America
The group had gathered in the passageway. They began to walk towards the stairwell which would take them to the bridge. Before they walked very far, Georg noticed two men wearing white uniforms approaching.
He soon saw the gold stripes on the sleeves of their white jackets and similar stripes on their shoulder boards. The right side of their uniform jacket was covered with medals. Georg knew they were United States Naval Officers.
"Good afternoon everyone, we're here to escort Captain von Trapp and his group."
"I'm Captain von Trapp."
"Very well, please follow us, the Admiral is waiting."
Georg was shocked. He never expected the Admiral to meet him here. Maria gripped Georg's hand. He gave it a reassuring squeeze and followed them; Stefan and Phillip were last as usual. And the children were very quiet.
They bypassed the crowd on the docking bridge. They used a small bridge reserved for dignitaries. It led to an enclosed passage directly into a building. The Admiral stood in front of them wearing his summer white uniform which had additional gold items on it.
Georg saluted him. He returned it but then held out his hand for Georg to shake; which he did.
"Welcome to America, Captain. I'm sure you know you got of Austria barely ahead of the Germans. Our information tells us many Stormtroopers have already crossed the border into Austria. The official announcement could come at any moment."
"My intuition told me that may be true. Allow me to introduce everyone."
"Please do."
"This beautiful woman beside me is Maria. We were married while we were in Switzerland."
The admiral smiled as Georg introduced the others. He concluded this way.
"Last is Sidney Shriver my co-commander from our last mission."
"The Academy can use you. It has difficulty finding knowledgeable naval officers to teach."
"I'd be pleased to help any way I can."
"You don't need to go through immigration here. An officer will be in Annapolis to give you your papers. A navy bus is will take us there. Lieutenant Kelly, please bring up the rear."
After the group emerged from the building, they heard the driver address the admiral.
"Sir, the traffic south to Wilmington is going to be bumper to bumper this time of day. I suggest we drive through southern Jersey and take the ferry."
"Good idea, I'm sure Captain von Trapp and his group would enjoy the scenery."
Georg and the others heard all this but didn't understand any of it. All of them quickly boarded the bus. As soon as everyone was seated it pulled away from the port. The bus traveled in the direction of the long bridge they had seen from the ship.
Kurt, again was the inquiring child. "I wonder how they build bridges."
"They are fascinating." Georg told him. "Something else for all of us to learn about."
One of the officers spoke to him. "Young man, I always asked a lot of questions when I was your age. I studied engineering at the Naval Academy. You should consider taking a class in engineering once you are in high school. You may even have the chance to build model bridges."
"Thank you for your advice, I'll remember. I also want to learn how airplanes fly."
"Then you should definitely be an engineer." Kurt smiled at the officer.
The bridge had taken them over a river to a city in a different state. Everyone saw the sign, Camden New Jersey. This wasn't a large city; very soon the route was passing through planted fields.
The same officer made a general comment. "This part of New Jersey is where the state gets its motto, The Garden State. I don't know of a fruit or vegetable which isn't grown here."
After mile upon mile of planted fields, the group understood the State's motto. Soon the landscape began to change; numerous tall trees were seen. They seemed to form a boundary of some kind.
Brigitta asked. "Sir, where are we now."
"This area is known as the Pine Barrens. Nothing edible can be grown here because of the sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soil. It is also a sign we are coming closer to the ocean. If we were to continue east we would come to the State's famous beach towns, Atlantic City, Ocean City and further down is Wildwood; all contain summer homes for many people from Pennsylvania.
"Our route will end at the ferry port."
"Father, is the bus getting on a ferry?"
"I believe it is, Louisa."
"Another unimaginable happening for us, Georg."
"It is, Maria." He squeezed the hand he had been holding since the bus began to travel. Maria returned the squeeze.
The bus joined a couple of dozen cars on the ferry for the trip across the Delaware River Bay. The Admiral encouraged everyone to get off the bus and view their travel from the front of the ferry. Even the little girls enjoyed hearing about the area's history.
The climbed back on the bus as the ferry got closer to its dock. The bus drove off the ferry with ease and was on a route which would take them to the State of Maryland. After a thirty minute drive, they crossed another river. The Admiral stood and announced.
"We're almost there."
The bus slowed and made a couple of turns before everyone saw the sign which said, The United States Naval Academy. Directly in front of them was an enormous building.
"This is the dormitory for about three thousand midshipmen. We can get off and look inside. The men are gone for the summer. You will see painters and repairmen working."
No one could comprehend three thousand men living in this building. Maria asked. "Isn't it very noisy when all the men are here?"
"Not really, Maria, they make all their noise outside. Their rooms and the library are for studying. Follow me to the conference room to meet the immigration officer."
They sat in a room which resembled a small auditorium. A small platform with a table and several chairs was in front of several rows of seats which had been fastened to the incline of the floor.
The Immigration Officer greeted and welcomed them to the United States. He asked a question of Georg. "Are all your children under the age of eighteen?"
"They are sir."
"They don't need papers, only the adults do. Captain, I'll begin with you."
A clerk was there to record his name, date of birth, country of citizenship and take his fingerprint. When they were finished, the immigration officer told them.
"You don't need to carry your papers with you unless you plan on traveling extensively in America. You probably know that America is a nation of immigrants; it has been their hard work which has made America prosperous. We are not perfect; we still have wounds from our civil war. We have come out of the Great Depression. Our factories are booming again.
"Our leaders are aware of all the turmoil in Europe. We hope we will never be drawn into another war. Only time will tell. Admiral you may take them to their residence."
"Thank you sir, all of us are very grateful to this country. We plan on doing our part to make it even greater."
And so the Admiral led them back to the bus for the short trip to their home. Since Maria and Georg were sitting in the very front; they saw it first.
"Look, Georg, it has a porch on three sides."
"And the house looks larger than the villa was."
"I'm glad you two like what you see on the outside; I know the inside is also lovely. It also sits on a large piece of land; plenty of room for the children to play."
When the bus stopped, Georg and Maria let the children and the others exit first.
The Admiral spoke to Georg before he left the bus. "You have a week to get your family settled. The faculty doesn't report until the end of August. I'll send an escort for you then.
"And Maria, I hope you will enjoy your new home."
"I'm sure all of us will. Your country's generosity is overwhelming. I speak for all of us, thank you."
"You're most welcome."
As soon as the couple left the bus, it pulled away. They stood hand in hand with all the others staring at this house. The children didn't want to see the inside first; they wanted to explore the outside. Georg let them.
Soon they heard. "Mother, Father, come see how much land we have to play in."
All the adults had heard Kurt; they went to see this large piece of land. As soon as Maria and Georg came around the corner, Louisa took her Father's hand.
"Look, we have a playing area with a badminton net already in place."
And Kurt got Georg's attention to come see a field large enough to play kickball. At the same time Marta had hold of Maria's hand.
"Look Mother, we have our own playground. Even I can get on the swing all by myself."
Franz, Stefan and Phillip also went exploring. They walked into an orchard. Stefan exclaimed.
"Look at the size of those peaches. And those apple trees will give us more than enough apples to last us through the winter. And there's enough land for a late summer vegetable garden now and for strawberries in the spring."
Phillip had found the shed; it contained all the necessities for keeping the house in good repair.
Franz liked what he saw outside but commented. "I'm sure the inside is just as fine. Let's go check it out."
The men joined Georg and Maria on the path to the porch. Katia and Isabel were waiting there to share what they had found.
"Georg, the kitchen is fully stocked. Who do I need to write a thank you note to?"
"I don't know but I will find out."
"Maria, did you expect all of this?"
"Heaven's no, Katia. I wonder what else we will discover."
Just then Liesl came inside. "Mother, come check out the upstairs with me."
Georg was quiet. He was extremely happy about the relationship Liesl already had with Maria.
"Yes, of course, I'm sure there are more than enough bedrooms."
"Let's look for a room for you and Father first."
"You know we're not picky."
"I'm sure this home has a master suite, Mother. I think it may be the corner room on the front of the house, the one with the big window I saw from outside. It's this way."
Liesl led the way. They entered together. Maria exclaimed.
"This is huge."
"It's the perfect size, Mother. There's enough room for a settee, a writing table and two chairs and a dresser for you and a chest on chest for Father. And your bed sits back in an alcove."
"It is lovely. I wonder what is behind the two doors."
Liesl opened one to learn it was a closet. Maria opened the other.
"Liesl, this is a nursery. It already has a crib in it."
"Maybe someday, it might have a baby boy or girl sleeping there."
"That would be nice. Do I hear voices?"
They did. Everyone had come up to find their bedroom. Georg found his wife and daughter.
Maria immediately took his arm. "This is our room. Come see a surprise."
Georg felt her squeeze his arm as she led him to the now closed door to the nursery. "Open it, Georg."
He had an idea at what he would find. "What a cute nursery! I'm surprised there's a crib already in here. The entire room is perfect for us."
"This entire house is perfect for us. Let's go see the other bedrooms."
No one was picky about their room. Almost all had twin beds; some were decorated for a male and others had pink or yellow colors which designated they were for girls.
Katia and Isabel were preparing dinner. They had found the old servant's bedroom on the first floor; it had twin beds.
Downstairs, Liesl and Louisa took it upon themselves to set the dining room table. It had more than enough chairs. They easily located a tablecloth in one of the drawers of the china cabinet. They also found the case which contained the silverware as well as all the china they needed.
When dinner was ready, the family gathered around the table. Sidney spoke.
"I'd like to say a few words before I say the blessing."
This didn't surprise Maria at all. Everyone was silent as Sidney began.
"Throughout the Bible we read about men who trusted God to lead their family or an entire nation to safety. God led Georg and me to find Maria. And to hear from her friend, Harold, the wisdom God had given him to discern there was danger for his family just over the border.
"Georg was also given wisdom to know the Germans could invade Austria at any moment. He knew Salzburg could be their place of invasion. He had the foresight to leave before that happened.
"And Maria and Georg both know it was God's plan for their lives to entwine and for the love they held in their hearts to be given to the other. Remember, love isn't love until it is given away. They sealed their love the day when the magistrate married them."
Georg and Maria had been holding hands. They squeezed them together as they looked at each other lovingly.
"Now, we give thanks to the Lord for Georg and his contact Admiral Caperton. We also ask that You continue to bless the Keller family and Max.
"Bless this food for our nourishment and for Your Greater Glory. Amen."
And the family responded. "Amen."
There was silence; Maria felt she needed to speak.
"The Lord has heard Sidney's words and prayer. He doesn't want us to be sad or sullen. He loves to watch and hear a family have fun as they live out their days on earth. We should do the same."
Everyone smiled. They ate, conversed and laughed. When they had finished eating, Maria, Liesl and Louisa helped Katia and Isabel wash and put away the dishes.
In the big living room, Brigitta had discovered a cabinet filled with board games, puzzles, checker and chess pieces as well as many card games. She was playing Marta and Gretl's favorite game of Slap Jack with them. Kurt and Friedrich were playing checkers. The men were talking.
Maria knew it was getting late. She had a suggestion. "Georg, before we go to bed I want you to sing Edelweiss. It's not only the song I was singing when you found me; it's almost like a prayer for Austria."
"Yes it is, I'll begin it but I want everyone to join me."
Maria's guitar hadn't been taken upstairs. She took it from its case and tuned it for Georg.
The family heard the song about the rugged flower which grew in the worst of soil in the cold and the snow high in the Alps. Its final words, bless my homeland forever, were as Maria had said, like a prayer.
The group responded with a communal, "Amen."
There was a few seconds of silence before Georg spoke. "Tomorrow is our first full day in our new home. After breakfast we should go explore our surroundings. Children, go on up, your mother and I will be up to kiss you goodnight."
After they had left, the other adults said their goodnights to Maria and Georg. Franz secured the house.