Born in the founding year of both German states, shaped by the experiment of the "GDR" during the first sixteen years of life and the experiences from the mid-60s to the present in the Federal Republic, various events of contemporary history and personal experiences are described and commented on. The reunification of Germany at the end of the 80s is just as much in focus as the youth years of the 50s and 60s in the GDR, with the living conditions of a post-war society in socialism. A failed escape attempt, which resulted in a prison sentence for my father, who has lived in southern Germany as a so-called "Republic refugee" since the mid-50s, but fortunately had no consequences for me, forms the centerpiece of the description of the GDR period. The later "purchase of freedom" move to the Federal Republic is associated with new experiences.