The Berlin wall and the evil of state sponsored communism began it's final dissolution on the night of November 9th 1989. I remember watching the events in Berlin unravel on the TV with a growing sense of hope, and dare I say it joy.
For some reason I always associate this song with the fall. I think it was popular around 88-89 and my convoluted consciousness made one of its jump cut attributions. Funny thing, memory.
Good song though. Reminds me of old friends from my wilder days. Hi ho. Nostalgia, not what it used to be, eh?
Getting grounded
2 days ago
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Mr Sticker,
I've been reading Walking The Streets pretty much from the beginning. I think I found you via Copperfield all that time ago, back when few knew about him. I kept you on my blogroll during your hiatus and was very happy when you started writing again after you went to Canada. You don't know me, I've had a number of IP addresses from two continents, but I guess that doesn't matter.
I was six years old when the Wall came down exactly twenty years ago. I lived in the first major Western German city past the border post of Helmstedt, on the main motorway straight West out of Berlin and the GDR. It was about ten minutes by car to the Iron Curtain. Tonight twenty years ago, my hometown flooded with East German "Trabant" cars coming out of nowhere like an unstoppable tide; they simply took the first exit off the motorway. In the morning, main streets, side streets, everywhere where abandoned cars in the biggest traffic jam I ever saw and will ever see. A traffic jam the size of an entire city.
I was little then but I saw many adults crying, and I remember being worried for them because I didn't understand until then that people can cry of joy - as well as sadness. I remember my parents signing up with the Red Cross on the same day to take people in who had been awake so long and couldn't make it back home, picking up people they met, offering them a place to stay. We even had someone sleep in the bathtub.
They spoke German but with strange accents that I had never heard before, never, and they all sat together and talked with my parents well into the night. I was too excited to sleep. My parents had been telling me all day "remember, just remember, it will make sense when you are older, just remember, remember, remember everything". And I tried.
There is one song that I associate with that time. People sang it, it was on the radio. It became the unofficial "hymn" of the time. It still moves many Germans to tears, and me too, now that I understand. I guarantee you that it will be played tonight on every German radio station.
Here's a link to a live performance of it from 1989:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30veJxrgX6I
[Disregard the birthday bit at the front. Someone's complaining about the candles being the kind that re-light after you blow them out after the singer has blown them out once.]
Here's a rough translation of what he's singing:
The treaties have been signed,
And there was much merriment,
And something sweet for dessert,
Freedom
Freedom
The brass band (went) rum-ta-ta,
And the pope popped in already, too,
And my neighbour (ran) ahead of them all,
Freedom,
Freedom
She is the only one missing.
Freedom
Freedom
She is the only one missing.
Man is sadly not naive,
Man is sadly primitive,
Freedom,
Freedom,
Has been cancelled again.
Everyone dreaming of freedom
Shouldn't forget to party/celebrate
[like we are today! cheers...]
Should dance even on graves.
Freedom
Freedom
Is the only thing that counts!
[over to you: audience]
Freedom
Freedom
Is the only thing that counts!
It was a great song to which people belted out "Freedom! Freedom!" at the time. There was such need for it. Look at his body language... Such joy, such relief, mixed with apprehension about what would actually happen, because, who knew?
I just thought I'd share it with you because this day also means something to you.
All the best.
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