

  Outside, a long line of young girls was lined up and moving toward the food counters across the way. I was in the very rear and I spied an attractive blond in the rear of the girl line. I finally caught her eye and gave her a big smile. She turned away. When she looked back, she looked very sad in the face but it was a lovely, beautiful face.

  While filling my plate, I asked the man serving, “Who are these girls and what are they doing here?”

  “You don’t know?”

  “No,” I replied.

  “They’re your entertainment as long as you’re here.”

  “What do you mean entertainment?” I couldn’t understand what he meant.

  “You dumb duck; they are here to make babies for the Fuhrer. You boys are to be the fathers. Go find one you like; she’ll be yours until you leave.”

  “Holy Cow,” I said to myself, “What kind of deal is this?”

  I got my food and returned to where everyone had sat down and started eating. I saw the girl who had caught my eye and moved across the road and sat beside her. This was a very attractive young woman. Her shiny blond hair was in two braids wrapped around her head. Her light blue eyes fairly sparkled and when she smiled she had deep dimples in her rosy checks. She looked at me, then turned her head away. When she looked back at me, sadness filled her face.

  I poked her with my elbow and asked how she was. She didn’t look at me, but I heard her say she didn’t belong here. I told her, “I don’t belong here either and I don’t know how in the hell I got in this mess.” She brightened right up and said she was Swedish and had come to Germany for the summer and got put in this baby factory. I told her I was an American and all I wanted was out of here.

  She leaned over, put her face next to mine and said, “I know how we can leave, if you will help me.”

  I was all ears. “How?” I asked.

  “Meet me behind this building in ten minutes and I’ll show you.”

  “Lady,” I said, “I’ll be there.” I hurried to the barracks and got my jacket. I returned to where she had sat and finished my meal. I slowly inched my way around the building. There she was waiting. I asked what the deal was?

  “We go right out into the forest, I know where we’re at, follow me.” She took off into the forest, I followed. The trees were fairly thick with a lot of heavy bushes. We were about a hundred yards out when she stopped and told me to lay down beside her. I did as she asked. “A patrol is coming. If they see us, I’ll tell you what to do.”

  She rolled over on her back and said, “Get on top of me quick, I think they can see us.” I did as she asked. “They have stopped, they can see us. Pretend we’re doing it. They know what we’re here for. They won’t interfere with us.”

  I asked, “Can they see us?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Keep doing it, they’re pointing at us and laughing.” We kept the same position for a few minutes longer. She said, “They’re moving on, get off me and let’s go.” She took off in a stooped over long run, I followed.

  In thirty minutes, I was winded and had to stop. She came back and told me to rest a while. I sat down and watched as she disappeared into the forest. Soon she came back and told me she knew exactly where we were. What a relief. “The Germans are building the Autobahn road a few hundred yards ahead.” I could hear equipment working if I listened intently. “We must not be seen,” she said.

  We moved to where we could observe the workmen and lay hidden until they quit for the day. As we lay there, she told me in a whisper about her life. She was so pretty I had a hard time controlling myself, if you know what I mean. The day drug on and around four p.m. the workers started leaving; by five p.m. all of them were gone.

  We emerged from our hiding place and crossed the road into the forest on the other side. We moved south for perhaps an hour, all the time staying alert for vehicles coming down the road. We would hide when one came our way. Finally, we could see a village off to the left. My companion said this was the place we were looking for.

  “We’ll wait for darkness, then I’ll go look for my friends.” We found a good spot to observe the goings on in the village. We sat for over an hour. In this time, I found out her name was Inga Swanson. She said she was from Stockholm, Sweden. She was as bright a person as I had ever met. The friends she had in the village had come to Germany to work on the Autobahn road project. The man was a heavy truck driver and his wife had come with him to Germany. Inga had spent some of the summer with them.

  We waited for total darkness to set in before we moved closer to the houses. We found a spot where I could wait while she looked for her friends. She left and was gone for several hours. When she returned, she told me to stay put as there were soldiers in the village looking for men who had left the army camp. She said twelve men had taken off.

  I asked, “Did you hear if the soldiers had any names?” She said they had all twelve names and there was no Frank among them. Boy, was that a relief. Now all I needed was papers that I could use to get out of Germany. It was well after midnight when she came for me.

  We went straight to her friend’s house in the construction camp. Inga introduced me to her friends. The man looked to be around thirty. A big strapping guy, blonde hair, blue eyes and he had a smile that lit up his face, a friendly kind of guy. His name was Erik. His wife Olga was a tall dark haired beauty. She had a smile that covered her entire mouth showing her snow white teeth, a most attractive young woman. Anyone could tell right away these people were kind and friendly types.

  They spoke with Inga in the Swedish language. Inga related to me that they were ready to help her and me in any way they could. They both said that what the Germans were doing to young girls was wrong. I had Inga tell them I was an American student and was drafted into the German Army. I told Inga all I needed to do was get back to Munich. There I had people who would help me get the heck out-a Germany. Inga translated and the couple nodded their heads in agreement at my words.

  Inga told me Erik was a truck driver and went to Munich often to pick up supplies. He said it would be no problem to get me there. Boy-O-boy was I relieved to hear that.

  That night, Inga and I were bedded down in the front room on a pallet of blankets. I only took off my shirt and shoes. Inga stripped down to her underwear. Wow! Did this girl have a body, a firm, round, shapely body. As tired as I was, it was hard for me to sleep with this beautiful girl lying next to me
. Her smell and presence made my blood rise. When she rolled over, her long blonde hair fell across my face.

  A Street light sent a shaft of light thru a crack in the window curtain. The light fell across her face in a way to emphasize her dimpled cheeks and full lips. She lay there looking like a true GODDESS. I just could not contain myself. I pushed myself up on my hands and arms and as gently as I could dropped my face down and kissed her beautiful full red lips. To my surprise, she was awake and said, “Frank, you can kiss me again.” This time I took her in my arms and proceeded to kiss her hard on the lips. Boy, did she retaliate in a most wonderful way. Her kiss made my desires respond as they hadn’t in a long, long time. That was one night I didn’t mind losing sleep. This was one sensual woman. I’ll never forget that night as long as I live.

  Before it got daylight, Olga came in, woke us and told us we must go out into the forest and hide until it got dark as soldiers were coming to check out the village. She fixed us a food sack and Inga and I went out deep into the forest. We found a nice hiding place and spent the day, talking, hugging and kissing. We had a lot of fun with each other, just being ourselves. I could really fall for this girl.

  Several times we spotted soldiers poking around in the forest. Luck was with us and they never came close to where we were hiding. Inga came deeper into my arms as we watched the men. She would shake and tremble as they poked around thru the trees. “I want to go home,” she kept saying.

  Well after dark, we returned to her friend’s house. The night flew by as Inga and I again spent the night on the floor on a pallet. We had to hide in the forest once more the next day.

  After dark, we returned to the house. Erik told us he had to go to Munich the next morning for supplies, that it would be easy to take me. I asked Inga if she wanted to go with me. She said she wanted to go home. Erik said he would take her to the north coast, there he could find a boat to take her home. “You both will have a better chance going alone.” I knew he was right.