NOVEMBER 16, 2017 // 9
CLOSE TO HOME
A WORLD WAR II SOLDIER REMEMBERS HIS TIME
BEHIND ENEMY LINES
LAURIE ANDERSON PHOTO
was no Third Army. There
wasn’t even a camp circle.
The whole kit and caboodle
had moved out, and we were
deep in German territory
without one small bit of
protection. Well, we had
stealth.”
Yes, and they had luck
on their side. A family of
Belgians (the family name
has been forgotten) agreed to
hide the infantrymen in their
vegetable cellar. Needless
to say, if the Germans got
wind of this deception (their
definition), each member,
including children, would be
shot. That threat hung over
those soldiers day and night,
and the nights were intermi-
nably long.
A month later, Patton was
back, and the three soldiers
were temporarily liberated
— liberated to go back to
the fighting and the constant
risk of death on the battle-
field, or, in this case, behind
enemy lines.
Fighting back bouts of
memory loss, Anderson
talked about the relationship
with that Belgian family.
Food wasn’t plentiful, but
what little the farm and
village produced was shared
freely with the Americans.
Anderson can no longer
answer all the questions
I ask. We imagine the
three soldiers huddled in
the small cellar, perhaps
playing cards, and day after
day, making small talk to
cover up their fears. They
probably smoked. Most
Americans did. Did they talk
about girls? Of course! And
Thanksgiving dinners? Nat-
urally. And baseball? Who
At 96, Blaine Anderson leads a quiet life. Once an avid gardener and Model A enthusiast and collector, he
enjoys visits from family and friends.
Continued on Page 16
By DAVID CAMPICHE
FOR COAST WEEKEND
I
n the volatile winds
of 2017, the physical
and emotional climate
seems tempestuous:
two 500-year storms in 10
days, the shooting in Las
Vegas and — one pleads
to the storm gods, “Please,
no more” — renegade fires
sweeping through North-
ern California and up our
beloved Columbia Gorge.
Much of the country seems
in major depression over
the 2016 election, and
even Stephen Colbert can’t
keep up with the barrage of
unsettling tweets spewing
forth from President Trump.
Have times ever appeared so
threatening to Americans?
Imagine for a minute that
the Japanese have seeming-
ly conquered the Pacific.
The attack on Pearl Harbor
has left the U.S. Navy in
shambles. Hitler is sweeping
across Europe, and America
is regretting its former iso-
lation. War news is all bad
news. The world is burning,
and no one has yet heard of
climate change.
The war in Europe
In northern Belgium,
three young soldiers are
sneaking behind enemy lines
in a reconnaissance assign-
ment for Gen. George Patton
and the Third Army. Blaine
Anderson talks of this today
with a sense of humor —
though his heart must have
been thundering in 1944.
Ninety-six years old
today, he is struggling with
memories, but not this one.
“When we got back to
our position,” he said, “there