The Serpent's Column

Haim and Maria considered themselves the happiest couple in the world, but someone came along that no one could ignore. War. They fled to another city. The war nearly caught up with them again, but they were lucky… if that’s... what you can say about the forced deportation of tens of thousands of Lithuanian families to Siberia. The large-scale resettlement operation of the unreliable elements deep into the country, undertaken by the Soviet government, became an unexpected salvation for Haim and some of his fellow compatriots from the annihilation organized by the fascists from the first days of the Baltic occupation. However, those who were deported did not know about their luck. Many, sent further to icy islands, died from hunger, scurvy, and grueling labor in the cold. Haim and Maria were preserved by love — the only thing they had left. Love, which was and is life.