WWII | itsawonderfilledlife

Posts Tagged ‘WWII’

Christmas Movie Must See

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged 1944, battle of the bulge, christmas, christmas movie, Fritz Vincken, Hallmark movie, Linda Hamilton, movie, Noche de Paz, Redemption, silent night, Unsolved Mysteries, WWII on December 8, 2013| 2 Comments »

I do love watching Christmas movies. Last year, in a Christmas movie post called Christmas Movie Themes I came to realize that the movies that I had chosen all shared a common theme … redemption. The one I want to share today contains the same theme, and in such a beautiful, such a tender way.

It is a movie that is told to be based on true events. The details are such that it is almost unbelievable, yet my soul hopes and desires to dream that it could be so. According to Unsolved Mysteries, who had aired the story, it was true, and solved.

220px-Silent_Night_VideoCover The movie is called “Silent Night” and it is set in Germany, on Christmas Eve, in 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge. It is the story of a twelve year old German boy, Fritz Vincken, and his mother, who were staying in their cottage in the woods. That night, they had two sets of visitors, a group of three American soldiers looking for a place for an injured soldier, followed by a group of three German soldiers.

What follows is a retelling of that Christmas Eve night.

This Hallmark, TV movie, first aired in 2002, the same year that Fritz Vincken died.

Linda Hamilton plays Elizabeth, the mother of young Fritz, and she does so convincingly.

This is one of my most favorite movies of the season. It reminds us of common human experiences, and emotions, even for wartime enemies. It captures an impossible scenario, one of peace in the midst of war.

Check your local TV listings, as I am certain that it will be on this season. It is also available on Youtube, in parts, which you will see after watching the following trailer.

This is a link to a written interview with Fritz Vincken

Read Full Post »

War: Professional Enemies Verses Human Friends

Posted in canada, Guest Post, life, WONDER, tagged armistice day, Falkland War, Freedom, Mariano Velasco, Neil Wilkenson, Redemption, Remembrance Day, soldiers, veterans day, wars and rumors of wars, Worship, WWII on November 11, 2012| Leave a Comment »

“And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.
See that you are not alarmed,
for this must take place,
but the end is not yet.”
Matthew 24:6

I do not know all that is involved in the meaning behind the passage above. Wars and rumors of wars have been taking place almost since Adam and Eve first ate of the fruit that they were instructed not to eat.

Today is Remembrance Day (Veterans Day, Armistice Day) a day that brings a watery-eyed stare to the eyes of veterans, a day for those of us living in peace and freedom an opportunity, not to glorify war, but to thank those who sacrificed for the gift of peace and freedom.

There is nothing like hearing the stories of freedom attained during WWII as the Canadian soldiers (and others) marched into Holland, or the stories of Jews who survived the Holocaust, because of the freedom attained through the lives of others, to push me to a cenotaph on November 11 … it is the least I could do.

Soldiers are not warmongers, they are men and women who are called to give … give their time, their youth, their will, and even their lives. They are fulfilling not a desire to kill, but a desire to prevent others from being killed, abused, demeaned, disrespected. They are fulfilling their job, as instructed to do so.

But it does not mean that those with whom they are enemies in wartime, are enemies in times of peace.

My family and I are blessed to see the redeeming work of God every Sunday, just by going to church. You see, the make up of our church is something that only God could do, and He has done it so well. On any given Sunday our sanctuary is filled with individuals from all over the world. And, in the pews sit many veterans … Canadian, German, and (until recent years) Russian … wartime enemies, peacetime friends.

I struggled with locating a ‘guest post’ for today. I so wanted something that would be meaningful, respectful, honoring.

So, in light of my earlier words about freedom, I want to introduce you to Neil Wilkenson, a British Gunner during the Falkland War, and Argentinean fighter pilot Mariano Velasco. During this war Neil shot Mariano’s plane down, and has been dealing with post traumatic demons ever since. In an effort to find inner peace, Neil wanted to find out what happened to the fighter pilot he shot down. This is the story of their reunion, and the freedom that was found by these wartime enemies.

In the words of Neil, “the welcome was everything I had thought of, no thoughts of hatred, nothing but pure admiration for each other and as former professionals we both understood it was our duty to carry out what we had against each other back in 1982.”

Another, more intensive link is here.

Read Full Post »

Their Sacrifice Goes On

Posted in canada, GOD, WONDER, tagged ceremony, chapel, fighter pilot, I got it, Memories, on-going, Remember, Remembrance Day, sacrifical, Sacrifice, share, soldier, speak, veteran, war stories, world war 2, WWII, youth on November 9, 2012| Leave a Comment »

As I sat looking at the schedule for chapel at school, back in September, my eyes glanced Remembrance Day chapel, and the name of the teacher who is responsible each year for it. Immediately the name and face of man in our church came to mind.

This man is a veteran of World War II, during which he served as a fighter pilot, out of the airfields of Britain. He has seen, smelled and felt the glories and agonies of many battle successes as well as defeats, including being shot down resulting in the loss of three fingers, and in the loss of many fellow soldiers.

There have been sharing times at our church when he has bravely bared his heart through his memories of his time at war. His speaking is always well delivered, clear, authoritative and moving. He can draw a picture in the mind of the listener when he speaks. His stories contain real, vivid memories of specific battles, when only a small portion of his comrades returned afterward, stories of sorrow, stories of loss, stories that always end with a mention of wishing he had known then about the God who had His hand on his life, even though it he had not known him personally until more than sixty years later.

Well I spoke to this veteran, excited by my great idea to have him share his story with today’s youth. I just knew that he would be the man who would share in such a way that the listeners would not hear of the gore of video games and movies, but of the real experiences and emotions that war produces, as well as a sincere interjection of how faith, however late in life is found, is never too late.

The response from this man, this veteran, adequately sat me back on my behind. His response was sacrificial … he would agree to do it, but only because my hubby and I love him, and he loves us.

All of a sudden, I got it … I got the message that Remembrance Day should provide for all of us who have so little to remember. That message is that the stories that we hear, the remembering that we are exposed to, are not just ceremony with hymns, trumpets and marching, they are not just stories, like fairy tales from a book. They are the memories of men and women who have sacrificed for freedom. They are memories that communicate that the sacrifice is on-going. It did not end when the war was declared ended, it does not end until their inner war is finally declared finished, one that ushers them from this life and into the next.

The following Sunday I spoke with him, thanked him, and told him that our friendship was in no way a reason for him to have to re-live his memories. I told him our friendship would never ask such a sacrifice of him … that he had sacrificed enough already.

With tears in his eyes, he said he just didn’t think he could do it. And that is okay, because he has done enough already!

Read Full Post »