The Desperate Days
GL Dorion
- The
- idealistic
- Anna
- tells
- her
- Warsaw
- University
- medical
- school
- friends
- during
- the
- 1939
- German
- invasion
- they
- should
- meet
- the
- German
- soldiers
- with
- Tolstoyan
- passive
- resistance,
- not
- violence.
All
- were
- drinking
- beer
- in
- the
- cafe,
- except
- Anna
- who
- had
- classes.
“Yes,
- Comrade
- Anna.
- If
- a
- German
- fascist
- comes
- at
- me
- with
- his
- semi-automatic
- blazing
- away,”
- said
- Victor,
- “I’ll
- just
- show
- him
- your
- copy
- of
- Tolstoy,
- and
- say,
- ‘Hey,
- please
- stop.
- There’s
- a
- better
- way
- than
- violence.
- Let
- me
- show
- you
- this
- book
- I’ve
- been
- reading.”
All
- in
- the
- group
- -
- about
- ten
- people,
- most
- of
- them
- drunk
- –
- laughed
- uproariously.
“You
- know,
- you
- guys
- should
- fucking
- grow
- up!”
- Anna
- said.
- “And
- I
- wouldn’t
- go
- off
- making
- fun
- of
- Tolstoy.
- If
- Germany
- attacks
- us,
- the
- Soviets
- may
- well
- help
- their
- good
- comrades
- in
- Poland.
- Just
- because
- the
- Russians
- exploited
- us
- in
- the
- past
- doesn’t
- mean
- it’ll
- happen
- again.
- They
- are
- our
- comrades
- now.
- We
- are
- all
- in
- this
- together
- as
- good
- communists.
- So,
- you
- know
- something,
- you
- can
- insult
- Tolstoy
- all
- you
- want
- but
- you
- get
- fucking
- stupid
- sometimes
- when
- you
- drink!
- I’ve
- got
- to
- get
- to
- class.
- Good-bye
- comrades.”
“The
- group
- roared
- again
- with
- laughter.
- Victor
- stood
- up
- and
- raised
- his
- glass
- prompting
- the
- rest
- of
- the
- group
- to
- stand
- and
- raise
- their
- glasses.
- “To
- Comrade
- Anna,
- Comrade
- Tolstoy
- and
- Comrade
- Stalin!
- May
- they
- save
- Europe
- and
- the
- world
- from
- Comrade
- Hitler!”
- The
- group
- roared
- again,
- and
- drank
- the
- full
- drought
- of
- beer
- left
- in
- their
- glasses
“Drunken
- fools!”
- Anna
- shouted.
An
- hour
- later,
- the
- bombs
- rained
- down
- on
- the
- cafe
- .
Anna's
- ordeal
- had
- just begun.
pro-mbooks3 : libris
