Page 14 - Leisure Living Magazine Holiday 2017

Battle Of The Bulge
Continued from page 13
Although the soldiers were armed and could’ve forced their way in, they stood politely, waiting for an invitation. Elisabeth asked them in, and they placed their wounded friend on Fritz’s bed.
Elisabeth discovered she could talk to one of the Americans in French. As she tore bed sheets to bandage the wounded soldier—who had been shot through his upper leg and nearly bled to death—she learned that they’d lost contact with their battalion and had wandered in the forest for three days.
Elisabeth told Fritz to go get six potatoes, and Hermann—they would slaughter him to- night. Fritz was setting the table when there was another knock on the door. Expecting more Americans, he opened the door only to find four German soldiers. He was paralyzed with fear—he and his mother could be shot for sheltering the enemy.
Elisabeth quickly stepped outside and wished the Germans Merry Christmas. Just like the Americans, they had gotten separated from their regiment and asked to rest in the cottage for the night. Elisabeth told them they were welcome, and that they could join them for a fine, warm
The Germans launched an offensive known as the Battle of the Bulge.
meal and “eat till the pot is empty. But we have three other guests whom you may not consider friends.”
The soldiers realized there were Americans in- side, but Elisabeth put a stop to a fight. “Listen,” she said, “you could be my sons, and so could they. A boy with a gunshot wound, fighting for his life. His two friends lost like you and just as hungry and exhausted. This one night, this Holy Night, let us forget about killing.”
She asked them to put their weapons on the woodpile and get inside before the others ate the dinner. Amazingly, the soldiers complied. Elis- abeth asked the Americans to do the same, and they dutifully turned their weapons over to this remarkable woman.
Two of the Germans were only 16. The old- est was the 23-year-old corporal. While Fritz re- trieved more potatoes and Elisabeth prepared the meal, one of the Germans, an ex-medical student, examined the wounded American. He said, in English, that the cold had prevented infection, but he needed nourishment and rest.
The Germans pulled out a bottle of wine and a loaf of bread to add to the meal. The Americans had instant coffee.
The tension eased as the enemy soldiers sat down around the table. Then Elisabeth said grace, ending with the old, familiar words of prayer, “Come Jesus, and be our guest.” Fritz recalled that he saw tears in his mother’s eyes, and in the eyes of the battle-weary young soldiers, “some from America, some from Germany, all far from home.”
The next morning the Americans fashioned a stretcher for their wounded friend from two poles and Elisabeth’s best tablecloth. The German cor- poral showed the Americans on a map how to find their way back to their own lines. As they picked up their weapons, Elisabeth bade them farewell, “Be careful boys. I want you to get home someday where you belong. God bless you.” The soldiers shook hands, then went their separate ways.
For the rest of his life Fritz would remember what his mother did on that miraculous Christmas Eve. There in the forest, for one night, through the strength and courage of a good woman, the spir- it of Christmas came alive, and in the middle of that horrific battle there was, in that little cottage, peace and good will.
Merry Christmas everyone.
14 |LeisureLiving Holiday 2017
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