A War Time Devotional

A picture in the New York Times, dated June 16, 1947.
Neeltje's 6th child, Jan's (John) family upon their immigration to the United States

Just a few weeks ago, my husbands side of the family had a family reunion. He has a HUGE family. Just my father-in-law alone has 13 brothers and sisters. They immigrated to the United States from the Netherlands, er~ the Ald Contlee, when he was 16 years old. Once here, his future wife's family would sponsor them until they could afford to live on their own.

My mother-in-law's family was originally from the Netherlands themselves. Her grandmother's name was Neeltje, prounouced Neecha, and she wrote letters to her children throughout the turbulent times of their country during World War II. She couldn't mail the letters because the postal service completely stopped for 5 years. Five years dragged by without any communication with many of her children. At the family reunion, this journal was photocopied and given to all the decendents. She wrote particularly, on her childrens' birthdates. I am sharing 3 entries here, all written on October 21.

October 21, 1942
~We live in terrible times. We can see clearly what a world is like that forsakes God. I better not write about it, you know more than we do.

It is terrible wet here. We didn't start the stove yet, because fuel is so scarce - it's all gone. Everything is taken from us. If we did not know and believe that God rules and everything happens according to His will, we would fear greatly.

All men from 18 to 45 years old now must enlist or register for Germany. Many have left already.

October 21, 1943
~We do not know if the war has brought you loss. What terrible times we are going through. Tonight again, heavy bombers in great numbers thundered across for a long time, and sometimes we hear an explosion and everything shakes. How long yet? We long for the end.

This summer we took in a wonderful crop; everything in abundance for us and our animals. But the occupation troops take everything away, also the cattle. So much has to be delivered to the Germans. From the little we have, we have give a thousand pounds of meat.

October 21, 1944
~A short time ago American parachutists came down in Gaasterland. A man told Jan (her 6th child, a son) that one of them said his grandmother lived in Drachten. Could that have been one of my grandchildren?!

We live on a busy highway and all we see are refugees carrying packs. All young men have to work for the defense of Germany, but many refuse and hide. Gerben (her 8th child, a son) has also left his family, but the Germans sometimes rob everything from those who refuse and burn the house. All traffic has stopped and there is hunger in the cities. They pay 100 guilders for a sac of potatoes and 4 guilders for a single pail of water. There is no fuel and electricity has been shut off. Great is the need.

Neeltje Holkema Aukema - January 10, 1870 - January 3, 1950

The inscription on her tombstone reads:
For we know that if this earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building with God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 Corinthians 5:1

Can you even imagine the fear and sadness that the people of that time faced? 55 million people dead! 15 million military and 40 million civilians from bombings, massacres, migrations, epidemics and starvation.

What this brave women recorded to her children as a way of keeping close to them in her heart, has become a legacy for all generations to cherish and remember why we value freedom.

I wanted to post one more entry dated March 30, 1943 to show how bad was their experience.

March 30, 1943
~We do not know if we will still be here by the time the war ends. It is terrible. Heavy bombers fly over every night. Last week there was a dogfight in the air over us. Lots of machine gun fire. Not far from us some bullets went through the windows and straight through a baby's crib into the wallpaper. The child was not hurt.