Comments by "Itinerant Patriot" (@itinerantpatriot1196) on "What Happened to German Soldiers After WW2? | Animated History" video.

I had an aunt who was part of the Hitler youth. She married my uncle who was part of the occupying force and he brought her back to Canada with him when his time in the military was up. She had a heavy accent but I remember being told to never ask her about that, Germany, the war, and especially Hitler. I never did and she just recently passed away. Now that I think back on it I'm sorry no one ever spoke with her about her experience. My dad told me she had no choice but to join the youth and now that I have a better understanding of how totalitarian governments operate I get it. Still, people like her had valuable lessons to teach us but because the atrocities of the Third Reich were so incomprehensible and the shame so great for a large portion of the population she swallowed her memories and beyond what she told my uncle to the best of my understanding she never talked about what life was like for the average German with anyone, not even her kids. I can't imagine living a life like that where you completely bury memories of the formative years of your life but then again I never experienced war at that personal a level. I served in the U.S. military for 23 years and did my duty but the campaigns I participated in always took place in someone else's land. I do remember hearing about POW treatment during WWII and Vietnam and I made myself a promise to never allow myself to be captured alive. Fortunately I never had to find out if I had the the guts to follow through on that promise. I will say this as someone who served. War sucks.
4