December 19/09.......2:28 p.m.
What a beautiful day it is today! Landfrau took a walk with Herr Hund in bright sunshine through a snow- powdered landscape in biting cold. But now- a- days, with the proper clothing it is enjoyable. It had been different during my childhood, I remember having to wear scratchy woolen garments and gloves never were able to keep our little fingers warm. Putting them against the heated tile stove to get them unstiffened again, sometimes made us cry with pain. But it had been fun when Mom wrapped us into thick blankets and pulled us in a sleigh, my jounger brother tucked between my legs. But we never froze when we took our sleighs for downhill runs in the nearby park where it had a few quite nice slopes and a pond for ice skating. Skates had to be put on with a skate key, you had to be quite skillfull. Then we came home wet from snow with red cheeks like apples. - And Christmas! It had that real magic to it, without sprouting Santas all over the place, Santa (Weihnachtsmann) was ever present but never to be seen. And on Christmas eve we heard him rumble behind closed doors but by the time we were allowed to enter the festive room he had left, a little bit to our relief, because to be honest, we were a bit afraid of him . But, oh , the presents he had left, everything had been set under the tree, no parcels to be unwrapped, like nowadays and I vividly remember a beautiful doll with long black braids sitting in a little carriage. Since I only have brothers, I knew right away that it had been left for me and my heart beat with joy up to my throat. And the tree, adorned with real candles and giving away that terrific smell of forrest. The decorations were much admired by us, all those tiny little figurines, some familiar from fairytales, only pity, we were never allowed to take them down and play with them. - The Christmas meal the next day always had been goose, till the war started and all the geese had vanished. Did they also fight for the country like my Dad? From then on memories have dwindled, they must have lost their magic.
And then very fast I had not been a child any more.
1 Kommentar:
Hallo Landfrau, I am a friend of your friend Norma West in Vancouver and read you Childhood Memories on Christmas. Everything is so true and brings back the same sentimental feelings for me. I grew up in Rheinland Pfalz during the same times and remember well. Thank you for sharing Inge in White Rock, B.C Kanada
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