The rainbow never sets

T.B. patients, situated in the South West of Berlin, outside the city perimeter.

I was put in a room with 11 other patients, all of them adult soldiers. As I had no change of clothes since the fire, and no opportunity to get a new supply, my underwear was filthy and in tatters, and I was ashamed of being so dirty and wearing rags. I didn't know how to dispose of them, so I just hid them under the mattress of my bed.

The air raid sirens went off in bright daylight. "You must get up and come with us into the shelter," a room mate said. "Can't I just stay here? It doesn't matter, if a bomb hits us I'll be dead and no more pains."

"Not possible. These are the orders." I got up with some effort, wrapped a blanket around me and made for the cellar with the others. But they were walking far too fast for me. I practically crawled the last few meters, just in time before the bombs began to fall. There were no seats left, so I just crumpled up in a heap on the floor, with my back to the wall. The wall opposite was only four meters away. I felt claustrophobic, especially when the walls began to shake every time a bomb hit nearby. There was deathly silence all around. Sometimes pieces of plaster come down. I thought, 'not here Lord'. Having come so far, I didn't want to be buried alive here.

Back in my ward I was given sulphur drugs as my first treatment. It helped slightly, but I was still feeling terribly weak. A nurse came in: "There is another FLAK helper in a ward next door. Why don't you go and see him. I must warn you, though, he is not very well. You might be able to cheer him up a bit."

"What do you mean by cheering him up? I think I need cheering up." "You'll see."

He was in a bad way. "I'm Dieter, in the ward next door to yours. They told me that you had a mastoid operation?"

"Yes, about a week ago." "And how are you feeling?" "No good. I don't know what it is, but I don't feel any better than before."

"I thought you might tell me a bit about your operation, as I might have to go through one myself."

"Oh, the operation was all right. Slept right through it. I just don't seem to be able to pick up since."

"You feel a bit hot, have you still got a temperature?" "38.9."

"That's pretty high." "They are giving me sulphur tablets, but they don't seem to have an effect."

"I'm on sulphur tablets too. You're supposed to drink a lot with this

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