My Story: World War II - German [COMPLETED]

20: Truths Pt. 2

Adalwolf Zimmerman

I dumped all the ashes from my very full wheel barrow into the large pit that was dug out and wiped my forehead. I looked over and found other people slaving away in the field. Some of them looked really thin and sick but were still working. Why would Hitler say that the Jewish population were not hard workers when some of them looked ready to fall over?

I headed back into the boiler room and picked up my shovel that I had left by the door to wheel out the ashes. Luka was silent as he watched me from his position and I looked over with a small smile. He kept his face impassioned and I was confounded that he didn't even crack a smile.

"Start the fires," he said. I looked around thinking he was talking to someone else but we were alone.

"I don't know how to Luka," I told him and he threw me some matches. I nodded in understanding and lit the ovens, slowly. I waited for another direction but Luka ducked out of the room.

"Put these in and make sure they burn completely. Don't say anything," he told me and I nodded as he brought in a cart of black bags. "Make sure nothing of value is on them as well." I nodded and pulled out a metal sheet in the oven to place whatever was in those bags in the fire.

I picked up one of the bags. It weighed about 50 pounds, give or take, not that it mattered. I could lift about a hundred anyways. I laid the bag on the sheet and unzipped it. I stared in horror. It was a body that had no colour and the eyes were still open. I looked at Luka was staring at the wall.

"Are they all bodies?" I asked. He glanced at me and nodded curtly. I felt like I was going to throw up. "They kill people here," I told myself more than I told Luka.

"I am aware. Please just do what you were told," he said, unemotional. I nodded and quickly checked the naked body before shoving the table into the fire. The smell of burning flesh is terrible.

Adeline Zimmerman

I walked to school in my uniform. I was thirteen years old and I remember that I was so proud to be German. I walked with my best friend, Bree.

"Did you hear what the boys were talking about yesterday?" Bree asked. I looked at her.

"If it's about something stupid I don't want to hear it," I said and she laughed.

"When don't the guys say something stupid," she commented and I smiled.

"My brother wrote back to us," I said. My eldest brother, Alaric, was the only one in my class that was in the front lines. I was overly proud of that because my teacher said only true Aryans could fight in the front lines. Everyone else in my class had brown hair so I got special treatment being pure.

"You are so lucky! What did he say? Did he send you a picture?" she asked.

"He misses Berlin and hopes that he can come home for the holidays," I told her and she squealed.

"You are so lucky! Everyone loves you and your brothers at school," she said. I shrugged with a knowing smile.

"Well, Alaric is a soldier and Adalwolf is a computer analysis. They are both incredibly smart and pure like Hitler is trying for," I declared.

"I am Aryan, I'm just not blonde," she said and I nodded.

"I know but remember that it's mixed. Miss Ziegler told us that yesterday," I said. Bree nodded as we walked into Miss Ziegler's class. She was pure Aryan like me but she also tutored on the side for stupid rich people.

"Good morning class," Miss Ziegler said as she passed out a book. I looked at the book as she placed it on my desk. Aryan Joys. "Would someone like to read?" I raised my hand and she nodded at me.

"Aryans are the most perfect human species on the planet. Jews are the least perfect human species on the planet," I read aloud. One of the boys raised his hand.

"Why are Jews the least perfect human species?" the boy asked. Miss Ziegler bit her lip as she thought about it. I leaned forward to listen.

"Have you ever heard of a confirmation bias?" Miss Ziegler asked which made us all look at each other.

"Is that when you confirm something?" Bree asked. Miss  Ziegler nodded.

"You are very close! We look for data that confirms what we believe," Miss Ziegler said and I looked at the rest of the class.

"What does that have to do with anything?" I asked and she smiled at me. I could see the hurt in her eyes as she started talking again.

"The Jews confirmed that they are the worse after we found what they hid from us," Miss Ziegler told us, "therefore our need to find information, or our confirmation bias, worked." The class was excited but I realised that she didn't believe it and that made me doubt what I had been told.

***

"I'll see you later, Bree," I said as I waved good bye to her. She raised an eye brow and left as I walked back into the classroom. "Miss Ziegler?" I asked. She looked at me and stood straight.

"Yes, Adeline? May I help you?" she asked. I shifted on my feet.

"About the Jews... why do you think that we should treat them better?" I asked. She stared at me.

"I didn't say that."

"I know but it was the look on your face and the emotion in your voice. So why do you think that we should be nicer to the Jews?" I asked. She sighed and looked around.

"Adeline, you can't tell anyone that we had this conversation because it can get either one of us or both of us arrested, do you understand?" she asked. I thought about it.

If I agreed, I was going to go down a path that would make me a political enemy to Germany but I would know what the adults know and that would make me special. If I didn't agree, well... there would be no point in telling you my story.

"I swear that I won't," I said. She smiled lightly.

"You will want to sit for a minute," she said.