After the end of the war, the author, encouraged by successes in chess, fought his way from being an apprentice in coal mining without a high school diploma to pursuing higher education. Later, he took on various responsible roles as a member of an industrial research institute and as a university lecturer. However, his conscience often conflicted with the politically demanded actions. This had consequences, and after the reunification, he was just glad to have survived. It was not until an anonymous call from his hometown of Chemnitz in March 2013, which he had left in spring 1989 on urgent medical advice, that he felt compelled to reflect on the events before and after the reunification. What he discovered made him doubt the democratic rule of law and prompted him to take up the pen. This is his moving story.