(B+) - An Obituary - Hermine Diwald - I knew Hermine Diwald for 25 years. An amazing lady. This was just one of her stories.

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Hermine Diwald  -  Survival and Escape

The Second World War had just finished. Peace had returned across Europe. But, not for the German families living in the Banat. They had all been rounded up and interned. German families were no longer welcome. And, the Diwald Family were amongst those being kept in a camp. Life for the Diwalds was all about staying alive. They had to escape. Staying in internment in Werschetz meant certain death in the communist east.

And, for their escape to succeed, they would have to use all that they had. Their eyes, ears, noses, and all the cunning they had. When to lie low, when to go on, and, when to risk all. And, so, having prepared themselves as best as they could, this small family of four, Hermine - still only 13, her sister of 10, and their parents joined another small group and stepped out through a hole in the fence. Into an unknown darkness. The camp and Werschetz were now firmly behind them, There was no going back. They had to go on and be quick. The search dogs would be busy at daybreak! Capture would mean certain death.

And, although the war was now over, it was still very dangerous. Europe had now become two. One east and one west. And, getting through was not going to be easy. Vienna was a long way-a-way. Moving through this part of Europe was packed full of danger. People were ready to kill.

And, their way to Vienna was stealing and begging for food, sleeping in pig sties and barns during daylight, and moving by night. Creeping through villages and past lonely houses. And, hungry and tired and in need of a bath they got through. Peace was a wonderful thing and Vienna a wonderful place.

The Diwalds successfully established themselves in Vienna - and their travelling companions went on to Hamburg.

But people don’t run from places, it's people they flee from. And, the place that they fled from will always be home. And home needs keeping alive.

Until her recent death, Hermine Diwald and a small group of friends in Vienna kept Werschetz alive in the Werschetzer Zeitung - a journal of essential reading for Werschetzers now all over the world.

And, there's more. The Werschetzer Zeitung became a tradition in its own right. It was not only read by those who'd escaped, but, their children and grandchildren, too. Thanks to Hermine Diwald and friends, Werschetz became somewhere to visit.

Cities are stronger than people – they stay the same – it's the people who change. And, as Hermine Diwald knew only too well, it was only a question of timing. And, be it peace time or war, one has to be strong to survive. This was her message, and - this will always be true.

Hermine Diwald – A lady of strength who grew wings and flew – and that was a long time ago. Hermine Diwald – She was a woman of courage

(B) - The Loser Takes All - Losing can often mean winning as well!

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The Loser Takes All!

I would gladly bet all the money I have that you have more than you need. And, I'm also quite sure you're happy with all your unneeded possessions. And, even more likely, you don't even know what you have. So, what would you do if you were to lose all?

Some years ago, Rebecca P. Anne and Hatsy her daughter arrived home from a trip to the east. They'd had a wonderful time. A perfect holiday. But, you can imagine their shock when their taxi pulled up in front of their house. Their house was no longer there! In their absence, it had burned down to the ground. All that was left was a shell that was black and the pungent smoky smell of a flaming disaster.

Rebecca P. Anne kept a cool head. Finding beds for the night was no problem. The neighbours willingly helped. And, the realities of rebuilding were nothing more than formalities. Insurance, building companies, and so on. And accommodation? Rebecca borrowed a caravan and parked it in her garden whilst their new house was built. 3 months of camping. Nothing wrong with that. And, their possessions?

Rebecca and Hatsy had no problem buying new clothes. Their old ones no longer fitted, and, in any case, fashions had changed. And the books, pictures, curtains, and furniture? No trouble at all. Books are things one only reads once, and the pictures were tastes that had never been theirs - all presents from well-meaning friends and relations. But, the photos! They were painful. They were Rebecca's path from the past. But, the photos, too, were no real problem. After lots of contacting relatives and old friends, Rebecca soon had a new set of photos. And, strange to say, they were, in most case, much better than the ones she had lost. Rebecca was in most of the pictures. In the photos she lost, she was the one who was pressing the shutter.

But, of course, losing all that one has does have its unpleasant moments. On many occasions, Rebecca thought about using something or other. She had forgotten. It, too, had been lost in the fire. But, these moments have now become a thing of the past.

So, all-in-all, losing all that one has isn't so bad. It's a chance to start once again. And, Rebecca? I'm sure you won't be surprised. She, once again, has much more than she needs. Books, pictures, and plants seem to come on their own. That's how life is. And, even more surprisingly, Rebecca has no idea what she's got! Rebecca and Hatsy went to the east and lost all. Now, they have more and much better than before. The loser takes all!

Vocabulary

absence – Abwesenheit

all-in-all – alles in allem

caravan - Wohnwagen

likely - wahrscheinlich

painful – schmerzhaft

possessions – Besitztum

pulled up – blieb stehen

pungent – scharf (negative)

she's – she has

they'd – they had

(A) - Hamid - Friendliness and Warmth

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Hamid

Friendliness and warmth are the things that Hamid remembers when he thinks back to home. Guests were never treated with mistrust or suspicion. Everyone who came was made very welcome in a very warm way. Guests are guests in the land where Hamid grew up.

Vocabulary

friendliness – Freundlichkeit

warmth – Wärme

treated – behandelt (treat/treated/treated)

mistrust – Misstrauen

suspicion - Verdacht

Ill Advised Advisor - A poem by Henry Wright

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ILL-ADVISED ADVISER

by Henry Wright

“It’s good to eat,” observed the duck,

While seeking grass to munch,

“Whatever could we do instead

When time comes round for lunch?”

..

The dandelion with mournful look,

Replied a bit put out,

“I see your point, I do indeed,

But I can’t move about”.

..

The duck was taken by surprise

To hear a flower speak,

The place where one expects a mouth

Were petals but no beak.

..

“You won’t grow up a healthy duck”,

The weed went on to say,

“Unless you have your vitamins

And minerals each day”.

..

The duck was piqued to think a plant

As lowly as a weed,

Presumed to give advice to her

On what she ought to feed.

..

“What use are you?” she cried enraged,

“Stuck always in one spot?

You cannot fly or walk or swim

And talk such tommyrot”.

..

“I landed here by parachute,”

The weed replied with heat,

“And ever since produced the food

That you should daily eat”.

..

“Forgive me for my hasty words,”

The duck replied contrite,

“I’ll follow your advice at once

Because I’m sure you’re right.

..

“I’m sorry we must part this way

Just so I may survive”.

With that she opened wide her beak

And ate the weed alive.

(B) - The Power of Tuna Fish Salad - The most powerful salad there is!

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The Power of Tuna Fish Salad

I had just come back from a trip to the north. I'd had a wonderful trip. But, never-the-less, it was great to be back. My small flat in Vienna was a nice place to come home to. I paid off the taxi and took the lift up to my flat.

I opened the door. There was something waiting for me. Something I hadn't expected. And, it wasn't very nice. It was the worst ever smell I had ever, ever smelled! Something had gone very bad. I turned on the light. But, the light didn't work. I had no power at all. I went next door to my neighbour.

My neighbour Niki explained. It had happened the day I had left. My electronic alarm clock had gone off as usual with its terrible buzz at 6 in the morning. And, this terrible very loud buzz kept going and going - and soon the neighbours were desperate. They were very upset. Then Niki, my next-door neighbour, had an idea. Disconnect. And, that's what they did. With one screw of the fuse, my power was gone. There was silence. The very loud buzzing had stopped. The neighbours were happy and my loud buzzing alarm clock was quickly forgotten. And, then, 3 weeks later I was back. Niki screwed the fuse back and the power returned. The buzzing started again, This time no problem. But, there was the smell. It was dreadful.

It was the kitchen. I opened the fridge. There was the problem. The root of the smell. The fridge was full of black smelly mould.

When Niki turned off the power, the fridge had gone off as well. And, it was then that the tuna fish salad went into action. First, it went bad, then it decayed, then it went mouldy in a fine fury way, and then the mould spread. All round the inside of my fridge. My fridge was completely destroyed.

But, there is a funny side to this story as well. A kind of irony. This was the first time I had ever put food in my fridge. Only beer and wine until then. And, when I left for the north, I hadn't even thought of the fridge and the old tuna salad. But, I should have thought of the buzz. A stupid mistake. I had left home before the alarm was set to go off.

But, next time I knew better. I bought a new fridge, there was nothing else I could do. But, I never once used it for food. Food destroys fridges – and fridges cost money. Stick to that which you know – and – by way - don't forget your alarm – you might lose all that you have!

The power of tuna fish salad – the strongest salad there is.

Vocabulary

dreadful – furchtbar

disconnect - ausschalten

fuse – Sicherung

never-the-less – nicht desto weniger

power - Strom

root - Wurzel

trip - Reise

upset – enttäuscht

(B) - Flower Arranging - Just Do It and Forget It - A true story from long ago school days.

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Flower Arranging – Just Do It and Forget It

Normally speaking, the winning of prizes brings moments of joy; and coming in first is always good news to take home and share.

But, one of the prizes I won whilst at school was very much different. I won first prize in my school's annual flower arranging contest. I was neither happy nor pleased. In fact, I was deeply ashamed.

To begin with, I had only gone in for my school's annual flower arranging contest because it was something one “did”. Not to have done it wouldn't have been right. It was a tradition. “Just do it and forget it” were the words of my father. And, so I just did it.

Very reluctantly, I turned up at school with my flower arrangement. My flower arrangement, by-the-way, consisted of a bunch of hurriedly picked flowers which I had just as hurriedly stuffed into one of my running shoes. That was all! And, arriving at the school hall where the competition was, I got a surprise. All the other entries were brilliant. All results of great effort. Hours of snipping and cutting and the difficult deciding of which flowers went best with each other. In other words, all worksof great art. My flower arrangement was not up to scratch. But, I had entered.

And then, there I was back in my class enjoying my favourite subject. It was just around 3, and with only one more hour to go before going home, I had completely forgotten the flower arranging competition. Then, all of a sudden, the classroom door opened and in walked the headmaster's assistant. My name was called out. Three minutes later, I walked into the hall where the flower arranging competition was and onto the stage. Then everyone started to clap. Who for? They were clapping for me! I had been given first prize.

The headmaster gave a short speech. How great I was, how original I was, how diligent I was, And, how people like me gave the school a good name, and, so on and so forth.

I should have been pleased, but I wasn't. I had seen all the efforts my schoolmates had done. I felt like an intruder. But, there was nothing I could do. I accepted the prize with great grace. However, in my very short speech, I made it clear that everyone else had done much better than me. Then, everyone clapped once again. I was a very good sport. But, there again, there is only one winner in each competition. I had done something unusual. Character? Maybe! And, I've been doing everything differently in a very different way ever since. Just do it and forget it, but do it how you want – a lesson in life!

Flower Arranging – Just do it and forget it.

Vocabulary

by-the-way - übrigens

diligent – hard working (fleißig)

gone in for … teil genommen

intruder – Eindringlinge

neither nor – weder noch

snipping – schnipsen

so on and so forth - so weiter und so fort

turned up - arrived

(not) up to scratch – not up to standard

I accepted the prize with great grace, Ich nahm den Preis mit großer Gnade entgegen.