The Berlin Wall

An east german guard reflects on the coming down of the berlin wall

“10^th November 1989 - The Berlin Wall comes down.” This was the headline I read as I unfolded the yellowed paper. I always wondered why I kept this tattered scrap in the back of my wallet. I searched for the author, and read my name.

It was the sort of context you forget to tell new people: it was the last article I wrote before resigning. 

**

The jeep picked up speed. The surrounds of East Berlin, the highrise partments, the stone statues; they all amalgamated. A hazy blur of urban grey.

I looked down, feeling the familiar weight of my silver Kodak bouncing up and down on my lap as the Jeep hounded against the eroded concrete road. More than just a mechanical contraption, this silver companion captured all my journalistic visions. Then I saw the Berlin wall, like a speck of grey against the metropolitan palette, It’s certainty provided me with a sense of comfort

“The Berlin Wall: We need protection from fascists”

My pen formed these words against the writing pad, and I could see the headline as it would appear in print.

 

The jeep had finally arrived at Checkpoint Charlie. I stepped out and looked ahead.

The fabled Berlin wall stood ominously before me the concrete slabs shooting up into the sky. The never-ending expanse extended beyond my field of vision and across the Berlin skyline, conglomerating into a blurry grey haze.  As I gazed in awe my fingers subconsciously reached into my pocket and rested on my Kodak.

I paused momentarily to think. Then the movements of my pen forged the first few sentences “More than just a physical Wall, safeguard protects us from the political tyranny that lies rampant on the Western side. ”

 

I began walking towards the monument. However, today it was unrecognisable. The spectacle was unlike ever before.

Uneasiness, the sort I’d felt before in this city, crept over me.

I tensed. The venomous sting of anxiety pierced my thoughts.

 

“Tor auf!” (Open the gate!). The screeching cries of protest were masked by the rhythmic chants of encouragement from the masses that rung against my eardrums.

 

The wall was animated, almost alive. Exuberant crowds perched precariously on top and overflowed, falling onto either side.

I looked around. Men of all ages produced chisels and chipped away at the monumental concrete megalith. The high-pitched squeals of metal against rock pierced the thick atmosphere.

 

My eyes cycled through the faces of these men, teeth grit with determination as they brought their hammers down against the titanic wall. However, they seemed to remain nonchalant towards the cocked Kalashnikovs of the East German guards, as if their steely resolve would somehow bring salvation from those well-oiled barrels.

The threat of the guns loomed well over me and I felt their aim

Mesmerised by the audacity of this defiant act, I felt an instinctive pull tug me towards this rebellious moment. I brought by Kodak up towards my eyes and fleeting flash of the lens sealed this moment eternally on the sepia film.

 

Then, with the final swing of metal against rock, a small hole was gouged in the wall. The crowd immediately erupted into an ear splitting bellow, captivated by this tiny symbol of hope.

 

My neck craned sideways, aiming for a clearer glimpse of what lay on the other side...
I immediately recoiled in shock. Not mindless followers of a totalitarian regime, but young, children, eyes twinkling and blithe towards the strife that marred the city.

 

* * *

The day progressed far beyond the hands of the clock and the bright rays of sunlight transformed into the dim glow of the moon, but despite this, both sides of Germans remained oblivious. Like a swarm, they tirelessly persevered in their quest to badger and penetrate the recesses of the grey concrete walls.

The cracks in the wall ever so gently began to enlarge as the concrete began to give way.

Then, it fell.
A cloud of dust and rubble

The bustle quietened into a deep lull. Both sides exchanged confused looks, bewildered as to what they were now meant to do. They lay in perpetual awe of their accomplishment.

 “Berlin wurde befreit!“ (Berlin has been liberated), the shout of a young boy echoed through the dusty air, piercing the silence.
The crowds immediately erupted into an intense aural haze.
“Berlin wurde befreit!“ Berlin wurde befreit!“
The exhilaration of the masses spared none and consumed all. The unmistakable bliss of every man, woman and child overcame the once rocky relationship between the two sides.
Unexpectedly,I felt pure euphoria coursing through my veins and infusing the blood that pumped through my heart. 
The unmistakable humanity between the sides pried open a very special place in me,. I too felt the freedom of an East German, finally liberated with the gift of compassion. As the loud burst of fireworks rung through, I climbed up onto the wall and the flash of my kodak through the night sky sealing this moment forever in history.

I arrived as nothing more than a sensationalised journalist, whose sole intentions selfishly revolved around collecting footage to feed the political propaganda and regime of the East.

Yet I feel like I too have been battling this partition for years, this was much my liberation as it was Germany’s. The people on the other side are nothing more than that, people. Like us they have hopes, dreams and fears. They cannot be simply be reduced to this gross caricature of ignorant fascist doctrination spread by the propaganda of the east.

The Berlin wall, that ominous barrier was, after 30 years of repressing freedom, knocked down due to the resilience of humanity and instead replaced with the freedom of emancipation.
I gazed upwards, as the beautiful colours of fireworks melted into the night sky, illuminated by the cheers of a city that finally been liberated. My grimy face cracked a small smile.