How the East Was Won: Speaking Up at Last

East Berlin—It first appears as a pulsating blob of blue light, somewhere far down the dark, deserted road we are traveling on in the south side of town. As we get closer, the drone of sirens reaches us, and we finally realize that what we are seeing is a literal caravan of ambulances. We count twenty of them as they speed past us. Our taxi driver soon gets the story from his two-way radio—victims of the power struggle in Rumania have been flown into East Berlin and are being rushed to hospitals here. “Blutbad,” he whispers. East Berlin on Christmas Eve.

It is unseasonably warm, and a great grey ceiling of clouds drops a silent mist as the family and its American guest follow the quiet side streets from the apartment to a nearby church. It is supposed to be a children’s service, but the pastor speaks of urgent matters. He pleads for donations of blood and money to help the victims of the Rumanian massacre. “The joy of our new freedom is sadly overshadowed by events in Rumania,” he laments. Almost as an afterthought he adds, “Jesus’ birth brought holiness to an unholy world.” The mood is somber, indeed.

BO

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Bennett Owen

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East Berlin—It first appears as a pulsating blob of blue light, somewhere far down the dark, deserted road we are traveling on in the south side of town. As we get closer, the drone of sirens reaches us, and we finally realize that what we are seeing is a literal caravan of ambulances. We count twenty of them as they speed past us. Our taxi driver soon gets the story from his two-way radio—victims of the power struggle in Rumania have been flown into East Berlin and are being rushed to hospitals here. “Blutbad,” he whispers. East Berlin on Christmas Eve.

It is unseasonably warm, and a great grey ceiling of clouds drops a silent mist as the family and its American guest follow the quiet side streets from the apartment to a nearby church. It is supposed to be a children’s service, but the pastor speaks of urgent matters. He pleads for donations of blood and money to help the victims of the Rumanian massacre. “The joy of our new freedom is sadly overshadowed by events in Rumania,” he laments. Almost as an afterthought he adds, “Jesus’ birth brought holiness to an unholy world.” The mood is somber, indeed.