European Resistance Archive/European Resistance Archive (ERA)

and sleeping in the forest overnight.

Here and there in houses as well, still, but most of the time in the forest.

Even in the cold and snow. The clothes froze on you.

You felt stiff as a straw mattress.

Only those of really a tough nature were able to handle that.

People incapable of handling this deserted.

That didn’t help.

Joining the partisan army

So I went home.

On the first evening the partisans, acquaintances were already there.

After 14 days the holiday was over.

“Well, what are we going to do, mother?” My mother was crying again.

She sprinkled me with holy water.

“Mother, that doesn’t help! I will not go back to the ones that sentenced us to death.”

So I went and the commander of the partisans said:

“We will come and pick you up.

We will bring enough people so your family won’t be resettled or get locked into jail.”

The evening came.

No partisan called up, but the commander had told me I would be gone in the evening.

I went back to Bleiburg and picked up my military equipment.