Friday, November 14--Berlin Wall

For 28 years that wall has stood. 12 feet high and guarded by soviet soldiers, I have never managed to see the other side of my own city. I fought in World War 2 when I was hardly out of my teens, forced into service by Hitler's cruel regime. If that wasn't enough, I surrendered to the wrong side. I should have headed west, because the Americans actually treat their prisoners like human beings. Since the Soviets knew that I was a soldier, they threw me in a labor camp for many years. I'm not ever sure on how many. By the time they let me out, the wall had gone up, and I've barely managed to keep myself fed ever since. All of my friends and family are on the far side of the wall; my younger brother and two sisters. I'm not sure if my parents are still alive; this is how little news it allowed past the guards. My name is Niclas, and today is they day that the wall is coming down.
Though the days of my youth are far behind me, and my strength is starting to fail, it gives me hope that the communist power in Eastern Berlin is starting to fade as well. A handful of the checkpoints between the two cities are rumored to be open. It is said that the government has announced that we can now travel between the two sectors as we see fit.  Now, as we have been doing for the past two months, me and thousands of others are going to march on the wall, but I feel like tonight will be different than all the others.
"DIE Mauer muss weg!" We shout. "Away with the wall! Away with the wall!" There are so many of us, that the guards are afraid. They do not fire their weapons. It is almost like they are just as happy as us to see the wall finally come crashing down. Many of us brought hammers and axes and other heavy tools. Still chanting, we attack the concrete, hacking off chunks at a time. I was given a sledgehammer from one of my neighbors, and I hit the wall with all of my strength. "That one's for Germany!" There is a crack, so I strike it again. "That one's for Berlin!" Small slivers of stone fly in all directions. I rear back with both hands and swing the hammer around for the final time. "That one's for my family!" There is a soft boom, and the whole section of the wall comes crashing down.
Immediately, a thong of people push through from both sides, many crying with joy. I see many families and friends reunited, and even though I have not spotted my own, it makes my heart soar. I have not ever seen so much happiness in all of my life. That night, I believe I saw the best in humanity.

I begin the hunt for my family. It is hard, with thousands of others in every direction I look. But fate must have guided me, because I almost stumble upon not only my siblings, but also my mother! They all look much younger and healthier than I, and I cannot express in words what that reunion meant to me. I hugged and kissed my family for so long, that it felt as if the world had finally stood still to allow me some peace. It was glorious, and I never knew that someone could experience such pure joy before that night. The night the wall came down was the best of my life, giving me the chance to see the family that I could only dream about for so long.