Narrative

­The Varsovian Girl

The survivors of World War II each have their own story. But what makes each story so intriguing is that it contains that miraculous strive for survival and strength. If not for the self-worth of a human being, these stories would not be told. Maria Milbrandt was a survivor of the Second World War. Likewise to all other survivors, the now elderly lady has her own story to reveal.  Commencing from when she was just in primary school to the age of 16 years old, never was there a second of her losing hope,nor her failing to succeed. At such a young age, striving to survive was not something to question; it was just a standard, something that remained in the thoughts of Maria forever.

     September 1st, 1939 was the first day of the new school year for Maria Milbrandt, though technically, it did not turn out as planned. The day that was supposed to be an excitement, transformed into the first day that the Nazis  commenced an air raid on Warsaw. The war had begun. Nazi soldiers arrived at each school, evacuated everyone from the buildings and used the evacuees for their own purposes, rendering it impossible for the children to have the opportunity to learn. Fortunately enough, Maria’s principal took the risk of obtaining a secret school, hidden beneath the depths of Warsaw. Because any children found in possession of school books would be arrested and taken away, the school did not use any type of textbooks. Besides the secret education, the Germans forced civilians to attend a working school in which they would learn how to sew and craft clothes, allowing no workers to rest. Throughout this period, Maria, too, arranged time to join the secret scout organization (SSO) and as time passed, she managed to avoid danger. After two years in the scout organization, she officially became a member in which, a year later, she could determine her future as either a nurse or a messenger. By the time 1942 came around, Maria decided on becoming a nurse, and pursued her appointment by containing determined work ethics for the Polish military fighters.

     Soon after becoming a nurse, Maria witnessed the Warsaw Uprising begin in 1944. This affected Maria’s life to a great extent. As there were many problems for the resistance fighters, she grew to be a member of a separate group which helped an increasing number of Poles. At this point, Maria was just waiting for the Russians to provide assistance, as planned, which they did not. During the rough times, Maria’s main job was to transport essential goods from one side of Warsaw to the other, though if the Germans were to catch her, Maria would immediately be sentenced to death. Another area of her work was to provide assistance in an underground hospital. Nevertheless, everything was hidden exceptionally well.

     During the war, the Nazis would never stop their cruelty. Never would they lack in arrogance or cruelty and due to these characteristics, before she knew it, Maria Milbrandt,  along with the rest of Warsaw’s citizens, were taken out Warsaw, arrested and taken to a labour camp. The name of the camp was Muhlberg, where the prisoners were trained to build special parts for airplanes in East Germany. Although the Germans inspected and patrolled the working area frequently, any time the officers were not around, Maria would stop working and try to rest, knowing that she was serving the Nazis. As curious as she was, Maria was also anxious. Lurking beneath her were unanswered questions, which even if she dared to ask, could not be answered. This lifestyle infuriated Maria,. Working daily for hours, starving with only one piece of bread per day, she was ready to rebel and never did she even think of giving up hope of freedom. Smiling as she spoke the words, Maria declared, “I believed that it would work out somehow, I had hope. I was 16-17 years old. I wasn’t afraid because I was at that age where you’re very brave.” Any prisoners’ letters that were being sent from the camp had to be proofread by the Germans, including letters to families. Each prisoner had a number as each of them was treated like an object, not a human. After a certain amount of time in the camp, the prisoners were transported via train to western Germany. The train was for animals, but then again, they were animals based on the Nazis’ views. All prisoners were stuffed into different compartments, making it an atrocious journey in which they starved for three days without one piece of food. Yet, Maria continued to endure the pain, and focused on one weakness that the Germans obtained: The Russians.

     As the Germans became increasingly fearful of the Russians, by the concluding times of the war, the Nazis abandoned the labor workers, including Maria, in Muhlberg. Several days later, the Russians arrived at the camp with food and a ticket for home. Though many travelled back to Poland, a small portion of the prisoners left further east to explore countries elsewhere. Prisoners from all camps met in Czech Republic, and from there they were transported back home. It took Maria four exhausting days to arrive in Warsaw, although when she finally made it, it was the “best feeling [she’d] ever had in [her] life.” With the national anthem playing down the streets of a bombed Warsaw, Maria knew that she would need to complete her studies to be successful. She did just that. Majoring in a degree of psychology, Maria Milbrandt soon became a psychologist, married a man she loved, and had one daughter (now working in the American School of Warsaw). As Mrs. Milbrandt began to close up the interview, she stated, “War is a horrible thing, yet we constantly see it in countries all over the world. As much as you think you know about this war, you will never feel what people really experienced. The only way to survive the war is to have no fear and have hope, just like I did at the age of sixteen years old.”