Great site all the way around.
Interesting ans sometimes even amusing insights of POW experiences
Such as this one about a particular German guard
Heinrich Zufall "Grumpy" - North 2 Compound
"Oberfeldwebel (tech sergeant) Heinrich Zufall, was 54 years old. He had the typically rosy cheeks of a north German, and we called him “Grumpy,” but not to his face.
“Grumpy” was, in fact, a good man. He never broke the rule of not trading with us, and we certainly did not try to get him to. We always left a package of cigarettes from a Red Cross parcel lying on the table, open with a few cigarettes poking out to be taken. He would arrive unannounced in the small room, plunk himself down on a bench, and say, “Guten Morgen.” I spent a lot of time with Willie ( Lt. William Gambrell - the barracks translator) and his roommates, and got to know Grumpy to an extent, too. Without asking permission in any way, Grumpy would help himself to a smoke or two or three, and engage Willie in a conversation that might go on for an hour. Grumpy’s son had been killed while flying as the rear gunner in a Ju-87B Stuka dive bomber. Grumpy’s brother, 56 years old, was killed in the infantry on the eastern front. Grumpy was no fan of Hitler or the Nazis, that was clear. But he was a good soldier.
One day Willie pulled a prank that was a classic. Here’s the way the conversation went:
Willie: “Warum sprechen Sie kein Englisch?” (“Why don’t you speak some English?”)
Grumpy: “Ja. Es ist zu compliziert.” (“It is too complicated.)
Willie: “Es ist einfach. Sie könnten sagen, ‘Guten Morgen’ auf Englisch. (“It is simple. You could at least say ‘good morning’ in English.”)
Grumpy: “Ja. Wie sagt mann ‘Guten Morgen’ auf Englisch?” (“OK, how does one say ‘Guten Morgen’ in English?”)
Then, without warning us in any way, Willie came back with:
“Mann sagt ‘How’s your donut hanging?‘”
I thought I would explode laughing, but I dared not so much as snicker, and the other three guys in the room contained themselves with considerable difficulty, just as I did.
So thereafter when Grumpy came into the little room, we insisted that he say “Guten Morgen” in English, and he would manfully do his best. We never even grinned. But it was great fun. "
William F. Miller
Stalag Luft I POW- North 2 Compound
