As I walked along the beach I found a large marquee
A barefoot woman of about forty years approached me
Would you like an olive?
This island is famous for its olives
The woman although having the complexion of an islander had the most vivid blue eyes
Are you English?
I cannot remember my nationality as I woke up on the beach a short while ago
From the way you are dressed I would think that you are sailor or a fisherman
I looked at the many tables and the people who were gathering around them
Is this a food festival?
Yes it is held once a year
I looked at the woman’s vivid blue eyes
She looked down
You are admiring my eyes?
Are you an islander?
Yes
I am also the daughter of a German soldier
Are you aware of the recent history of this island?
I know the history of the war but not of this island
Does it have a name?
Yes
But it no longer has a name
Why?
Terrible things happened here during the war and when peace returned it was decided to erase the name of the island from the books
Even on this very beach forty-five people were murdered
That is why this festival is held
To remember their souls
This is an island famous for its olives
If you look over there you can see my daughter
A girl of about eighteen years smiled at her mother
She had identical eyes
Blue
Vivid blue eyes
Was you mother attacked by the German soldier?
You mean was my mother raped by the German soldier
No
And he was not a small soldier
He was a commander and had been sent to this island after being injured early in the war
The previous commander was recalled and died in action six months later
That caused sadness because he was a fair man
Did the atrocities occur later in the war?
In the second half of the war yes
Before that although the island was occupied it was peaceful
When we were invaded the Germans found no resistance only women children and the elderly
All the fit men of the island were away fighting
Things soon returned to normal and the elders on the island came to an unofficial agreement with the Germans as to what was acceptable and non-acceptable behaviour
We all thought we would see out the war in relative peace
That was until the partisans arrived in 1944
They attacked the German’s and broke the peace
Many German’s died
My father knew that the island would be punished and it was not long before the hell soldiers arrived
They were brutes and operated a hot earth policy
A scorched earth policy
Yes
A scorched earth policy
The island was indeed burnt
Many died horribly
How did you escape?
My father was a good man
He warned the islanders of what was about to happen
But most took little notice
They wanted the island to be free
The partial success of the partisans had inspired a false confidence
My father took us to the caves with a few loyal soldiers
He was a tired man who had seen enough of the war
He hid with us for a while and left us lightly armed
But we did not have to use the German guns
What happened to your father?
He lied
He returned to the town and was horrified at what he saw
But he kept his composure and lied to the hell soldiers
He told them that the south of the island had been cleared
And he was believed
They were stupid enough to believe his shallow lie
And then he vanished
The brutes did not stay on the island for long
Their bloodlust was satisfied
And when it was safe to do so we came down from the caves and buried our dead
Over one hundred and sixty people had been cruelly murdered
Did you see your father again?
Oh yes
For many years I thought he was dead but in 1960 my mother received a letter from Germany
My father was alive and still is
He had been arrested and was on his way back to Germany when the ship he was on was sunk by a torpedo
Many were killed but he survived and reinvented himself after the war
But he always wanted to come back to the island but was not sure how he would be received
It took him fifteen years to write that letter
He and his wife visit the island quite often
When his health permits the journey
On the day he returned he was welcomed as the good commander
Whose compassion and bravery saved us from being slaughtered
That is why I have blue eyes and my daughter has blue eyes
It is the heritage of my late mother’s war
I was lying against a stone slab which had been crudely painted some years before
It was advertising Esso
Next to me were a man and a woman
Both were sunbathing
I could see their valuables inside her string bag
I knew that I should not be on the beach
And that this was just a dream
A teenage boy came up to me
He gave me a slice of melon
There has been a shark attack off of Ascension Island today
A British woman has been injured
I thought you would like to be made aware of this incident
Thank you but I am not aware of my nationality
Borders do not exist in dreams
Although the day was becoming hot there were banks of mist over the distant sea
Ships were hidden although the sounds of their radio shows could be clearly heard
Behind me there was a rough path which still showed the scars of the recent rain
Deep puddles were inhibiting the access of the people intending to visit the beach
I was walking along another path which was much smoother but still retained shallow puddles
I was not wearing shoes and the water was warm to the touch
I closed my eyes in an attempt to end my dream
In the beachside shops the assistants wore no shoes
Indeed everybody was barefoot
I asked a passing baker why nobody wore shoes in the island
Once this was a noisy island full of celebration
But after the war nobody chose to wear shoes
And the island became silent
Even on the roughest ground shoes were not worn
This did not damage the islander’s feet
Only visitors suffered damage to their feet
And this was rectified by prayer
I returned to the crudely painted stone slab
And stretched out on the fine sand
I closed my eyes but did not dream
I was searching for my reality