Monday, January 23, 2012

Dusseldorf Sirens of War

http://www.hojobeck.de/img/d_hoeherweg_02a.jpg
Dusseldorf

One story my parents told me was quite scary about Germany and the war.
It had to do with bunkers.
The German soldiers were given better bunkers to hide in and
people like my parents were given regular ones which were not as good.

When the bombs fell (on I presume Dusseldorf) my grand father never rushed.
By the time he reached a bunker the bombing would already be over and every
one would give him heck.
He would stand and say: If it's meant for me,
then I will not escape it.

What he said was very true.
There was one man who was always first.
He'd run all the way down the bunker and hide under a bench.

One day the sirens began and as usual he was the first one down there.
A bomb hit the bunker, went all the way down to the bottom and landed
right in front of his face.
It didn't explode.

When people finally reached the bottom to see what happened, they found him
staring at this bomb, totally out of his mind.

Every one understood then why my Grand Father never rushed. lol

There were other people like him, tired and reaching a point where they've seen enough
burn't people with bubbles coming out of their noses.

They stood around and made wonderful friend ships, sharing what could be their last cigarette , as bombs exploded all around them.

When my family came to Canada and saw what kind of issues people were fighting over, they seemed so petty after their experience over seas.
No one ever wanted to see war , famine or death again.
They got busy with life and living.

This is why my parents taught me to be a proud Canadian.
They said you have to know history so you are not fooled into war.

But the old die, we are taking their place and the young have never experienced anything other than a belief in entitlement which we instilled into them.
They are entitled to freedom, independence, individualism.

Yet the world always has a twist to it. Instead of getting better , things get worse
and reasons for war again come to the forefront. Our planet shows us there is no such thing as freedom, independence and individualism.

We all need each other to work in unison so our species survives.

Wars are always different but the causes are always the same, dictatorship, poverty, fear, power. They always take precedence over love. We have not learned how to use love yet, to conquer war.
The thing is, if we cannot love our parents, our wives and husbands and children enough to do the right things, then how are we supposed to be able to love the world?

Everything starts at the beginning.

As for the German soldiers in Germany, they noticed that the better German bunkers were hit a lot more than the other ones and so they went to hide with the regular population because they saw God was on their side.

So no matter what you believe, a time comes when God touches people he wants to touch, so they may one day tell the stories of his little miracles.

He performs many of them every day in hospitals, schools, places of employment, airplanes.
etc..... and he may use each person as a vessel to be his Angel that day.

I often wonder why, I was where I was, at the time I was, to help a person in need and why people were where they were to help me when I needed it.

9/11 survivors have the same stories to tell. They were supposed to be at work in those buildings but for some reason that day, could not be.
Others who were not supposed to be there, went in that day ......to die..
It gives you chills just thinking about it.


Have a good one.:)

10 comments:

George said...

Your grandfather's story is amazing. It really makes one think. But your entire post is very thought-provoking.

A Lady's Life said...

Thank you George. This is why I always loved old people. They had so many stories to tell and you learned so much by their side.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi A Lady's Life .. your bunker story is amazing .. I've never liked war stories .. as I know the times must have been perfectly awful.

So pleased your parents were able to leave - but as you say the world carries on its own unsweet way - humans want power - not compassion ... I hope we can help give hope to many through our actions ..

As you say - it gives me chills thinking about the future .. let alone the past ... Hilary

Maude Lynn said...

The story about the bomb is just amazing!

A Lady's Life said...

hilary - I hope you are wrong but I fear not as well

A Lady's Life said...

mama zen - that story always impressed me.The man was so scared to die and was sent a message that no where is safe if it's your time.

Akelamalu said...

He would stand and say: If it's meant for me,then I will not escape it.

Your grandfather was a wise man.

A Lady's Life said...

akelamalu - My Grand father was an exceptional man. I wish I had more time to spend with him but you know they never volunteered info and when you asked even then they found it too difficult to talk about.

Gattina said...

I was born in a bunker in Frankfurt, and apparently spent my first night in a drawer because there were no baby beds. I was born in 1943. After the war until she died, my mother became hysterical when we had a thunderstorm and she went to the basement. As kid I didn't understand. Later yes.

A Lady's Life said...

gattina - that's terrible
My Mom was afraid of uniforms.
When she got her alzheimers, she went back in time and fixed all her problems. Said what she had to say to all the people who hurt her in Germany.
In that sense the disease was good because by the time it took her, she was at peace.