Twenty-two Days or Half a Lifetime [antikvár]

October 14 U',' ii . ' 'jVf: i ¦ , ' ; ¦ ' i I i ' . : • jv' . I ¦ !. ^ : i, i 'I , ' Berlin, East Station, Platform A, North-South Express, 23:45 - the night-time atmosphere of this station seems, as always, nice and snug: the night is black and the lights are subdued, the sky is a vault of iron over solid ground, with pigeons sleeping in safe nests. Little clouds drift by, milk-white and plump, tame dragons snort in their harness, and what otherwise would be wolf and sheep, lion and Iamb, ''' j J ' : ;, ' leopard and gazelle, lies in close embrace, free from fear or suspicion, each with the other's welfare at heart. God is near and accessible. His order intelligible, the archangel wears a red cap, the guardian angel a red sash, the snake shall not enter here, and even He with the sooty face performs a useful service. O brave, sound world ,y • ; Perhaps a few palm trees should be installed National character reflected in leave-taking. I believe the German feels purified Obsessive fear: having to share a compartment with someone who has just completed his doctoral thesis on "The Epic Theater, and Bertolt Brecht as Dramatist." Sigh of relief : the other bed has not been let down Next door in the open compartment: two generals, their collars unbuttoned. One is reading the newspaper - a very strange sight. A book would be conceivable and within the tradition. A newspaper seems all wrong. Why? (I think I know and of course immediately a memory: the general inside the kasha cauldron in the POW camp. It being his turn to