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Enschede for peace- Genomineerde

Story: Friends over the past

Date: September 2019

The streets had been shaking under the violence of tracks and heavy boots. Boots used to march, to cover distances and tracks made to crush any resistance. There had
hardly been any resistance when strange banners were carried into the city and the German accent made it painfully clear that Hitler's troops had now also conquered the
Netherlands. No gun roar, no shrill bullets, none of this. Instead, the sinister sound of marching and a foreign commander shouting his orders.

It was late afternoon when there was a knock on the door. Mother rushed to the door, and when she opened it, she saw a German uniformed man standing at the door.
Behind him stood two soldiers with rifles. The man stepped boldly inside. 'You have eight sons. One is working in the furniture factory, another is crippled, and another is
too young. So we are left with five healthy boys who can contribute to the flourishing of our beautiful motherland. We have factories in Germany for which we are looking
for workers and we also have some other tasks. Next Monday I expect them all at the station for transport to Germany. And be careful, if even one is missing, I'll come get
one of your daughters.'
Months later, a letter fell on the doormat. It belonged to their son Jaap: 'Hello Ma and Pa, I ended up well. No factory work for me. I'm going to be a motorcycle orderly.
They want me to deliver messages. I am fine. We are in a separate barrack with twenty boys from my age to 22 years. I also have to learn to tinker with those motorcycles
myself, so maybe I'll be able to work in Piet Appels' workshop in the city later, to carry out maintenance on his mopeds and motorcycles. It goes well. I do miss you.’
Years passed. Years in which Jaap experienced all the shadows of the war. He saw and experienced many terrible things. The war drove him across Europe and he could no
longer count how many times he did not escape death. Strangely enough, when he ended up in the German countryside, he met the most beautiful people. So not all
Germans were bad, not all were the dreaded SS men.
The war had been going on for years, but somewhere deep inside sometimes the memories from that period crept into his dreams. He was up early on a Saturday
morning: 'Come on guys, let's go for a ride again.' It was early when they got into his car, a converted station wagon. In the back was an extra couch, taken from an old
ugly duck. This way Jaap was able to take all six of his children with him. This time Jaap drove across the border and the children realized they were abroad, because
mother said they had just crossed the German border. Jaap looked at Greta: 'How about going for a cup of coffee? It's time I introduced you to some really good friends.'
Greta looked uncomprehending at Jaap. But then her franc fell. Jaap had been in correspondence with people from Germany for many years. Could this be them? Not
much later they drove down the hill and into a small village. A "Wipperfeld" sign greeted them on this narrow road. Jaap drove almost through the village and then turned
into a farmyard. His old but well-kept car came to a stop in the gravel. Not much later an older woman came running out of the farm and fell into Jaap's arms. Tears
streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed, “Jaap, here you are at last. You've been gone way too long.' An elderly man stood in the doorway. He kept his arms spread
wide. 'Jaap, my friend. You've finally found your way back to our farm.' He also fell into Jaap's arms. Greta actually got tears to her eyes. 'Greta, may I introduce you? These
are Willy and Eva, these are my friends from Germany.'

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