The Wall Crossers

Lizet Callens-Aupperle - Halle, Belgium - 25 Jun 2021

Lizet's perspective

And so concludes my story regarding my Oma (grandmother) Leida and my Oma Olivia, and of course dear Anja.

I am Lizet Callens-Aupperle, and I am 23 years old as of this writing.

I have tried to tell this story as thoroughly and accurately as possible, given my limited access to only some few people. I used my own intuition, Geweldige oma (great grandma) Elisa's memory and insights, two interviews with Maren (I found her!), and three interviews with Anja (Ja, I found her too thanks to Maren!), which I was so fortunate to have had arranged, and of course the stars directed much inhoud (content) toward the realization of the truth.

I may most strongly and certainly say of Maren and Anja: these two became close friends, through letters, as joined together as sisters might ever be, after the dissolution of two lives who were loved but lost.

Because Maren loved Leida and Leida loved Olivia and Olivia loved Anja and Anja loved Horst.

And Anja loved Olivia and Olivia loved Leida and Leida and Olivia were lost.

There were two other lovers, unforeseen as they may have been even to the most perspicacious one attending to this my story, and originally even to each other.

After I found her, through making the connection with Maren, Anja told the story to me of how she and Elke became legally registered partners in Denmark in 1989 after living together as a couple in Germany, and then Denmark, for seventeen years. This was after the Queen, Margrethe, gave royal assent to women couples' legitimization—truly any two of same sex. Both had changed their last names to Elke's mother's meisjesnaam (maiden name), whom they both revered (and to obscure Anja's scandal-tainted Army record), in early 1972. Their prior names were expunged from histories. This after Elke had joined Anja in the move to Wolfsburg, as Anja took on the new working position that had been arranged for her by the authorities and with many strings being pulled by her Papá, Elke's intent being that Anja should not be lonely in the new place, and so Elke might experience her own life's new adventure. But it became progressively more than simple adventure, to them both, and instead became passion, intimacy and devotion to both girls each to the other and in a very short order. That feverish kiss in bed during an otherwise horrible night led to a lasting love oh so much stronger than any other I have described in this my story, save mine with Lennert, of course. Eventually these two became married in a church wedding in 2012 when such became legally possible for all like-minded lesbiennes! They have one adopted son— Sascha, currently of thirty one years.

Elke chose not to join in when I interviewed Anja for this story writing. Anja would not explain why this was so, and I did not press on this matter.

For years I have known the ongoing whereabouts of my Oma Olivia (NC, CA, now AZ in the USA). My Oma Leida vanished shortly after my moeder (mother) was born.

I promised Geweldige oma Elisa I would never attempt to contact my Oma Olivia until the year 2025. This is, I am certain, to ensure my training and influence remained always from Geweldige oma, and from her alone. Also, my moeder was always so angry, just like Anja, to have lost her moeder—her moeders... her parents.

However, my geweldige tante (great aunt) Monika, Leida's sister, adopted my moeder and gave her their last name: Aupperle. This made it difficult for anyone to trace her to the lost ones. When my moeder married, her surname became Soboleva-Aupperle. She was always proud of Aupperle and wished to keep it. She was always ashamed of the Brücke family (except for Monika, her new moeder and my adoptive Oma), and ashamed too of the Reary family. She felt abandoned by them all, because of the actions of the two, and so she too turned her back on them—forever.