Readers Remember

When I was 9 years old, we moved to a cheaper rental house. We had to put cardboard in our shoes to cover the holes in the soles. We wore secondhand clothes. We never went to the dentist. Our car was put up on blocks. We did not know our father was working only a few days a week. In the 1930s, such serious topics were not discussed with children. Many years later when I took an American history course, I learned about the Depression and its toll on the many families like mine.

MARY B. POWELL

Tustin

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On April 9, 1940, I was awakened in the middle of the night by the noise. Whish, switch, whir. I rushed to look out the window and saw the star-filled sky blackened by low-flying, propeller-driven planes. I called our brother who lived in the center of town and he told us that soldiers wearing Nazi swastikas were marching in the streets. I turned on the wireless and heard the announcement that our peaceful country Norway was invaded and now a part of the German Reich.

We realized that our lives were at stake and that we must flee. Two days later I left my home and country and everything we owned and crossed the border into neutral Sweden. The only thing I carried with me was my unborn child. My husband followed when it became evident that Norway could not fight the mighty enemy. He crossed the country on skis and passed over the controlled border illegally, a crime punishable by death.

FREDA ISAKSEN

Los Angeles

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What do you recall most about the 20th century? In 200 words or less, send us your memories, comments or eyewitness accounts. Write to Century, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, or e-mail century@latimes.com. Letters may be edited for space.