“Good Morning Berlin! Today is November 9, and we will be seeing partly sunny skies, and there is a 3% chance of rain and ...” the T.V. blared, but fell upon deaf ears. I remember it clearly, as if it were yesterday, even though it was twenty years ago. I was in my own little world, weighed down with joy and anxiety. So many questions: Will she recognize me? Will she still love me? Will she have found someone else? Ring!!!! Ring!!!! Ring!!!! It took me a while to realize the black phone sitting on my bedside table was ringing.

“Hello, Grakler residence.” I felt guilty every time I said this knowing that I was only one half of the Grakler residence.

“Yes, well, you have been asked to attend the fall of the Berlin Wall ...” the person on the other end drawled on and on and on, until finally I cut him off saying

“Of course I will be there!” And with that I hung up. Of course, I was going to be there. Anyone who is anyone will be there! And with that I turned and smartly walked out the door and into the world.

There I was on probably one of the most momentous days of my life, and all I could think about was food. So I went to the local diner and ordered Himbeereis (Raspberry Ice Cream) with some heiße Schokolade to drink (Hot Chocolate). It was amazingly refreshing. It was odd when I look back on it because when we were separated she went out to get groceries. After I was done there I decided to go down to where the caller on the phone said they were gathering to break down the wall. It was amazing how the rest of the town was so calm and peaceful. While inside I was burning with desire and unsettledness.

When I got down to the Brandenburg Gate (Or at least what I thought was the gate) it was so crowded you couldn’t even see the gate. It was incredible the noise was boisterous. There were several things I could pick out from the crowd.

“Down with the wall”

“Reunite Germany”

“We want our families back”

“Down with Communism”

All of these were very easy to hear. I wondered when the whole tearing down thing would start. Then as if cued by some invisible mastermind a wrecking ball attached to a crane blew its horn to clear the crowd. I saw people all around me with huge mallets or pick axes. I asked the guy next to me if I could use his pick axe.

“My wife is on the other side waiting for me,” I pleaded.

“Sure, you need it more then I do”.

Then there was the count down. I walked up to the wall as everyone around me was cheering!

“10 ... 9 ... 8 ...” I raised my pick axe, as if poised for battle. At any moment ready to strike with all my might against that thing that had ruined 23 years of my life, 23 years! I was ready.

“5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ...1!” I swung, I swung with all my might ready to break down the walls of my society.

CCCCCCCCRRRRRRRAAAAAACCCCCKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!

The wall broke. There was a large enough hole, now, that I could stick my face through. I swung again, and again, and again! Now it was large enough I could squeeze through it and get to the other side. And I did!

There she was right one the other side. Right in front of me now. She ran into my embrace, and we stayed like that for a long, long time. Later we went back to my home, our home, and lived, as the old saying goes, happily ever after.