Anita Enichelmaier

Anita Enichelmaier - photo by Nigel A JAMES

The Now Known Unknown Ifs of Then!

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Mainly, we are how we are because of where we were born.  An Englishman is English through and through, and, a Frenchman can only be French!  But, what happens when the goal posts are moved?

Shortly after the First World War, a large area of Western Hungary voted to become part of Austria.  Overnight, millions of people became something other than that they were born as, they all became Austrians!  And, with this change came very many “ifs”. And, for very many people, these questions are just as important as ever. And, Anita Enichelmaier has very many “ifs” in her life!

What if the vote had gone the other way?  Anita would have been Hungarian and not Austrian, and, she would have grown up speaking Hungarian, and, more than likely, fluent in Russian, as well.  And, there would have been other differences, too.  Instead of having her eyes to the west, she would have surely looked east.  Budapest, not Vienna, would have been the place to go shopping, and, maybe, even Moscow for school!  Who Knows?

Of course, not everyone voted to become Austrian, and, many families suddenly found themselves unhappily split. As well as a brand new system, there was also a brand new language.  Life wasn’t easy, German wasn’t easy to learn, and, for many the upheaval was very hard indeed.

And Anita?  What if the change had never taken place?  She would be just as happy in the little Hungarian village of Nagypeterfalva as she is in the Austrian village of Großpetersdorf.  They are, after-all, the very same place - and people - on the whole, never change.  We are, in reality, how we are because of ourselves - and not the flag we were born to!  Some people walk into change, whilst for others, it comes in the night!

Andrea Klar

Andrea Klar - by Nigel A JAMES

The Gathering of Threads

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The art of true weaving is the gathering of thoughts and putting them as one in a woven display of colourful reflection. And weavers, just like Andrea Klar, have much to relate, and for them this is good so, for their medium is one of the finest of all. And, becoming one of the finest, as Andrea can confirm, requires more than just learning!

It is the seeing eye and the openness of feeling that count. They are essential for the inspiration that takes root and expands before moving on into patterns and then into works. And, Andrea's creativity is based mainly on the places she visits, and Baden near Vienna, the small town where she lives, is a more-than perfect hub for her travels abroad.

From England come her feelings for the softness of watery expression, from Scandinavia come the fine natural shades of the pastel, from Holland the tumult of maritime storms, and, from Italy – one of her favourite countries – come the very stark colours of passionate life; and these are the colours that show most in her work!

And her work is not only herself, but also the people she knows. Along the way she has managed to build up a string of connections that count very much in more than one way. People, too, are inspirational. Nature provides the colour, it us who make up the threads!

And Andrea's thread is set to continue. The art of true weaving is the gathering of thoughts and putting them as one in a woven display of colourful reflection, and Andrea's ideas keep coming and coming, and, as long as they come, so will her work!

Woven Southern Life!  Work by Andrea Klar

nj 

Doris Kalus

Doris Kalus - photo by Nigel A JAMES

They who come out of the Trees

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The winter was in and the cold had gone through to the core. It was almost dark, and whilst waiting for friends to go jogging, I noticed a woman at the edge of the trees. It seemed very unusual, and, what she was doing aroused an interest in me, and so, I went over to talk.

As I got nearer, I saw she was filling a row of about thirty small bowls with food. I wondered why. And then the reason came out of the woods! Not one – but many!

And then Doris Kalus explained. Each year, hundreds of cats run away from their homes in Vienna, and, in the Vienna Woods some find a new and more natural habitat. And everything is fine until the smoothness of summer passes into the hardness of winter! For it is then that the  hunger sets in!

And, so it is, that Doris goes everyday without fail to the woods. For the run-away cats she is an Angel in person. And she explained further. As the winters continue, the number of cats coming for supper gets fewer and fewer. No one knows how many cats there actually are in the Vienna Woods, but, considering the dangers involved, it is a miracle that any survive. There are foxes, owls, and, of course, the many cars on the roads that criss-cross the woods.

And why? Years ago, Doris had a cat, and he, too, like many others felt the call of the wild and was never seen again! Maybe, he went to the forest. Who knows! And, could it be that he is still there? After-all, some cats do survive for years in the open.

And maybe, one day, he, too, will be amongst those who come out of the trees!

Nj  

The Appleby Chimes

Listen to another short but true tale from the Appleby Chimes!  Invisible Treasure!
My sister who lives in Devon is a patchwork artist.  But, her pictures are different!

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Hermina Katharina Jinga

Hermina Katharina Jinga

Hermina Katharina Jinga - by Nigel A JAMES

Rock Hard Rumanian Steel

Faces show nothing of the characters they hide, and, expressions – being only questions or statements – do nothing to enlighten the depths of achievement and thinking that dwell in the shadows of us all. And, strength, too, is not easy to find.  Sometimes, it is obvious, but, only too often it is hidden by a cloak of humble simplicity.  And, if you were to believe that Hermina Katharina Jinga is both humble and meek, you would be wrong!  For this lady of years is not only a person of steel, but also a character of rock hard decision!

Coming from a family which was broken by war,  Hermina Katharina Jinga grew up with hunger, hardship and struggle as companions; and, so it was, that after practically educating and bringing herself up, she succeeded in her dream of becoming a teacher.  But, her young life had not only been bad, there had been blessings as well; and these were the people who helped her. And help, when received, has to be passed further; and she was in just the right place.

As teacher, and now headmistress of a Bucharest school, she realized that many of the children whom she knew had not even the faintest idea of where their food came from. These kids were all typical Bucharest townies! And the answer was simple.  A centre! And so it came to be, that deep within the Rumanian countryside, Hermina Katharina Jinga’s  “Kinderbauenhof” was born!  And,  this “farm for young people” took off!

In 12 day cycles, kids not only discovered the innocent truth of chickens and eggs and potatoes and cabbage, but also the hidden realities of slaughter.  Breakfast, dinner and tea,  they found out, were nothing other than last links of a chain! But, as Hermina Katharina Jinga discovered, the beautiful Rumanian countryside had another side, too!

And this was the side of the Romany children!  They were the complete opposite of the townies.  They knew and understood all about chickens, pigs and eggs, but were sadly lacking in schooling and study.  These were the ones who needed the most!  And so, at the end of every school holiday, the Kinderbauenhof  becomes a day centre of learning  and warmth for these children of need.  And here, the results are not good – they are amazing!

A great many of the Romany kids who passed through the day centre have succeeded in their education, and, thanks to their success, they  have managed to move on to conventional lives!  Dignity, the most valuable thing of all, is now what they have in their pockets, and all thanks to Hermina Katharina Jinga!  A lady of not only vision, but great and lasting achievement as well.