January 25 1920

In Okegem, the third brother of my mother was born in their house on the Kattestraat, close to the windmill. Paul Joannes Neukermans was his name. I have been named after him.

Unfortunately, he passed away from a very painful disease, which is uncurable to this day, at the tender age of 14 years and five days, on January 29 1934. He was fully aware of his condition and very serene about it. The stories my mother told me about this little brother were heart rendering. He must have been a very wise and trusting child.

And that was not the end of the misery for the family. Two years later, my grandparents lost their eldest son Kamiel on May 10 1936. His death was the indirect result of an accident during his military service. He was with the engineers - they were building a pontoon on the Meuse river : a steel girder swung against his chest and projected him in the ice cold water. He recovered, but died over a year later of the consequences. He was 23 years old.