Russia
invaded Lithuania when Vytas and Danute were nine years old. Both their families
walked away - yes, literally walked away, from the home they loved, where as
children they played and worked, Vytas on a farm, Danute in the
city.
Vytas's farm family walked,
moving from farm to farm in Prussia working for German farmers. When the front
reached them, they headed into Germany for safety. As they came to the narrow
bridge crossing the border with thousands of others, Vytas's father noticed the
massive traffic jam of wagons, walkers and bikers continuing on the highway. He
decided to take his family a different way. Those traveling with the family
objected. Surely, they thought, it would be safer to stay with the group. The
side road through the forest was hard to travel and would take longer. His
father acknowledged that was all true. But, he said, those on the highway are
sitting ducks. They were barely into the forest when the planes swept down over
the mass of people, Lithuanians and retreating Germans, on the highway; sitting
ducks.
Danute's family tried to
leave by train. They procured space on a train bribing the engineer with a
radio. The space he gave them was buried beneath the coal pile in the engine
room. Trying not to breathe in the coal dust and aching with the weight of the
coal, they were grateful for what they thought would be safe passage into
Germany. The engineer betrayed them, keeping the radio. When they finally
managed a place on another train, they learned only Germans and injured soldiers
were allowed off the train at the German stops. They crisscrossed eastern Europe
several times, imprisoned on the train, before finally making their way into
Germany, and disembarking, where the refugees were supposedly safe.
The
entire story of Vytas and Danute is told in a new release Rock and Hard Place, A Lithuanian Love Story.
The title refers to the Lithuanian people caught between a Russian
invasion and a German betrayal. Their stories begin in 1930 and continue into
the 80's. Theirs is an inspirational story of faith and courage and love. As the
book releases this week, the author notes with sadness that this week it could
be re titled to Rock and a Hard Place, A Ukrainian Horror Story.
Deanna lives in the mountains of western North Carolina with her
childhood sweetheart and their rescued golden retriever, Buddy. She
belongs to a bookclub and the Cashiers, NC Writers Group. The
author is a member of Society of Children's Book Writers and
Illustrators (SCBWI), American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), North
Carolina Writers Network (NCWN), and Catholic Writers Guild (CWG). Learn more about her and her books by going to her website.
