Rita Malsch

Rita Lulay Malsch was born and raised in the medieval city of Heppenheim, Germany. She and her husband have one son and currently live in Colorado. Rita’s artwork can be viewed at ritalulay-malsch.fineartamerica.com.

Shortly before Christmas in 2016, I experienced an intense desire to write about my life. As I began to make notes about my life from childhood and young adulthood in Germany to my present life in the United States, I recalled and relived every single past experience again. Sometimes my memories brought me great joy, while some memories were unpleasant as well as painful reminders of past events. It took me three months to write this narrative about my life. After reading my manuscript, I pondered about what to do with it, and whether I should just print it out and place it into a folder. Because I have one son and two grandchildren, I concluded that they would be interested in reading my memoirs that begin when I was born at the end of World War II in Germany and continue into the present time. My story had become a life of its own, and its voice, inside me, spoke louder and louder about publishing my manuscript into a book. I read two boos about how to write your life story, which had been a great help to me on how to organize my manuscript. I contacted Outskirts Press, and my autobiography was immediately accepted for publication. A wonderful adventure had started, and at 7:00 a.m. on July 19, 2017, my late mother's birthday, I received via email the Press Release of my book "My Family, My Friends, My Life - These Lifted Me Up Along the Way." I chose the pen name Isabell von der Waldesruh.

In December of 2017, I mailed my book to my long-time friend, Martha, as a Christmas present. Soon after, she emailed me the following review about the book: Isabell von der Waldesruh's biography of Rita Malsch in post WWII Germany not only captures the reader's interest in her life and that of her friends and family but also paints vivid pictures of medieval towns that maintained their romantic streets and buildings as well the outings of young people rowing down the Neckar River in Heidelberg. Yet there remains another side of history that portrays the aftermath of war in a defeated country where food was almost a luxury and education was hampered by lack of books in her elementary school. To make matters worse, the death of her father, due to wounds he suffered in the war, left her mother to be the sole support of her four daughters in this time of scarcity. Although Rita and her family overcame these difficulties, the war left its imprint in their lives in ways that the victors never realized and we are left to rethink the impact of wars fought on following generations many years later. The Germany of WWII has been transformed into a prosperous nation due to the industrious nature of its people. Yet perhaps without fully realizing it, Isabell's portrait of everyday life after is a cautionary story of war and its unforeseen consequences. The brighter side of Rita's experiences also illustrate how she, her family and friends also find meaning and joy in the new life that they built in subsequent years. Readers will find that although this biography is a pleasure to read, it also provides much to think about as the reader reads between the lines.

My life story has not changed except it has evolved. I got older; hopefully wiser; the color of my hair changed from brown to partially grey; aches in my body have turned more annoying; I also have more joy-filled moments; more time to gaze back at my childhood and growing up. I have reached a point where I am able to express my creativity and faith in God through art and poetry. My desire is to share this with you by printing my second book Secure in God.