It was the summer in the mid-80s, and I was an army kid living in Hamlin, Germany. I was probably around the age of 7, and one day while playing, I found myself in the back of a flatbed truck during a game of hide and seek, or at least, I think it was a game of hide and seek. It happened so long ago now.
One minute I was playing with my friend, next I remember coming out from beneath a blanket and being surrounded by a bunch of German children sitting across from me. I can just about picture there being maybe four or five of them, mostly girls. They seemed quite relaxed about my being there, un-shocked, blank in expression. They spoke with each other in hushed German. Being English, I couldn’t understand them and tried asking them to turn back.
Finally, we stopped at this strange windmill-like wooden building. A man appeared, and he was gaunt, had a cap on, and a bushy walrus-like mustache. I begged him to take me home, but he just dismissed me and laughed.
There was a woman there too, and I remember her having a similar dirty appearance to the girls. There was a sadness to her, and she smoked heavily. They ushered me into the wooden building, and I noticed there was no TV, but there was a CB radio that constantly repeated German phrases. I kept asking to go home, but all I got was laughter.
As I sat in the strange wooden building, I couldn’t help but notice the appearance of the girls around me. Their faces were smudged with dirt and their hair was tangled and unkempt. They wore tattered clothing that seemed to be too big for them. There was a sadness in their eyes that made me feel uneasy. It was as if they had been through something difficult that I couldn’t quite comprehend.
I sat in silence with the girls, and they just watched me until we were eventually called for dinner. We sat at a large table, and each of the, what assume was, family bowed their head in grace. I remember this being odd to me, having come from your typical CofE family that just paid lip service to religion at Christmas and Easter.
Eventually, food was brought out. It was tomato soup and bread. It was thick, claggy, and red. On an aside, I can’t stand tomato soup, and the thought of it even now makes me heave. I remember eating it though, and then all went blank.
The next thing I remember is waking up at night in the back seat of my father’s car.
Both my parents were there, and I asked them what had happened. They refused to answer me, and it was a long drive home through woodland.
Over the years, I’ve asked my parents about that strange night, but they always refuse to answer or insist that it never happened. Yet, I still have nightmares about the family and the strange, dirty girls. It’s a memory that has stayed with me all these years, their blank stares haunting me with an inexplicable strangeness and sadness.