HelgaV

Dear family

I told you that I would write a letter as soon as I reached America, and here it comes. It was a horrible trip! It’s the worst thing I’ve done in my whole life! For three weeks we sailed across the Atlantic. There were a lot of people on board. Actually our cousin Solveig was there too! I got extremely surprised when she asked me if she could sit beside me an evening because she couldn’t stand a man that was really cheeky to her. Of course she didn’t know who I was at the time, but when I looked at her like she was a ghost or something she realized who I was. And she got just as shocked as I. We spend a lot of time with each other on the ship. It was good to have someone I knew there; it gave me a huge feeling of security. She was like me traveling to an American man. And how incredible it must sound didn’t we get sick or too tired of the journey. The biggest challenge was our hunger. After two weeks the food decreased. All of us started to get a little panic, what if it wasn’t enough food for all of us? We had to save up a lot, and I can’t remember last time I got so little food. It was worse than the winter for six years ago when we had to beg our neighbors for some potatoes! I’ve never been so hungry in my whole life. But anyway, we survived and I think it was because I and Solveig cheered each other up. We kept our American dream alive. At the worst times we both took the pictures of our American men until our heart as we wished and hoped for a happy future. It must sound crazy, but it did work! I think our gathering and hope gave us the strength we needed to survive. Finally we reached New York! It was a blessing you can’t imagine! All of us onboard on the little ship, I think we were about a hundred, cheered and cried of happiness. It must have been one of the happiest times of my life. When I stepped out of the ship and breathed in the American air. It was wonderful! For about a minute or so the whole world around me stood still. I saw a lot of people hurrying all around to find their family members, or crying people that were hushed back in the ships again. I didn’t “wake up” until Solveig pushed me forwards. We had to go for registration. I was not prepared for this. We had to wait for hours; I was hungry like a wolf and scared. Owing to the fact that all the time I saw broken-hearted people, men, ladies and even child that were send back to their homeland again. And as all this happened around me I started to imagine that the same would happen to me. At this moment I realized that I wouldn’t be able to survive a journey like that again. But somehow I got through it all. It was surprisingly easy for both me and Solveig. We were both placed on the same train. It was a wonderful feeling to sit at the train and know that our journey soon would be over. We both felt asleep. When we woke up the train stopped. We were finally there! We were about twenty ladies that were stepping out of the train, excited and a little scared. And then we saw a lot of men standing in a line. And then I saw him. My man! He was wonderful, tall, blond and kind. And it seemed that he recognized me too. It wasn’t easy to communicate because my English isn’t that good, but somehow I did understand a lot of what he meant. And we went to his house, or should I say our house? Well, it’s now three days since I arrived. And the days here has been wonderful! I really like David he’s a kind man. Of course I miss you all a lot! I can’t imagine how it’s going to be to live without all of you. But I didn’t have any choice like we discussed. I‘m going to miss you all so much, and you have to write thousands of letters to me! And I promise, I’m going to answer them! As soon as I got the time I’ll write a new letter, but now I have to make dinner to David and me.

Best wishes! Your Gudrun

10th September 1968 Dear John,

I hope you’re all alright. Well, we all miss you a lot that’s true! It’s no big surprise that Emily is the one of us that misses you most. It’s horrible for her to live without her husband. OK, she knows that you’re alive and all that, but she is so scared that something is going to happen to you. And I understand her, even though I don’t have a husband yet. But I can imagine how it must be to be left alone. Yesterday I saw her when she got your last letter she almost ran upstairs and locked herself in her room. Like a little teenager! She stayed there for hours. Anyway, I heard about George. So terrible! We’re all really sorry and we hope that you are OK. You’ve sent us so many letters about what you and George have done together these months, so we understand that it must feel like you’ve lost a member of your family. I hope that you can move on with your sorrow, and that you and all the other soldiers that are with you will be fine. I can’t tell you what to do because I’ve never been in that situation, but you can’t give up! You’ve got a family here, a mum, a dad, a wife, a sister - me. And we all want you to come back home again, unharmed. Then you just have to do what you need to do, protect yourself and others. I’m really proud of you. Yesterday at school I told a lot of people there about my brother that was in Vietnam fighting for our land. Everybody loves the stories I tell, and I love to tell them! But most of all I would love if you came home. I really miss you, maybe not as much as Emily does. But that doesn’t make any different. There’s a lot of people here, waiting for you to return. And I know that someday soon all this will be over, and you will come back! I told my teacher this today, but she said that she didn’t believe in me, but I don’t care! I know that you’ll be back soon! I know that you prefer to write letters to Emily. But could you please answer me this time? Write a letter only for me? I want to know how you are, what you feel, what you miss and when you are coming home! I miss you so much. I hope I see you soon.

Your sister, Liz