JOURNEYS Mennonite Stories of Faith and Survival in Stalins Russia, John B. Toews, 1998

on, Heini sat with her at night. “Heini,” she said, “I will soon die. Mama and Auntie Justina will then be alone. Be a good boy and help where you can and don’t give them any heartache.” The poor boy cried and made a promise, which he later kept. 90 JOURNEYS The local girls came and sang her favorite song, “When He Cometh.” One evening she said that she had been wondering if there was anything she had to confess or make right.... She was always very exacting and often asked whether this or that was a sin. After her death we found a page on which she had written, “Lord in each word and deed your Spirit reminds me whether Christ spoke or acted in such a way.” It was underlined and had become her life’s motif. Now came the final evening when the last life thread which held us together was torn apart. Suddenly Marta said, “Light a lamp for it seems so dark!” We lit the lamp. I stood on one side of the bed and Neta on the other. She hemorrhaged again but did not have the energy to cough it up and discharge it. “I can’t any more,” was all she said. Her head fell to the side and her soul went to be with Christ. Falling asleep in the Lord was so wonderful. As Marta lay dead in Neta’s arms there was singing at the window. The girls had come to sing for her. Since everything was so quiet they came in and called “Marta! Marta!” but Marta had gone home. She was free of her burden. How the girls cried for they had all loved Marta. Amid all the tears we sang a song, prayed and made plans for the funeral. Next day Neta went to the office to request wood for the coffin. We were told there was none available. We then borrowed a bench upon which we placed a bit of hay wrapped in a blanket and lay Marta upon it. We still had three meters of cotton. She had always wanted a dress made from this material and finally obtained it in death. The teacher had provided some lace for the pillow and the girls used the extra lace to make a veil. They also cut little leaves from a green material and made a wreath. She lay there like a small heavenly bride. She looked so peaceful and happy. The Russian girls who knew her said, “She must be seeing something beautiful because she looks so happy.” We invited Mr. Baergen for the burial. Marta died on April 1 6, 1948 and early in the morning of April 18th there had been a sharp frost. We carried her to the cemetery on the bench. The German lads had dug the grave after work. We placed her in the grave with the hay and the blanket and covered her with an oil cloth so that the earth did not fall on her directly. It was simply horrible for us to throw the earth upon her body. There were only a few of us at the funeral because all the others had to work. There was no such thing as time off. Mr. Baergen spoke on 2 Corinthians 5. When everyone came to our house in the evening, there was a MEMOIRS OF JUSTIN A MARTENS 91 great deal of singing. Neta was very sad and when she saw