April 1945. The metal chains cut into Greta Hoffman’s wrist as the truck bounced over another hole in the road. She sat between two other German women in the back of the covered transport, unable to see where they were going. The chains made a soft clinking sound every time the truck moved.

 Her wrists were red and raw. She had been wearing these chains for 6 hours now. Greta was 24 years old. Before the war, she taught school in Hamburgg. She taught children to read and write. She taught them that Germany was the greatest nation on earth. She believed every word. 18 months ago, she joined the Women’s Signal Corps.

 She worked in a communications bunker, sending messages between army units. 3 days ago, Canadian soldiers overran her position near Cologne. Now she was a prisoner. The woman next to her was named Leisel Krauss. Leisel was only 19. She came from a poor farm in Bavaria. Her family barely had enough food to eat. 8 months ago, she joined the anti-aircraft corps because the army fed her three meals a day.

 She didn’t care much about politics. She just didn’t want to be hungry anymore. 2 days ago, her gun position was abandoned when officers fled. Canadian troops found her hiding in a barn. A piece of shrapnel had cut her shoulder 2 weeks earlier. It still hurt. She worried the wound might get infected. The third woman was Anaisa Vber.

 She was 32, the oldest of the group. Analisa came from Berlin. She had worked as a legal secretary before the war. Her husband died fighting the Russians in 1943. She had two children, a girl aged nine and a boy aged six. She sent them to live with relatives in Austria to keep them safe. Analyza had been trying to reach her children when she was captured.

 She hadn’t slept in 3 days. She hid her wedding ring inside her boot. She touched it sometimes to remember her husband. She hadn’t eaten in 36 hours. All three women had been told the same things. Their officers warned them what would happen if the enemy caught them. Canadian and British soldiers would hurt them.

 American soldiers would be even worse. Russian soldiers would be the worst of all. The propaganda film showed Allied troops as monsters. The radio broadcasts said the same thing. Women who were captured would suffer terrible things. When the Canadians first caught them, the women expected the worst. But the soldiers just searched them and put them in trucks.

They separated the women from the male prisoners. This terrified the women. They thought this was when the bad things would start. Instead, the soldiers just put chains on their wrists and loaded them into covered trucks. The chains were standard procedure for moving prisoners. But the women didn’t know that.

 They thought the chains were just the beginning. 47 German women were captured together near Oldenberg. The Canadian Third Division was moving fast through Western Germany. The German army was falling apart. Some units surrendered. Some just ran away. The women didn’t know where they were being taken. They didn’t know what would happen next.

 Greta whispered Nazi slogans to herself. She tried to stay strong. She tried to remember her training. Be brave. Don’t show weakness. Don’t trust the enemy. She kept her mother’s locket pressed against her chest. It was all she had left of home. Leisel said nothing. She just stared at the floor of the truck. Her shoulder throbbed with pain.

 She wondered if she would ever see her parents again. She wondered if their farm was still standing. She wondered if she would die here far from home. Anaisa watched everything. [snorts] She noticed how the guards acted. They shouted commands but didn’t hit anyone. They seemed tired, not cruel. She noticed the trucks were in good condition.

 She noticed the guards had plenty of supplies. This confused her. The propaganda said the allies were running out of everything. But these soldiers looked wellfed and well equipped. After 2 hours, the truck stopped. The women heard boots on gravel outside. English voices called out orders. The tailgate opened. Bright sunlight flooded in after the darkness of the covered truck.

 The women squinted against the light. They saw the silhouettes of soldiers standing there. Greta took a deep breath. She tried to prepare herself for whatever came next. She thought of her mother back in Hamburg. She hoped her mother was still alive. Leisel started trembling. She couldn’t stop. Her whole body shook. She bit her lip to keep from crying out.

Anaisa thought of her children in Austria. She prayed they were safe. She prayed she would see them again someday. The soldiers gestured for them to get out of the truck. The women climbed down carefully. The chains made it hard to move. They stood in a line, blinking in the sunlight, waiting.

 This was supposed to be the end of their story. Everything they had been taught said so. Enemy soldiers, captured women, chains. This was where terrible things happened. But this was only the beginning. Their real story was about to start, and nothing, they believed, prepared them for what came next. The first holding facility was a large tent with wooden floors.

British military police stood alongside Canadian soldiers. The women were taken inside one at a time. Their names were written down. Their ranks were recorded. A soldier asked which unit each woman served in. Then something strange happened. A guard offered Greta a cup of water and a piece of bread.

 Greta stared at the food. [clears throat] She didn’t take it at first. She thought it might be poisoned. She thought it might be a trick to make her weak. The guard set it down on the table and walked away. He didn’t force her. Leisel grabbed her water and drank it fast. She was so thirsty. She waited for something bad to happen.

Nothing did. The water was clean and cool. The bread was hard but real. She ate it in three bites. Analyza watched the guards carefully. They acted professional. They didn’t stare at the women in a cruel way. They didn’t make threats. They just did their jobs. This was not what she expected. 2 days later, the women were moved to a port.

 It might have been or Calala. Greta wasn’t sure. About 200 German prisoners were loaded onto a ship. The ship had been a hospital ship before. Now it carried prisoners across the English Channel. The women were given their own sleeping area, separate from the men. There were clean blankets on the bunks. Leisel touched the blanket.

 It smelled like soap. When was the last time she slept under something clean? She couldn’t remember. The ship rocked on the waves. Many women got seasick. Greta felt her stomach turn. She was already scared and exhausted. Now she felt sick, too. But a ship’s medical officer came to check on them. He was a Canadian captain.

 His name tag said Morrison. He had kind eyes. He looked at Leisel’s shoulder wound. She pulled back afraid, but his hands were gentle. He cleaned the cut and put fresh bandages on it. He spoke a little German. You’ll be fine, miss, he said. His voice was calm. Leisel didn’t know what to think. Why was he being nice? Why wasn’t he hurting her? The food on the ship was simple, watery soup, bread that wasn’t moldy.

 It came at regular times each day. This was more food than Greta had eaten in weeks. Back in Germany, food had become scarce. The army barely fed them. Sometimes they went days with almost nothing. “Why are they feeding us at all?” Leisel whispered one night. Greta had an answer ready. “It’s a trick. They want us to trust them.

 Once we get to their country, everything will change. But even as she said it, she felt a small doubt growing inside her.” Analisa noticed things. The ship’s crew had plenty to eat. The systems were organized. Nobody looked desperate or starving. The propaganda had said Britain was on its knees. The radio said British people were suffering just like Germans.

 But the evidence in front of her eyes told a different story. On the fourth day, they reached Southampton in England. The women could see the dock from the ship. British people walked around doing normal things. Children played near the water. Yes, there were bombed buildings, but there was also construction, new buildings going up. People looked busy, not broken.

 The women were loaded onto trains. These weren’t cattle cars. They were passenger cars with seats. The windows weren’t boarded up. The women could look outside as the train moved through southern England. Leisel pressed her face to the glass. She saw green fields, intact villages, cows grazing in pastures, small children at a train station waving as they passed.

 The children looked healthy and wellfed. Where are the ruins? Leisel asked quietly. Where is the starvation? Greta saw it, too. Every mile of track contradicted what they’d been told. Britain was supposed to be destroyed. The people were supposed to be starving. But the countryside looked peaceful, almost untouched. 7 days after capture, they boarded another ship in Liverpool.

 This one was bigger, a troop transport ship heading to Canada. Almost 900 German prisoners were loaded on board. 76 of them were women. The women were assigned births in a separate section. There were privacy curtains. The chains stayed on during boarding, but a guard told Analise they would come off at sea.

 His name was Private Johnson. He said his grandfather came from Germany years ago. Sorry about the chains, ma’am, he said in broken German. Regulations, they’ll come off once we’re at sea. Why would he apologize? Why would he tell her this? Analisa couldn’t understand it. The Atlantic crossing took 11 days.

 The women’s section was crowded. 76 women in a space meant for 60, but it wasn’t cruel. Each day they received food, porridge for breakfast, bread and soup for lunch, tea in the afternoon. Sometimes there was jam, sometimes fruit from cans. Analisa kept count in her head. about 2,200 calories per day, more than she’d eaten in 6 months back home.

 Leisel’s wound was checked twice by the ship’s medic. Each time, he was gentle and professional. Each time, Leisel expected something bad. Each time, nothing bad happened. Greta watched the Canadian soldiers when they didn’t know she was looking. They joked with each other. They laughed. They acted casual. They weren’t the fanatic she’d imagined.

 They were just regular men doing a job. On the last night before reaching Canada, Ana Lisa couldn’t sleep. She lay in her bunk thinking. The crew was wellfed. The ship ran smoothly. Everything worked with casual efficiency. [snorts] Canada was supposed to be a struggling colony, Britain’s weak partner, barely able to feed itself.

 But the evidence said otherwise. And if they lied about this, what else was a lie? The ship pulled into Halifax Harbor on April 30th. Hitler was dead, though the women didn’t know it yet. Germany was days from total collapse. Their old world was ending. Their new world was about to begin. Halifax Harbor smelled like salt water and diesel fuel.

 Morning fog rolled off the ocean. The temperature was about 50°. Cool, but not freezing. The women stood on the deck with almost 900 other prisoners. They still wore their chains. 8 days now. Greta’s wrists had stopped hurting. They just felt numb. The women lined up outside a processing building. They expected angry crowds. They expected people to throw things or yell.

Instead, they saw only organized military operations. A few civilians walked past, barely looking at them. The port facilities looked well-maintained. There was no bomb damage anywhere. Supplies were stacked in neat rows along the dock. A Canadian officer walked toward the line of women. He was tall and looked tired.

His uniform said Major Douglas Campbell. He was probably in his late 40s. He stopped when he saw the chains on their wrists. He stared for a moment. Then he turned to a younger officer next to him. “Get those off now,” Campbell said. The younger officer hesitated. “Sir, the regulations say.” Campbell cut him off.

His voice was firm. They’re not escaping anywhere, and they’re not animals. remove them. 10 minutes later, all 76 women had their chains removed. Greta touched her raw wrists. She couldn’t speak. She had worn those chains for 8 days. She thought she’d wear them forever. Or until something worse happened. Leisel started crying quietly.

 She put her face in her hands. Her shoulders shook and stood very still. Her mind was racing. They called us not animals. Who does that? What kind of enemy says that? The processing happened in a heated building. Each woman gave her name and information. Then they were taken to a dousing station.

 This was the part they all dreaded. But it was done professionally. The women were given privacy where possible. No one was cruel or rough. After dousing, each woman received fresh clothing. Canadian military surplus. The clothes were clean. They smelled like soap. Real soap. Greta held a shirt up to her face and breathed in.

 When was the last time anything she owned smelled this clean? Then came the showers. Hot water. Actual soap. Leisel stood under the water for a long time. This was her first real shower in 12 days, maybe longer. The hot water ran down her back. She watched the dirt swirl down the drain. Something inside her broke.

 Not in a bad way, in a way that let something else in. Something like hope or confusion or both. A medical officer examined Leisel’s shoulder wound. She was a woman in uniform. Dr. Margaret Chen. She spoke some German. This is healing well. Dr. Chen said, “We’ll check it every week. If you have pain, you tell us right away.

 Her voice was kind but professional. The first meal on Canadian soil came next. The messaul was warm. Each woman received a metal tray. On it was 8 oz of beef stew, two slices of bread with real butter, tea with sugar, a small portion of canned fruit. Greta looked at the food. This was about 850 calories in one meal.

 more food than she’d seen in a single sitting in 6 months. Leisel ate slowly. She kept expecting someone to take it away. No one did. She ate everything. Her stomach felt full for the first time in forever. Analisa watched the guards eating. They ate from the same kitchen, the same food. They weren’t eating better meals while prisoners got scraps.

 Everyone got the same thing. Greta couldn’t finish her food. Her stomach had shrunk from months of not eating enough. A guard noticed. He asked in broken German if she was okay. She nodded quickly. She was terrified, but he just walked away. He didn’t punish her for not finishing. Later that day, they were loaded onto buses, not trucks, buses with seats.

They were going to an internment camp. The guard said it was called Camp 30 in Bowmanville, Ontario, about 350 mi west. The 76 women were divided among three buses. Greta, Leisel, and Analisa ended up together. The journey took 8 hours. The women stared out the windows the whole time.

 They saw small Canadian towns intact, functioning. Children played in schoolyards. Gas stations had fuel. Store windows had goods inside. Farms had healthy cows and horses. How is this possible? Leisel whispered. They’re supposed to be suffering, too. Analisa did math in her head. If this was a colony struggling to survive, what did that make Germany? What did that make everything they’d been told? They reached camp 30 on May 1st, 1945.

From outside, it looked like a prison camp. Double fences, guard towers, barbed wire, and this looked familiar. This matched their expectations. But when the bus drove through the gates, things looked different inside. Rows of wooden barracks stood in neat lines. About 600 prisoners were already here, mostly men, German and Italian.

The women’s section was separate, its own compound within the main camp, six barracks just for women, built to hold 120 total. With the new arrivals, there were now 94 women. Greta, Leisel, and Anna were assigned to Bareric 3. 24 women would live here together. Inside, there were double bunk beds, 12 sets total.

 Each woman got two blankets, a pillow, and sheets, clean sheets. There were small foot lockers for personal items. A wood burning stove sat in the center of the room. The windows had real glass. Electric lights hung from the ceiling, and they worked. Greta touched the mattress. An actual mattress, not straw, not rags, a real mattress with padding.

 She thought of her family back in Hamburgg. They’d slept on floor mats all last winter. Dinner was served at 6:00 in the women’s messaul. Potato soup, bread, margarine, tea. The portions were adequate, not generous, but not starvation either. A woman named Helga, who’d been there for weeks, sat near them. She told them about the daily routine, work assignments, letters home, rules and schedules.

It’s not what we expected, Helga said. They follow rules. The Geneva Convention, they call it. Greta didn’t believe her. This had to be temporary, a trick. That night, lights went out at 10:00. Greta lay in her bunk staring at the dark ceiling. She touched her wrist where the chains had been. The skin was still tender.

Leisel whispered from the bunk below. “Do you think we’re actually safe here?” No one answered for a long time. Analisa finally spoke. “I don’t know what to think anymore.” She thought of her children in Austria. She thought of the chains being removed. She thought of the words, “They’re not animals. These people were supposed to destroy them.

 Instead, they’d shown them something else. Something an Analisa didn’t have a name for yet. The cognitive dissonance was just beginning. The wakeup bell rang at 6:30 in the morning. Greta opened her eyes. For a moment, she forgot where she was. Then she remembered Canada, a prison camp. But she’d slept in a real bed under clean blankets. She sat up slowly.

Breakfast came at 7:00. Porridge with a little sugar, bread, jam, tea. More food than Greta ate most mornings back in Germany. She still couldn’t finish it all. Roll call happened at 8:00. The women stood in lines outside the barracks. A guard counted them. He was polite. He didn’t yell. The whole thing took 10 minutes.

Then work assignments began at 8:30. Greta was assigned to the camp laundry. Leisel went to the kitchen because her shoulder was still healing. Light duty, they called it. Anna was sent to the administrative office. Someone noticed she had education and good handwriting. The laundry facility was unlike anything Greta had ever seen.

Industrial washing machines powered by electricity lined one wall. Hot water flowed from pipes at the turn of a handle. 400 lb of laundry daily. Greta had washed clothes by hand her whole life in cold water with harsh soap that hurt her hands. Her knuckles still bore the scars. Two Canadian supervisors ran the laundry. Both women, both civilians.

One was named Mrs. Patterson, about 52. Her husband was overseas with the Canadian army fighting Germans. She should hate us, Greta thought. But Mrs. Patterson just showed them how to use the machines. Kind but firm. No hatred in her eyes. Just work to be done. This confused Greta more than cruelty would have.

One morning, Mrs. Patterson asked Greta where she was from. Hamburg. Greta answered quietly. Mrs. Patterson nodded. Beautiful city. I hope it survives the war. Greta froze. Hamburg had been bombed heavily by these very allies. British and American planes had destroyed whole neighborhoods. Tens of thousands of people died.

 And this woman hoped it survived. It didn’t make sense. In the kitchen, Leisel discovered something that shattered her understanding of the world. The storage room was huge. Florida to ceiling shelves packed with canned goods, vegetables, fruits, meat, soup, beans, enough food to feed her entire village for months, and this was just one camp.

Sergeant Williams caught her staring. He was a big man with a loud voice, but kind eyes. First time seeing this much food, eh? Leisel could only nod. He shrugged. Canada is the bread basket. We grow more than we can eat. He showed her the delivery schedule. Flour by the ton, sugar, coffee, canned vegetables, fresh meat. The numbers made no sense.

 They’d starved back home while being told the Allies were starving worse. The math was simple now. She’d been lied to about everything. Analisa worked in the administrative office. She processed mail and kept records. The office had typewriters, carbon paper, filing cabinets with organized files. Each prisoner had a folder.

Inside was their capture date, health information, work assignment, any disciplinary issues. On the wall hung a poster, the Geneva Convention, printed in both English and German. Article 25 said prisoners must be kept in conditions as good as the soldiers guarding them. Analisa read it three times.

 Then she looked around the office. The camp really was following these rules. Exactly. Not better, not worse. Just exactly as written. Lunch came at noon. Soup, a sandwich, sometimes fruit if they had it. Then recreation time from 1 to 3 in the afternoon. The women’s compound had a volleyball court, a small library, benches to sit on, gardens that earlier prisoners had planted.

The library held 47 books in German. Local German Canadians had donated them. Greta found a copy of Gerta. She held it like treasure. The last time she read for pleasure was 2 years ago, maybe longer. Leisel watched the guards during their break time. They joked with each other, shared cigarettes.

 One guard tossed a baseball back and forth with another. They looked bored, normal, like regular people doing a regular job. In the evening, prisoners could write letters, one letter per week. The letters were read by sensors, but then sent to the Red Cross. The Red Cross would forward them to Germany. Analyza wrote to her children first.

 She couldn’t tell them exactly where she was. She couldn’t say too much, but she told them she was safe, fed, unheard. She wanted to write more. She wanted to say the enemy was treating her better than her own army had this past year. But how could she tell children that? She settled for simple words.

 I am being cared for. Do not worry. Greta wrote to her mother in Hamburg. The letter was stiff and formal. I am a prisoner, but well, the conditions are acceptable. I maintain my duty to the fatherland. She didn’t mention the chains being removed. She didn’t mention the food or the kindness.

 She couldn’t reconcile any of it with what she believed, so she wrote nothing about it. Leisel wrote to her parents on their farm in Bavaria. Her letter was honest and simple. I am safe. They feed us. No one has hurt me. I think of home every day. Then she added one more line. The guards removed our chains and apologized for them. I don’t understand this war anymore.

Dinner came at 5:30. similar portions to lunch. After dinner was free time until lights out. The women in bareric 3 talked quietly. Different perspectives emerged. The older women adapted faster. They’d seen more of life. They were more skeptical of what they’d been told. The younger women struggled.

 Their whole world view was cracking apart. A woman named Erica spoke up one evening. She was 44, a former nurse. I was at Stalenrad as a medical auxiliary. I saw our boys freeze, starve, die by the thousands. We were told it was necessary sacrifice, that the allies suffered just as much. She gestured around the warm barracks toward the stocked kitchen outside.

 Does this look like suffering to you? The silent said everything. Greta lay awake that second night in camp. She replayed everything in her mind, the chains removed, Mrs. Patterson’s kindness about Hamburg, the industrial machines, the abundance of everything. Her belief system said Germans were superior.

 The Allies were weak and decadent. Therefore, the Allies must be suffering even worse than Germany. But the evidence showed something completely different. The Allies had more than Germany ever had. They treated prisoners with dignity. They followed written rules. A thought crept into Greta’s mind. A dangerous thought.

 What if we were lied to about some things? She tried to push it away, but it stayed there, growing stronger every hour. Leisel stopped waiting for the other shoe to drop. By the third day, she accepted that this was real. They really were going to feed her. They really weren’t going to hurt her.

 Sergeant Williams taught her how to make bread the Canadian way. She laughed while kneading dough. Actually laughed. Then she felt guilty for laughing. Williams noticed. “It’s okay to laugh, kid,” he said gently. “War is nearly over anyway.” “Over?” Leisel looked up. She didn’t know how close the end was. Analisa kept investigating through her office work.

Camp 30 held 630 prisoners currently. 12 other camps existed across Canada. About 34,000 German prisoners total. All treated according to the same Geneva Convention rules. She found a note in one file that made her stomach drop. May 1945, news of German surrender to be announced gradually to prevent psychological crisis among prisoners.

 Germany had surrendered or was about to. Analisa said nothing to the others. Not yet. One week passed. May 7th, 1945. Routine had been established. Work, meals, letters, sleep. Greta still resisted accepting reality, but questions noded at her. Leisel was adapting and finding small moments of peace.

 Anelise watched everything, understanding more than she wanted to. That evening, the camp commandant called an assembly, all prisoners to the main yard. An announcement was coming. The three women stood together. Greta whispered, “What now?” Anaisa knew, but she didn’t say it out loud. Everything was about to change again.

 [snorts] All 630 prisoners stood in the main yard. It was 6:00 in the evening. The temperature was about 55°. A cool breeze came from the east. The women’s section stood separate from the men, but everyone could see each other. Camp Commandant Colonel Davies walked to a wooden podium. A German Canadian corporal stood next to him.

 He would translate. Greta’s stomach felt tight. This felt like bad news. Something terrible was coming. She could sense it. Colonel Davies cleared his throat. He spoke in English. The interpreter translated sentence by sentence. I have an announcement regarding the European War. Everyone went silent. 630 people holding their breath.

 At 2:41 in the morning yesterday, May 7th, Germany signed unconditional surrender to Allied forces in Reigns, France. Pause. The interpreter’s words hung in the air. The war in Europe is over. The silence lasted maybe 5 seconds. Then reactions exploded across the yard. Some German men wept openly. Some stood rigid like statues.

 Some collapsed to their knees. Among the women, the younger ones cried. The older ones went very still. Greta’s legs almost gave out beneath her. Leisel grabbed her arm to steady her. Ana closed her eyes. She’d known this was coming, but hearing it out loud made it real. Colonel Davies continued speaking. You will remain here as prisoners of war until repatriation arrangements are made with the occupation government of Germany.

 This could take months or longer. He paused. You will continue to be treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention. Your families will be notified of your status through the Red Cross. His voice softened slightly. I know this is difficult news. Chaplain and medical staff are available if you need them. Then he added something unexpected.

Many of you will have questions about what’s happening at home. We will provide what information we can. He dismissed the assembly. The prisoners walked back to their barracks in silence. Shock hung over the camp like fog. Back in barrack 3, 24 women tried to process what they’d just heard. Some were hysterical.

 What happens to us now? They cried. Some were angry. They’re lying. Germany cannot be defeated. Some sat in silence, unable to speak. Greta sat on her bunk shaking. The thousand-year Reich, inevitable victory, German superiority. Everything she’d believed her entire adult life, all of it was gone, just gone. Like it never existed. Leisel asked the question everyone was thinking.

 What happens to Germany now? No one had an answer. An hour later, something strange happened. Mrs. Patterson appeared at the barrack door. This was unusual. Civilians rarely entered the living quarters. She carried a cardboard box. Inside were packages of tea, biscuits, and chocolate bars. Private Schmidt came with her.

 He was young and spoke fluent German. He translated for Mrs. Patterson. She spoke slowly so he could keep up. I know today is hard, Mrs. Patterson said through Schmidt. I lost my son in Italy 2 years ago. War is terrible for everyone. She paused. Some women looked up. Greta stared at her. But you’re safe here, and when you go home, you’ll help build something better. Mrs.

 Patterson walked through the barrack handing out the treats. Real chocolate bars. Greta would remember this moment for the next 58 years until the day she died. Mrs. Patterson stopped at Greta’s bunk. She patted Greta’s shoulder gently. You’re young. You have a future. Don’t waste it on bitterness. Then she left quietly.

 Greta held the chocolate bar in her hands. This woman’s son had died fighting Germans. Germans like Greta. Maybe her son had died fighting Greta’s own countrymen, her comrades. And this woman brought them chocolate on the day their world ended. Something fundamental broke inside Greta. Not her spirit, something deeper, something that had been holding her beliefs together.

 That night, no one in Bareric 3 slept. Whispered conversations filled the darkness. Leisel asked, “My parents’ farm. Do you think it’s still there?” Another woman said, “My husband was on the Eastern front. If Germany surrendered, what happened to him? Finally, Greta spoke. Her voice was quiet but clear. We were told the Allies would destroy Germany. Rape and pillage.

Take revenge. She paused. They removed our chains. They feed us. They gave us chocolate when our nation died. Her voice cracked. What does that mean? Analyze answered from her bunk. It means everything we were taught was a lie. The next morning, May 9th, the routine continued. Wake up, breakfast, work assignments.

 But everything felt different. The world had ended yesterday. Yet, the machines in the laundry still needed running. The bread in the kitchen still needed baking. Greta reported to the laundry. Mrs. Patterson showed her how to operate the pressing machine. You’re good with your hands, Mrs. Patterson said. You were a teacher before, you said. Greta nodded.

You’ll teach again. Germany will need good teachers after this. After what? Greta asked. Mrs. Patterson’s face became serious. After they clean up the camps. Camps? The concentration camps. The news is coming out now. What they did to people there. Greta felt cold. That’s propaganda. Allied lies. Mrs. Patterson’s face hardened.

 I wish it was. Over the next week, newspapers arrived at the camp. They were censored, but they contained information. Articles about liberated concentration camps. Photographs from Bergen Bellson, from Dashau, from places Greta had never heard of. Anaisa saw them first in the administrative office. She felt physically sick looking at the pictures.

Piles of bodies, skeletal survivors. The evidence was undeniable. Some women refused to look. “Enemy propaganda,” they shouted. Some looked, but couldn’t process what they saw. Their minds rejected it. Anaisa forced herself to read every word. “She thought of her husband, who died on the Eastern Front. “What did you die for?” she whispered.

2 weeks after the surrender announcement, Greta reached her breaking point. It was May 23rd, a normal workday in the laundry. Mrs. Patterson’s sister came to visit. She brought her nephew, a little boy, about 8 years old. He was visiting from Toronto. Blonde hair, bright eyes, full of energy. He waved at Greta through the window.

 She waved back without thinking. Mrs. Patterson saw this and smiled. He likes everyone. Good kid. Something in Greta snapped. Not broke. Snapped into place. Or maybe snapped apart. She couldn’t tell which. The kindness, the normaly, the humanity of a child waving. Set against the propaganda of subhuman enemies. Set against the photographs of concentration camps.

Set against everything she’d believed her entire life, she excused herself, went to the latrine, and cried for the first time since her capture. Deep, shaking sobs that came from somewhere she didn’t know existed. Everything was a lie. All of it. Her whole life had been built on lies. That evening in Bareric 3, the women had divided into factions.

 those who still denied reality, those who accepted defeat but remained bitter, and those who were transforming. Greta spoke for the first time about what she was feeling. “I was a teacher,” she said. “I taught children that Germans were superior. I believed every single word.” She looked at her hands. “These hands taught lies to children.

” Analisa responded quietly. then use them to teach truth. Now, how? Greta’s voice broke. How do I go back and face what we’ve done? Leisel, always practical, said simply, “One day at a time, starting here. Starting now.” That night, Greta wrote a different kind of letter to her mother. An honest one. Mother, Germany has surrendered.

 I am a prisoner in Canada, but I am treated with more dignity here than I saw in our own country this past year. The guards removed our chains and called us human beings. Our enemy did this. I don’t know what this means yet, but I know everything we believed was wrong. I am afraid of what comes next, but I am alive and I am finally thinking clearly.

She sealed the letter, handed it to the sensor. She knew it might never arrive in Hamburgg, but she needed to write it anyway. The transformation had begun. Hey, pause here. If you’ve made it this far into the video, you’re exactly the kind of person I make these for. Thank you for being here.

 If you’re not subscribed yet, I’d be honored to have you. We’re building something special, a place where Canadian sacrifice is remembered. Subscribe and be part of it. All right. Where were we? June 1945. One month had passed since Germany surrendered. Bareric 3 had changed. The 24 women no longer felt like one group. They’d split into three different camps.

Eight women still believed in the old ways. They denied that defeat was real. Seven women accepted that Germany lost, but felt bitter about it. They blamed the leadership, not the ideas. Nine women had transformed completely. This group included Greta, Leisel, and Anaisa. The tensions grew worse each night.

 Arguments broke out after lights were supposed to be off. Friendships fractured. Women who’d shared bunks for weeks stopped speaking to each other. Greta found herself defending the Canadian treatment to women who thought kindness meant weakness. They don’t hit us because they won, Greta said one night. No, she corrected herself. They don’t hit us because they never intended to.

 The camp offered voluntary English classes twice a week. A local volunteer taught them. Her name was Mrs. Brennan. She was 62 years old and had been a school teacher before she retired. 34 prisoners signed up for the classes. Analisa joined immediately. Leisel signed up too, though she was nervous about it. Greta hesitated. Learning the enemy’s language felt like betrayal.

 But betrayal of what? A regime that had lied to her about everything. She signed up in the second week. Mrs. Brennan was patient and encouraging. She brought picture books, simple newspapers, easy readers designed for children. Anna Lisa excelled quickly. She’d already known some English before the war. Leisel struggled with pronunciation, but she tried hard.

 Greta discovered something wonderful. She loved teaching again. She helped other students practice their letters and words. In the laundry, Greta was now trusted with the complex machines. Mrs. Patterson shared stories about her life in Ontario. Her husband was still fighting in Holland. She worried about him but remained hopeful.

 She talked about their farm outside town, three dairy cows, a flock of chickens. She wanted to expand the dairy operation after the war. Maybe take in some refugees. German refugees? Greta asked. She was stunned. Refugees are refugees. Mrs. Patterson said simply. War orphans need homes. doesn’t matter where they’re from.

 This casual compassion still shocked Greta every single time. One afternoon, a washing machine broke down. The motor made a grinding noise and stopped. Greta looked at it carefully. She’d always been good at solving problems. She opened the back panel and saw that a belt had slipped off. She fixed it in 10 minutes. Mrs. Patterson watched her work.

 See, you’re good at this. You’re a smart woman. It was the first compliment Greta had received since capture that wasn’t about being obedient or following orders. It was about being capable, being intelligent, being human. In the kitchen, Sergeant Williams recognized Leisel’s reliability. He promoted her to assistant baker.

 She was still a prisoner, but now she had a trusted role. He taught her Canadian recipes, butter tarts, bananic bread. She wrote the recipes down carefully. She thought about teaching them to her mother back home someday. One day, Williams asked about her life before the war. Leisel told him the truth.

 Poverty on the farm, never enough food. Joining the military because the army fed her three meals a day. Williams was quiet for a moment. Then he said, “War takes advantage of people like you. People who are desperate.” “I’m sorry that happened.” “Why are you sorry?” Leisel asked. “You’re not the one who.” She stopped mid-sentence. The realization hit her hard.

 He wasn’t the one who lied to her. Her own government had done that. Analisa received more responsibility in the administrative office. She now processed repatriation paperwork. She learned that Germany had been divided into four occupation zones. American, British, French, Soviet. Prisoners would be sent home gradually. Mothers with children would go first.

People with serious health problems, then everyone else. She processed her own file one afternoon. Her status was pending. Her children’s location had been confirmed. They were safe in Austria. Her estimated repatriation date was late 1945 or early 1946. Several more months in Canada, maybe longer.

 She was surprised to find she wasn’t devastated by this news. She had routine here, purpose, safety. What waited for her in Germany? Rubble, occupation, shame. Lieutenant Morrison noticed how competent Analisa was. One day, he asked if she’d worked in administration before the war. “I was a legal secretary in Berlin,” she answered.

 “Before what?” “Before everything.” He didn’t push. He was always respectful. A few days later, he asked, “What will you do when you go back? Find my children. Then I don’t know. There’s nothing left there. There’s you, Morrison said. That’s that’s something. These small kindnesses accumulated. Day after day, week after week, they built up like layers of paint until Analisa could barely remember what she’d look like underneath.

 The letters the women wrote showed their transformation. Greta’s early letters were factual and defensive. By week seven, they were completely different. “Mother, I must tell you something difficult,” she wrote. “The concentration camps were real. I’ve seen the photographs. I’ve read the testimonies. What was done in our name? The Canadians here treat us with more humanity than we showed to others.

 This shames me, but it also gives me hope that humanity still exists, even after what we’ve done.” Leisel’s letters remained honest from the start. Papa the guard sergeant. Williams asked about our farm. He wants to know about Bavarian dairy methods. He treats me like a person who knows valuable things. I am learning English. I am learning that not everyone outside Germany is evil.

 I am learning that maybe we were the ones who did evil things. Analisa wrote carefully to her children. They were only six and nine. She couldn’t tell them everything yet. I am safe and working. The people here are kind. When I come home, we will build a new life together. In her private diary, she wrote what she couldn’t tell them.

How do I explain that their father died for a lie? That their mother served that lie willingly. How do we live with this? On July 15th, the tension in Bareric 3 finally exploded. After Lights Out, a woman named Breijgit confronted the transformed women. Breijgit was 28. She’d been a Nazi party member before the war.

 “You’ve all become traitors,” she said loudly. “Collaborators, weak.” Analisa responded calmly. “We’ve become honest. There’s a difference. They feed you and you forget everything Germany stood for. Breijgit’s voice rose. Greta spoke quietly. Germany stood for lies. I taught those lies to children.

 I will never forgive myself for that. You’re pathetic. Breit spat. Wait until we return home. You’ll see Germany rise again. Leisel surprised everyone with her fierceness. I hope Germany rises. But not that Germany. Never again that Germany. The argument escalated. Voices got louder. Guards had to intervene. The next day, the camp administration made a decision.

 They separated the women into different barracks based on their attitudes. 14 women moved to barrack 5. They’d self- selected as the transformed group. Greta, Leisel, and Analyza were among them. The atmosphere was completely different here. Women had honest conversations. They supported each other.

 They helped each other processed the trauma, guilt, and confusion. They jokingly called themselves die. The awakened ones. It was half joke, half serious. They formed a study group, practiced English together, discussed philosophy, planned for their futures. Private Schmidt sometimes joined their conversations. He was the young German Canadian interpreter.

 His parents had immigrated in 1928. They’d escaped before the Nazis rose to power. One evening, the women asked him directly. “Do you hate us?” “I hate what Germany became,” he said honestly. “I don’t hate you. You’re victims, too, in a way.” “Victims?” Greta challenged. We participated some more than others, but yes, you participated.

 Acknowledging that is the first step forward. He recommended books from the camp library. They started an informal book club. Remark Gouta Hessa. They were rediscovering German culture that hadn’t been poisoned by Nazi ideology. In August, news reached the camp. Atomic bombs had been dropped on Japan. The war was truly ending everywhere.

 Now in Bareric 5, the women tried to process the scale of destruction happening globally. We started this, Greta said. Germany started this war. And the world will remember, Ana Lisa added. Our children will inherit that shame. Leisel’s voice was firm. Then our children must do better. We must do better.

 That evening, the women of Bareric 5 wrote a collective letter to the camp commonant. They requested permission to work in the local community under supervision. We wish to contribute something positive before we leave, they wrote. It was the first step in their transformation from prisoners to people who wanted to rebuild.

 The response came one week later. Request approved. 12 women from Bareric 5 would work community service in Bowmanville. supervised and controlled, but real interaction with Canadian civilians. The next phase of their journey was about to begin. The community service program started in August 1945. 12 women from Bareric 5 were selected.

Greta, Leisel, and Analisa were among them. Every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, they worked three-hour shifts in the town of Bowmanville. Two guards escorted them. This was the first time they’d interacted with regular Canadian civilians beyond guards and supervisors. Greta was assigned to help at the local hospital.

 She worked in the hospital laundry, which was familiar, but she also helped with Germanspeaking patients. Some elderly German Canadians needed someone who spoke their language. One patient was Mrs. Holtz. She was 71 years old. She’d immigrated from Bavaria in 1905. One day, Mrs. Holtz told Greta about her grandson, Eric.

 He’d been killed in Holland in April 1945. Just weeks before the war ended. Greta expected hatred when she heard this. Instead, Mrs. Holt said, “The war took my Eric, but hating all Germans won’t bring him back.” I’m sorry, Greta whispered. I’m so sorry for what we did. You didn’t kill him, girl. But you can honor his memory by being better than what Germany became. Greta visited Mrs.

Holtz every week after that. A bond formed between them. Mrs. Holtz told her about the German Canadian community, how they’d struggled during the war, faced discrimination, had to prove they weren’t the enemy. You’ll have to do the same thing, Mrs. Holt said. Prove you’re different. Now, Leisel worked at the community garden.

She helped local families maintain their victory garden. Canadian farm families were curious about her. They asked questions about Germany. She answered honestly, told them about poverty, propaganda, desperation. One farmer was Mr. Chen. He was Chinese Canadian. He told Leisel his own story. he’d faced discrimination in Canada.

Ben interned briefly just for being Chinese. This country isn’t perfect, he said. But it’s trying to be better. Germany can too. Leisel planted turnips and potatoes alongside him. She thought of her father’s farm, wondered if it had survived the war. Analisa worked at the library. She helped reorganize the German language collection.

 The librarian was Miss Peterson. She was 45, had never married, and loved literature. Ana Lisa discovered something important. The library had kept significant German literature despite the war. Gerta, Schiller, men, the good parts of German culture. We don’t ban whole cultures, Miss Peterson explained.

 We ban specific dangerous ideas. They discussed literature and philosophy during slow afternoons. Analisa realized something profound. German culture could be separated from Nazi ideology. Your children can be proud of Beethoven and GA. Miss Peterson said they don’t have to carry Hitler. In September, letters from home finally arrived through the Red Cross.

 They’d taken two months to reach Canada. Greta received a letter from her mother. Hamburgg was in ruins. 50% of the city destroyed by bombing. The family was surviving in a partially damaged apartment. Food was scarce, but the British occupation was providing rations. Her mother’s tone was defeated and exhausted. Come home when you can.

 We need you here. Leisel’s letter from her father brought better news. The farm was intact. They were in the American occupation zone. The Americans had taken some livestock but paid for it. The village had only light damage. We are ashamed of what Germany did. Her father wrote, “Come home. We love you.” Analisa’s letter came from her sister who was caring for the children.

 They were safe in Austria. They asked about their mother constantly. They didn’t fully understand the war yet. They need you. come soon. Repatriation planning began in October. The first wave of prisoners would go home soon. Mothers with young children had priority. So did the critically ill and elderly. Analisa was selected for a December transport because her children were under 10 years old.

 Greta and Leisel would have to wait until February or March 1946. All three women had mixed feelings. They wanted to go home, but they feared what home had become. They’d grown used to the safety and routine here. Christmas 1945 came. The camp provided a modest celebration, extra rations, carol singing, German and Canadian carols both.

 Guards shared cookies their families had sent from home. Major Campbell gave a brief speech. This is the last Christmas of this war. Next year you’ll be home. Make it count. The women of Bareric 5 exchange handmade gifts. Greta knitted mittens for Leisel. Leisel made Anelise a pressed flower bookmark. Analisa wrote each of them a letter describing what she’d learned from their friendship.

 On December 15th, Ana prepared to leave. She gathered her few belongings. The camp gave her travel papers, $20 Canadian, and a warm coat. She said goodbye to the women of Bareric 5. To Greta, she said, “Teach truth. That’s your purpose now.” To Leisel, “Don’t forget how to laugh. The world needs joy.” She hugged them both. Then she boarded a transport with 23 other women heading to the British zone of Germany. The journey took 3 weeks.

Train to Halifax. Ship to Southampton. Train through devastated Germany to the British zone. Analisa arrived in Hamburgg on January 8th, 1946. The devastation was beyond anything she’d imagined. Rubble everywhere. Displaced persons wandering the streets. British soldiers maintaining order. She processed through a repatriation center.

They gave her a food voucher, temporary papers, and a travel permit to Austria. It took 5 days to reach her children by train. The infrastructure was destroyed. Bridges were out. Trains ran on temporary schedules. But finally, she reached the small Austrian village. Her daughter Elsie was nine now. Her son Klouse was six.

 They barely remembered her. She barely recognized herself, but they were alive. She’d kept her promise. Back at camp 30, Greta and Leisel were among the last 40 women remaining. The camp felt empty. Most prisoners had already gone home. They continued their work in community service and English classes.

 Greta was now fluent enough to have real conversations. Mrs. Patterson made an unexpected offer. If you ever want to come back to Canada, write to me. We sponsor immigrants. Greta was touched. I have to help rebuild Germany first, but thank you. Leisel asked Sergeant Williams, “Will you remember us, kid? I’ll never forget you.

 You taught me that people are people, no matter what uniform they wore.” On March 3rd, 1946, the last transport departed. 40 prisoners, 14 women, Greta and Leisel, together until the very end. Major Campbell gave final words. You arrived as enemies. You leave as human beings who’ve learned hard truths. Use them well.

 They boarded the train to Halifax. The ship crossing took 11 days. March 10th to 21st. the same duration as when they’d arrived, but everything was different. No chains, no fear, only uncertainty about the future. They arrived in Bremer Havin on March 22nd. Germany was in ruins. They were interrogated about war crimes. Both were cleared.

 They received ration cards and travel permits. At the train station, they said their final goodbye. Leisel’s train headed south to Bavaria. Greta’s went to Hamburgg. They exchanged addresses. Write to me. Promise, Leisel said. I promise. We’re sisters now. War made us enemies, but truth made us sisters. The trains departed in opposite directions.

Greta arrived in Hamburgg on March 25th. The city was unrecognizable. She found her mother’s building, climbed three flights of damaged stairs, knocked on the door. Her mother opened it. She’d aged a decade, thin, exhausted. They stared at each other. “Moody, I’m home. Greta, my girl.” They embraced. Her mother whispered, “You’re alive.

” “Thank God.” Greta whispered back, “I learned things. Terrible important things. We need to talk.” She stepped inside to begin rebuilding from the rubble, both literal and metaphorical. Greta spent 1946 living with her mother in a partially rebuilt Hamburg apartment. She applied to teach again, but first had to go through denatification.

[snorts] British occupation officials interviewed her for months. She told them the truth. I taught Nazi ideology to children. I was wrong. I want to teach truth now. In 1947, after a year-long process, she was cleared to teach. She was assigned to an elementary school in a rebuilt section of Hamburgg.

 She taught history, German, and ethics. The new curriculum emphasized democratic values and critical thinking. She never hid her P experience from students. She used it as a teaching tool. I learned that propaganda works, she told them. I believed lies. Question everything, even your teachers. Greta never married. This was partly by choice, partly by circumstance.

 She maintained letters with Leisel until 1948. Then the correspondence became sporadic, but she wrote to Mrs. Patterson in Canada twice a year until Mrs. Patterson died in 1963. In 1952, a German graduate student interviewed Greta for research on P experiences. The students thesis was later published as a book.

 Greta’s testimony became central to it. One quote became famous. They removed our chains and called us human. That single act did more to defeat Nazi ideology than a thousand propaganda pamphlets. Leisel returned to her family’s farm in Bavaria, the American occupation zone. The farm had damage but was functional. Her family was intact.

 She used the Canadian baking techniques she’d learned to supplement the farm income. In 1948, she opened a small bakery in the village. In 1950, she married a local farmer named Hans. He’d lost a leg in the war. Neither of them discussed the war much. They focused on building a future instead. They had three children born in 1951, 1953, and 1955.

Leisel taught them English using what she’d learned in Canada. She told them carefully edited stories about her time far away. Once I was in a place where people were kind to me when they didn’t have to be. Remember that kindness matters. In the 1970s, Leisel’s Village established an exchange program with a town in Ontario.

It was near Bowmanville. By coincidence, Leisel became the coordinator. It was the first time in 25 years she’d publicly discussed her P experience. In 1975, at age 49, she made an emotional return visit to Canada. She visited the site of camp 30. It had been demolished. Residential houses stood there now.

 She placed flowers where Bareric 5 once stood. She met Sergeant Williams widow. Williams had died in 1968. His widow said, “He talked about you girls often. He said you taught him something about humanity he never forgot.” Leisel replied, “He taught us the same thing.” Analisa rebuilt her life in Austria with her children.

 She worked as a translator for American occupation forces. Her English and German skills were valuable. Later, she became a court translator in Vienna. She advocated for fair treatment of former PS in legal proceedings. In 1952, she remarried, an Austrian lawyer who was also a widowerower. She helped her children understand their father’s death.

 He died believing something that wasn’t true, but he loved us and that love was real. [snorts] In the 1960s, Anaisa wrote a memoir. It was never published commercially, but was preserved in Austrian archives. She titled it From Chains to Understanding, a German woman’s Canadian captivity. In one passage, she wrote, “We expected barbarism and received civilization.

 We expected revenge and received justice. We expected hatred and received the possibility of redemption. I returned to Germany carrying this lesson. I tried to pass it to my children and they to theirs. This is how we rebuild from ashes. One act of unexpected humanity at a time. In 1965, the three women had a reunion in Vienna, 20 years since their captivity ended.

 All three were now in their 40s and 50s. They spent a weekend together. The first time since 1946, they walked Vienna streets and shared memories. Greta asked, “Do you ever wonder what would have happened if they’d treated us the way we expected?” Leisel answered, “We’d have stayed bitter and angry, forever enemies.” Analisa added, “Instead, we learned the world could be different than we’d been taught. We carried that knowledge home.

Studies done after the war showed Canadian P camps were among the most humane. German prisoners who returned from Canada had lower rates of returning to extremist politics. Many maintained positive views of Canada. Some immigrated there later. Of the 76 women in their original transport, 14 immigrated to Canada between 1950 and 1970.

31 became active in peace movements. Eight became teachers like Greta. Most lived quiet lives, carrying their lessons privately. Greta taught until she retired in 1985. She became a mentor to young teachers. She gave talks about propaganda and critical thinking. Her last public appearance was in 2001 at a Hamburg school.

 Students asked what the most important lesson from her life was. That ordinary people can believe terrible things if those things are repeated often enough, she said. And that other ordinary people can show you the truth through simple kindness. Both are always possible. Choose carefully which kind of ordinary person you become.

 She died peacefully in 2003 at age 83. Her students raised money for a scholarship in her name. Leisel lived a quiet life, farming, baking, raising family. Her grandchildren knew she’d been a P, but not the details. In 2009, her granddaughter interviewed her for a university journalism project. The full story emerged on tape.

 Why didn’t you tell us all this before? her granddaughter asked. “You needed to grow up without the weight of it,” Leisel answered. “Now you’re ready.” The tapes were donated to Bavarian Archives. She died in 2010 at age 84. Surrounded by family, her funeral included Canadian butter tarts made from Sergeant Williams’s recipe.

 Analisa remained intellectually active. She completed her memoir but never sought a publisher. “It’s for my children and grandchildren, not the world,” she said. But she donated the materials to archives in 1995. A filmmaker interviewed her for a documentary about women PS. Her testimony became the most moving part of the film.

 She died in 1998 at age 85. Her children published her memoir privately. 200 copies for family and archives. Three ordinary women caught in extraordinary evil. Treated with unexpected humanity. Transformed by that humanity. They spent the rest of their lives trying to pass it forward. Their stories were preserved in archives, letters, memoirs, and interviews.

Small ripples in the vast ocean of history, but ripples nonetheless. Anna Lisa’s final words in her memoir captured everything. We arrived in Canada as enemies, chained and terrified. When those chains were removed, when we were called not animals, something in us broke. Not our spirits, but our lies.

 The lesson was simple but profound. The strongest response to hatred is not matching hatred, but demonstrating the humanity that hatred denies. Germany fell because it forgot this. We survived because Canada remembered it. I spent the rest of my life trying to honor that lesson. That is all any of us can do. Remember, we are all human.

Treat each other accordingly and teach our children to do the same. One act of unexpected kindness at a