EDGES MAGAZINE Issue 21

April 2000

FROM EAST GERMANY TO THE UK
Jordan grew up in East Germany. He now has settled in Lancashire.

About Germany where I am originally from,the eastern part in Communist time. It was good in a way because you didn't have to bother about a flat,a job, everything was given to you. The social life was also pretty good because everyone was in solidarity, meaning everyone looked out for each other. If one person was in trouble everyone chipped in,it was good. The only problem was that we couldn't travel to the western parts and to come to England it would of have taken about fifteen years for an application form to get through,that's just for a one week visit. That's the basics of East Germany, how it was before 1989.

On the 9th of November 1989 we heard on the news that the Wall had come down. It all started off with a church movement in Leipzig. It was very peaceful,people went out on to the streets with candles to basically get things changed. Gorbachov came over later that year to announce Peristroicka. The first country actually to open up the boarders was Hungry. They open up the boarder to Austria in June . Then the Czech Republic started in mid September time. The out-cry for freedom was going stronger and stronger and they couldn't stop it,so it happened.

The events had a great influence on me personally because I could finally see my mum. My mum and dad split up when I was six years old and my mum moved to the West,me and my dad stayed in the East. For nine years there was no contact,no letters,no nothing. On Saturday 11th September 1989 I went over, found out the phone number and called her and she collected me. We had not seen each for nine years and we had both led different lives, so she kicked me out. Afterwards my dad didn't want anything to do with me so I ended up in a children's home for two and a half years. Then I got kicked out of there because I was too old and ended up on the streets for three and a half months. Instead of keeping to one city I travelled around Europe to see what it is like.

I visited Switzerland,Italy, France, Belgium,Holland and England. I survived mainly by begging. In France I was working on the wine fields until the end of summer. Then I moved back to Germany and got stuck in Frankfurt around mid-September last year, I couldn't manage to get a lift. I walked to Eden Fellowship, which is a small church there in a small village, and I became a Christian.

I was still doing all drugs until about 96' or 97',anything in the book you can name apart from needles. In 97' I moved to Manchester where I found a church and I didn't need any drugs. I realised that God is the only thing you need in your life. Late last year I moved to Blackburn and I am part of the Jesus Army. I think it is a really good church,it's buzzing and it's very lively.
Jordan

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