by Lauren Willig, 2021
Pat loaned this book to me. It was about the Smith College Relief Unit, a group of American women, graduates of Smith College, who volunteered in WWI to help French villagers devastated by the Germans (1917 – 1919, in villages near the Somme). They had no idea what they were getting into, but they made a difference. They were as close to the front lines as you could get. They came and lived among the villagers, coaxing them out, getting them fed, clean water, teaching the children how to play again, doctoring them, getting them into better shelters, helping them to farm again, chickens, cows, goats. On and on. There were personality clashes and misunderstandings and class differences. There were near death experiences. But through it all, they worked their tales off and helped these French villagers. Then, when all was going well and they had made it through the winter and were busy with the villagers, planting fields, the Germans pushed through and the entire region, every single village, was evacuated and bombed to pieces. But, they helped evacuate every single village and then they worked in Paris at the hospitals and the canteens, helping the wounded soldiers. When the war was finally over, they went back to their original village, Grecourt, and started rebuilding again. The author based almost every occurrence in the book on real-life occurrences she read from letters written by the girls back to loved ones in the States. Good book. Amazing women. Working so hard just to help others. Makes me think of what we could do if we really put our minds to helping the poor. They helped them to help themselves. They gave them hope and a future. We wouldn’t have to worry about bombing raids either. Oh Lord, forgive us. We turn a blind eye to your hurting people. Forgive us, Lord Jesus. Teach us how to help, how to really help. I pray in your name, Amen.