I love when mom brushed my hair. It was no exception today. The weekend was over and school was the next day. I liked the school, so that was good. For the moment, It was just me and mom. She talked about how she hoped I had a good weekend, I smiled at her and said that it was fun. We went to the park and visited the Church where we prayed. At home, we painted which was great fun.
My name is Lila, and I was 10 years old when this all happened. I was born in Denmark, which boasts to be the happiest country in the world. We also supposed to have one of the best living standards in the world. I suppose this meant that we had everything that we needed. Besides that, Denmark was also known as a welfare state. This meant that no one was hungry or did not have a roof over their heads. The government helped people when they were in need.
So as a 10-year-old girl, I was a typical Dane. My dad was a doctor and mom was a nurse. They were the best parents anyone could wish for. We lived in a nice house and I had enough clothes, teddy-bears, and toys.
The best thing was that despite my parents had busy jobs, they always had time for me. Dad always called me princess and mom said that I was the best thing that ever happened to her. Of course, I got in trouble. Mom or Dad never spanked me or something like that. They could yell at me and get mad, Usually, they would sit and explain what I have done was wrong and how I could act in the future.
Mom asked me questions about school when she was brushing my hair. She asked how my friends were and if the classes were too hard. She asked about the teachers and what we played. She tried to avoid speaking about the war.
There was, of course, no war in Denmark. It has been 70 years since we were at war. However, the news was full of a war that could happen in Europe. Denmark did not want a war with anyone, but it just seemed like Russia was very mad at Europe. Mom explained why Russia was mad, but I understood very little about it. In fact, I understood very little about the war.
I asked mom if she thought there would be a war. The TV was full of war news and showed the military waiting for something to happen. I could see a tear come in mom's eye, as she explained that politicians were doing as much as they could to avoid war. However, both sides could be so stubborn, that they could not see that there are options.
Mom told me that she missed Dad. He was called in by the military and had to work in military hospitals. If there was a war, he would see the worse side of the war. She wiped away her tears as she told me it would be sometime before he came home.
I had so many questions. I asked what war was like. Mom told me that she did not want to disuses that now. She told me to enjoy my childhood and let the adults talk about such matters. She tucked me in bed and suggested that we prayed for peace and that Dad would come home soon.
The next day at school was pretty normal, except everyone was talking about the war. Some were saying bad things about Russians like how evil they were. I did not respond to this as I thought that in some Russian schools, they were calling us evil. I never spoke with a Russian before. I am sure that if I did speak with a Russian girl my age, that we could be friends!
The teacher was also a bit strange. She told us that sometimes war was the only answer as we had to protect our countries, our identity, and traditions. As Danish people, we did not want to be Russian slaves. The teacher said that any war would be short, as NATO was very powerful and it would not take a lot of effort for us to kick Russian ass. The only thing I understood with her is that a war will be short and we should be proud of being Danish.
I rose my hand and asked what war was like.
The teacher took the Danish flag and said it is like two school children fighting. One child is the bully but the other child has God on his side. The bully will always loose. She told us that we have God on our side. Russia will be sorry if they went to war against us!
Everyone clapped except me. She really did not answer my question.
During the lunch break, the boys were all playing war. Jacob was a boy in my class that liked to follow me around everywhere. Now he thought it was interesting chasing me around with a toy rifle. He shouted that I was Russian and needed to die. At first, I thought it was annoying to be a Russian, but then I pounced on him and knocked him to the ground. I told him to give up, but he wouldn't. So I tickled him until he wet his pants. This meant that the game was over. Jacob was so humiliated that he ran into the school telling me I broke the rules of the game.
When we were inside, the teacher told us all to be silent. She said that it was important that we all went straight home. Russian talks have broken down and they have attacked Europe. This meant that Denmark was at war. The teacher said the school would be closed until the war was over. She also reminded us that we were the good guys.
Jacob and I started walking home as quick as possible. On the way home, we saw Danish military vehicles pass us. We waved to them and shouted that we hoped that they won the war. Jacob was in a better mood than me. He kept on saying that school is closed. I was still worried about what war was like. I was also worried about my Dad. He was now a doctor in the military, so he would be close to where the soldiers killed each other.
A girl from our class called Grace caught up to us. She was my best friend. She could see that I was worried, "Do not worry," She said, "It will take Russia a lot of time to come this far in Denmark. They won't attack us, they will attack Copenhagen first. Then NATO will come and save us from being Russian slaves."
I gave Grace a big hug and told her that I hoped she was right.
When I came home, Mom was already there. She was putting a black sheet on the windows when I came in the door. She said it was so Russian bombers could not see that we were home. She already packed a few bags. I was so confused. Why did she pack bags and why did she look so worried?
Later that night, I snuggled in mom's bed. She told me that things will be different now. Wars were not good. She said many people would die and buildings would be destroyed. There may not be enough food and we may not have things like water or electricity. I did not know what to say. This all seemed so impossible and adult-like. I could not see why governments could not find a peaceful solution.
"Will we all be destroyed by nuclear bombs?" I asked
" That is a possibility. However as stupid as the leaders are at going to war, I would think that an atomic war would be their last wish."
Then mom started crying and saying that I was too young to be in the middle of a war that no one understood. I gave her a hug and told her that we were good people. Good people end up as winners. Besides that, I did not need water or electricity or food. We still had each other! As long as we had each other, we would survive.
Mom smiled and told me to get some sleep. She was watching the news on TV, as Russian troops were advancing through Europe at an astonishing rate. It showed pictures of Copenhagen being bombed and people running all over the place. I felt sorry for them. While mom and I had a comfortable bed, their houses were being bombed. Then the TV suddenly went off. We have lost our electricity.
The next day, when I woke up, Mom was in a good mood. She made a big breakfast and told me to eat as much as I can. She said that we would forget that there was a war and just enjoy the day as we have done many times before. We were going to visit the shops.
I do not know why I have done it, but I took my teddy-bear with me. Most likely it was just to give me some security. As we walked downtown, we noticed that many people were in cars. Mom told me that many were leaving the city. I wondered why we did not. The answer I got was where would we go? We also had to be here when Dad came home.
All the shops were closed. The streets were empty. I could see Mom's worried face once again, but after thinking a while, she said that it was a long time since we went to the park. So we did this.
Grace was there with her mother and little brother. So the two parents sat down on a bench and started talking. As for me, I played with Grace and her little brother for an hour. I soon forgot everything about the war as we had the whole park to ourselves. We went from the swings to the monkey bars and the things that go around. We were soon laughing and having fun.
Then we heard some large noises as they were far away. A few planes flew above us. Mom came and took my hand and said the Russians were now bombing us. We needed to find somewhere safe to be. She told us that the hospital where she worked had underground tunnels that would protect us from the bombs
Alarms started to ring loudly. Mom explained these alarms were a message to find some safe place to be. So Grace and her family and my mother and I made our way to the hospital. I clenched on to my teddy bear as the bombing sounds became louder and louder. We could see people running through the streets shouting and crying. Everyone was so afraid. Mom warned us to be calm. Being in a panic did not help us.
Suddenly the largest noise I ever heard happened. I looked back and could see a corner shop that just was bombed. Bricks and glass were flying through the air. It was hard to think that the shop was there for hundreds of years and suddenly it was gone. Mom held on to my hand and told me that we needed to reach safety.
There were lots of people in the tunnel. We could still hear the alarms outside and the bombings. Mom found a place for us to be. We sat down on the hard ground and just looked around. Some people were injured. There were so many that had blood! Mom found some bandages and told me to stay with Grace and her mom. I looked at mom trying to help these people. I was so proud of her.
No one was smiling. Many were crying or praying. They were all whispering about how things could go so far. One old man stood up and told us all to repent to God, as the day of judgment was here. This was all very scary. The hospital had generators that made light, but at times, these flickered or the whole tunnel went pitch dark. Then it became very scary!
Grace put her arm around me and told me that she was scared. I hugged her tight and admitted that I was scared too. We were in that tunnel all day.
At one stage, Mom told me to get some sleep. I rested my head on her lap and told her that I loved her. As I was falling asleep, I smiled as I heard the alarms stop and for a few minutes, there was silence. This silence was like heaven as it meant nothing was getting destroyed. The people in the tunnel must have thought the same, as everyone clapped because it was silent.
Then the bombings started again, except this time they were closer.
I could not sleep. I was so afraid.
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