Similar actions were repeated again and again. Word had spread about my skill in repairing car bodies.
I was constantly asked to repair some rust bucket, because nothing was more important to people than a roadworthy car. Under the circumstances described, and with waiting times of more than ten years for a new Trabant, this was understandable.
I often slaved away in the workshop after work and on some weekends. From time to time, Chris gave me a hand when her duties permitted, and with every repaired vehicle, the circle of relationships that was so important for us expanded, because the apartment was far from finished.
For an expert glazier friend of mine, I designed a club table made of glass and non-rusting steel tubes as a trade show model. I was allowed to keep the jointly produced prototype. The table fit perfectly with the corner couch.
I had the carpenter plane and edge the boards. From time to time I got hold of squared timber and planking from a carpenter’s shop, and from a box factory I regularly picked up offcuts and sometimes even whole sheets of plywood.
There were no limits to creativity in the design of the false ceilings, given the quite different materials. In the end, my willingness to help also paid off.
Similar actions were not limited to the private sector, as the following example demonstrates: As the main contractor for construction repairs, I and my people were also responsible for repairing the buildings along the so-called ‘protocol route.’
‘Protocol Route’ because every year our father of the state, the Chairman of the Council of State Erich Honecker, dashed through this street from the airfield to the trade fair grounds for the opening of the Spring and Autumn Fairs with all the accompanying vehicles.
I was always admonished by the local party leadership to do more for the good overall impression of this section of the road. My people had demolished two houses that had fallen into ruin, but not much else had happened along the protocol route.
By chance, I learned from a colleague that a Polish scaffolding company had completed a major contract at my former combine and was to be sent back home.
I immediately hitched up and engaged the company to do scaffolding work on the logging line, where several large houses were immediately scaffolded.
The next trade show date was approaching, and I was promptly told by the city’s Stasi management to remove the scaffolding immediately for safety reasons.
I thought I wasn’t hearing correctly and resisted this directive with good arguments. My people thought this was futile resistance, but I prevailed – albeit with the condition that tarpaulins, nets, and all work equipment be removed from the scaffolding.
We could live with that. My secret suspicion, however, was that my resistance was supported at the highest level in the city leadership of the party.
To Comrade Honecker’s credit, it must be fairly noted that compared to state visits by high-ranking Western politicians, the security precautions for the Chairman of the Council of State were rather modest, because the maintenance hole covers along the protocol route were not welded shut. 𝓣𝓸 𝓑𝓮 𝓒𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓾𝓮𝓭…
This is a supporter-funded publication. To receive new contributions and promote my work, become a subscriber: