European Resistance Archive/European Resistance Archive (ERA)
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They didn’t do a headcount at night,
They didn’t do a headcount at night,
Abends wurde nicht gezählt, -
to see who was back and who wasn’t, they didn’t care if ten of us had died during the day.
to see who was back and who wasn’t, they didn’t care if ten of us had died during the day.
wer zurück kam und wer nicht.
Es wäre ihnen egal, wenn zehn von uns am Tage gestorben wären. -
Similarly, they did not expect us to work too hard, but we had to be at work every day.
Similarly, they did not expect us to work too hard, but we had to be at work every day.
Es war ihnen egal, wie wir arbeiteten,
aber wir mussten jeden Tag auf der Arbeit sein. -
In my camp, after we woke up at five,
In my camp, after we woke up at five,
Nach dem Wecken morgens um 5 Uhr -
we were supposed to get up and leave with the others,
we were supposed to get up and leave with the others,
mussten wir aufstehen und mit den anderen das Lager verlassen. -
but after that there was no control on what we did during the day.
but after that there was no control on what we did during the day.
Aber danach gab es keine Kontrollen darüber, was wir tagsüber machten. -
And in any case, there was nowhere we could go.
And in any case, there was nowhere we could go.
Wir konnten jedenfalls nirgends hin. -
You were simply expected to be at work, even if you didn’t do anything all day.
You were simply expected to be at work, even if you didn’t do anything all day.
Man erwartete, dass wir bei der Arbeit sind,
auch wenn wir den ganzen Tags nichts tun würden. -
It was very cold where we were.
It was very cold where we were.
Es war sehr kalt dort. -
There were Russian women, as well as some men.
There were Russian women, as well as some men.
Es waren auch Frauen aus Russland da und ein paar Männer. -
The harsh life of the camp
The harsh life of the camp
Das harte Leben im Lager -
All they gave us to eat was one of those tall loaves of dark bread.
All they gave us to eat was one of those tall loaves of dark bread.
Sie gaben uns nur eines dieser großen dunklen Brote zu Essen. -
It was a large loaf, but you had to split it in five pieces.
It was a large loaf, but you had to split it in five pieces.
Es war ein großer Laib aber man musste es in fünf Teile brechen. -
That’s all you got until evening. Then at night we were given some slop, but no more bread.
That’s all you got until evening. Then at night we were given some slop, but no more bread.
Das war alles, was man bis zum Abend bekam.
Am Abend bekamen wir nur etwas eklige Brühe, aber kein Brot mehr. -
That piece of bread was like gold for me: I used to eat it bit by bit, in order to savor it.
That piece of bread was like gold for me: I used to eat it bit by bit, in order to savor it.
Das Stück Brot war für Gold für mich:
ich aß es Stückchen für Stückchen um es aufzusparen. -
We were terribly hungry and in the winter, when we went to work in Hagen, it was freezing:
We were terribly hungry and in the winter, when we went to work in Hagen, it was freezing:
Wir hatten schrecklichen Hunger und im Winter,
als wir zurück nach Hagen gingen, gab es eine Eiseskälte. -
we spent the whole day close to a river and the air was unbearable.
we spent the whole day close to a river and the air was unbearable.
Wir verbrachten den ganzen Tag in der Nähe eines Flusses und die Luft war unerträglich. -
At lunch they gave us some slop.
At lunch they gave us some slop.
Zum Mittagessen gaben sie uns eine Plörre. -
That’s where I’ve learned about margarine,
That’s where I’ve learned about margarine,
Dort habe ich Margarine kennengelernt, -
chard, turnip, and this kind of stuff, all minced, cooked and seasoned with some of this margarine.
chard, turnip, and this kind of stuff, all minced, cooked and seasoned with some of this margarine.
Mangold, Rüben und solche Dinge, alles gehackt,
gekocht und mit etwas Margarine verfeinert.