The National Socialistic upbringing of the German youths trains these Landjahr girls to build their integral moral character with a foundation based on honor, loyalty, obedience, and discipline.  Coupled with ancient neo-pagan rituals, traditions, folklore, and the Totalitarian regime of this period, "Through Innocent Eyes" captures the psychology of an Austrian girl named Trudel, and her progression from childhood into adolescence.   She is empowered by her camp leaders to build self-worth through her training and community activities.  The German government only wants the healthiest, strongest, and most disciplined young girls in the BDM.  In Landjahr, Trudel will receive the very best rural education from the State. In 1941, there are over twenty-six thousand girls serving in Landjahr and Trudel Kerschner is one of them.

Manuscript is Finished!

It has taken me fourteen months to write, edit and format the complete manuscript.  Finally, 367 pages, 144,000 words. Currently researching how book publishing industry works.  One word of advice:  Do not sign any contract with a publisher without investing the money to hire an attorney to review it before you sign it!  This small investment will save you thousands and you will begin to learn how the industry works.  Good luck everyone!

Writing, and writing, and writing..................

For the past eight months, my head has been deep inside the book, writing, editing, researching and writing.  My average writing day is 11 hours. This is an incredible journey.  I just finished another chapter and I am about to embark on phase two of the book. 

When I started writing the manuscript, I thought I would dive right into my mother's journal. Then, the writing took a turn of events and leaped to her life four years prior to Landjahr and WWII.  I had the incredible opportunity to spend one month is Austria and Poland researching my book.

I met with the current owners of the home where my mother lived in where she wrote the book.  In addition, I interviewed many of my mother's friends and my family members.  This gave me a greater insight into telling her story, based upon actual facts from eyewitnesses accounts.

Here starts phase two of the book!  Wish me luck!

Thank you for reading.

Cindy

Editor is moving

I was so dissapointed when my editor emailed me and said she could not look at my manuscript because she is moving.  That did not stop me from moving forward however.  I am determined to have the manuscript reviewed. 

Manuscript Sent To Editor

I am SO excited!  I finished typing the manuscript into my computer, double  and triple checked it for grammer and spelling, then emailed it off to my editor! 

I believe there is an untapped source of valuable information out there that no one has really addressed - and that is what life was like during WWII with all these kids that were in the Landjahr.  Wouldn't it be nice if someone can put together a movie to show the 'young kids of today' what life was like for our parents growing up?  To see the difference between 60 years of today's easy life-going-ness of today's kids as compared to that for which my parents grew up in WWII? 

My mother had to run from the charging bullets of the Russian soldiers.  She separated from her family and from what I was told, my uncle had to go into the woods during the night with a gun, shoot and skin a deer and come back to provide meat for the family.  That is called 'survival.' 

No - our lifes are not like that today - and yet, at the same time is it. 

Recently, look at the people in Joplin, Missouri who have lost everything they own due to a F5 tornado destroying their homes. 

Having a tornado or a flood devestate your home, your town, your life, your job and family is very similar to going through a War.  In the end, it's all the same - you loose everything that you own and what do you have left at the end?  Your life, your dignity, your values, morals, ethics, standards and integrity.

CS

Meaning of "Landjahr"

The Landjahr (country service year) was a concept of the Hitler Youth and BDM - Bund Deutscher Maedel (League of German Girls), whose aim was to furnish voluntary agricultural assistance in Germany's eastern provinces.

The service was voluntary except in the case of university students who were obliged to perform their Landjahr (it was, in reality, only nine months) before being allowed to graduate.

Incredible Find

I just found this web site today entitled "Landjahr."  Notice closely, the symbol on the front cover of the book on the web site and compare it with the cover of my mother's book!  After 20 years I found what the meaning of this symbol is on the cover of my mother's book "Land Jahr Seidorf."  I'm getting closer and closer to fitting the pieces of this puzzle together!  Check out this web site here to see what I am talking about.  Thank you.  http://www.od43.com/Landjahr.html