大象传媒

After the disastrous ending to "Operation Marketgarden", our hospital(a large part taken over by the Germans)received many pow's.That is when I found out that Americans came from all over Europe way back when.:german surnames,italian.russian, you name it.They were a nice bunch.I was allowed to take care of them since I could speak english":You with your limey accent!!"When the german nun, in charge ,went to chapelI I heard many hero茂c stories.One guy who had a headshot wound was transported to the cellar, where we put the remaining patients, when the big battle by the Allies for our city started.The patients were bedded down on mattresses: men next to women or a child.This guy was put next to an old lady ,who had all her belongings like little pillows,doilies, in baby blue.She needed a bed pan. We coudn't get quick enough to her.Someone handed this American the bed pan,not knowing he was paralyzed on one side.He called himself:"the King of Arabia",because of the tullband shaped bandage around his head.So ,here he was,bedpan in his left hand and said to her:"Rhapsody in Blue lift up you fanny".I don't know whether she understood english,but she got the message:Problem solved.There was a young,skinny British boy in the hall:we called him "Little Red"The german surgeons had put pins through his hipbones so his backside was lifted off the bed hoping that that would help healing his excoriated back.He couln't be put in the cellar because of the contraption used to string him up.This was no fun ,we were sure;the sound of shells exploding were louder on the floor than in the cellar.(We were told the hospital received 90 direct hits)Little Red asked every nurse for a hypo:"please,give me shot!!" But after checking the chart we told him:"It is too early"!We would have killed him with kindness."Little Red" was transported out of the hospital safely by the Britsh.I often wonderd:"What happened to these people.?"One American gave me a quarter and said:"Keep it and one day you will be in the States and you can spend it".I still have the coin ,I wouldn't spend it for anything.It was a kind of talisman.It went with me to all the places I was sent to during WW2.And they were plenty.

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