The victorious occupation by the Russian army destroys an idyllic pre-teen life as a German boy in northern Czechoslovakia during WW II. He abandons his belief in the Nazi doctrines. Reality deletes any previous thoughts for aspirations of post-war-defeat guerilla warfare.

The nation-state doctrine of the Czech regime results in the expulsion of German minorities and expropriation of their properties. A personal warning of pending deportation to a concentration camp with the risk of death causes the mother and two children to flee through occupied territory and a guarded border to the West.

Flight to personal freedom. Deprived of food, clothing, housing, and livelihood. To a decade of semi-poverty and material needs.

Enrollment at a German university and a Fulbright scholarship in the U.S. provide the opportunities to acquire skills and knowledge to further shape a young man into a polymath. Following his Manifesto for a Life.

Love and marriage in the U.S. point the way to future life there.