The Little Girl That Could
A Memoir
by
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Part of my treatment included periodic visits to the air-raid shelter in the basement of the hospital while the rest of the world played war. The atmosphere of total terror among the adults in the shelters did little to speed the healing process. Sitting in the dark silence, I had no idea what was happening outside of my painful presence, nor did I care. I became completely internal. Later in life I learned the term “autistic” which probably describes me during that time. No one and nothing existed for me except my own six-year-old person. I forgot my former life and only occasionally thought coherently. The word “Schule” (school) drifted in and out of my mind as did other isolated words that had no relationship to my conscious state. I no longer had an appetite, and began to deteriorate. My arms and legs became very thin, and food that was forced into me usually came out in spasmodic bursts of vomit or diarrheal discharge. I was, I’m sure now, dying.
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About the Book
Marianne is a robust and healthy little German girl until the ravages of World War II take their toll. She barely survives the terrifying air raids, the horrible medical treatments on an isolation ward, and the divorce of her parents.
When her mother marries a former enemy and emigrates to
In a twist of fate, Marianne meets her future husband, a Los Angeles-born Chinese U.S. Airman, in
Eventually, Marianne and Leighton get married and raise four children while remaining active in a variety of community events and earning college degrees.
Despite her childhood aversion to writing, Marianne had always been an avid reader. As an adult she accidentally discovers the power of her own written word. Subsequently, she becomes a tireless letter-writer and engages in fascinating exchanges of letters with a variety of correspondents, including a cardiologist, a physicist, as well as manufacturers and governmental agencies.
About the Author
Born in pre-World War II Germany, the author endured the types of hardships common to that era. When her mother married an American, the author was left with relatives for a year. At age 13, she traveled unaccompanied by ship from