A Little Boat Ride

I've joined this club - The Cosmopolitan Ladies Club of Bremen.  Don't let the title fool you;  I guess we're "cosmopolitan" because we come from all over the world, literally.  The major qualification for membership is that you are a woman, you are not German but are married to one, and you seem to fit in with this diverse group.  Basically, if someone asks you to join, you're in.  It's pretty low-key.

Generally, the language of communication is English, but there are some women who don't do English very well, so German is the second choice.  But it was important to the founders that the club did not become German.

Once a month there's a luncheon, then one or two other events. It's been interesting - small plays, tours of museums and galleries, gardens and parks, a belly-dance evening. Frankly, there were way too many mirrors for me on that event!

Last week some club members went on a little boat trip in a Torfkahn, from the middle of Bremen to the outskirts of the city,  along the canals that were built to bring peat from the moors to the city.  It turned out to be a really nice day - mostly sunny and pleasantly warm.  Good thing, too!  We'd already postponed it from the week before when it was rainy, nasty and 60° - NOT a boat trip kind of day!

Here's the boat.  It would have carried peat from bottom to top, front to back.  One person, maybe two, would have managed the trip which would take several days.  Up front there was a place to crawl into to sleep, a little stove to  heat water for tea.  Not cruise ship conditions.

 But here we are, with Captain Gabi at the helm.  This was a fun trip.

 

We passed desolate places full of algae and water lilies and rotted posts of former docks.  At least I think that's what they were.

 After two hours, we got to the café at Dammsiel, where the little Wümme (the stream we'd followed) ran into the Wümme proper.  Then we celebrated - coffee floats, chocolate floats, coffe and cake, sitting under the apple trees along the river.

Our lives are so much more luxurious than the peat farmers...

Hannah's Quilt

Hannah finished high school this year, so she needed a special gift.

I'm probably the worst gift-giver in the world.  I struggle to find something - anything! - special and appropriate for the person.  And it hardly ever works.  I've given up on Christmas - gift cards and donations to favorite charities are my choices these days. Or we just decide to not gift!  Hunter graduated a few years ago and it was such a challenge.  What was the final gift?  I don't even remember.  How embarrassing!!  But it seems it's always a bit harder with the guys...

It's a little bit easier with the girls.  Hannah got a quilt, home-made, hand quilted by her grandmother.

And quilts take time and take time and did I mention time?  Choose the pattern, choose the size, choose the colors, choose the fabrics, choose the frame and border fabric and the quilting patterns and so on and so on.  Quilts are not easy! I so admire the women who came up with these patterns.

Pattern: double Irish Chain
Color: red and white
Errors:  a few here and there...but so it is with handwork.

It was a joy to make and a joy to see Hannah's face when we presented it to her.  Enjoy, Hannah, with love, for many years to come!

Woodland Peace

As small as Germany is (compared to the USofA), there is a good bit of wooded land here and the Germanic folk have ancient and mythic and mystic connections to the wood.  (Just think Black Forest!)

Our wooded areas in north Germany aren't as dense, but there's plenty to walk and wander through, without fear of stepping on a snake, I hasten to add.  But you could run into a wild boar or deer.

The woods are managed, and now the foresters are branching out into the ever-after business and so we've been thinking about a final resting place. Really, it's not maudlin, it's just practical.  And our dear friend Ursula is nothing if not practical.

Some years ago she decided she'd like to be buried close to her family home and bought a tree.  Well, you don't really buy the tree, but you buy the space under the tree where you'll be buried.  No casket, but ashes in a biodegradable urn. Green.

We do Green here.  And you know how that appeals to me.  For goodness' sake, we recycle the heck out of stuff and look how we can recycle more.  Our trash can is 1/10 the size of most cans in the states and it only gets picked up every other week.  I know, we're two folks and not four, but...we do recycle.

So ultimately the tree in south Germany was too far away and Ursel wanted to share her space, so to speak, with friends, so she found the Friedwald Bremer Schweiz here in our neighborhood.  Friedwald is a bit hard to translate, but basically, a place of rest and peace.  We could all use that! They designate places in the federal forests for urn burials and sell the space.  It's a natural burial.

This is our tree.  We biked out there the other day to take a look.  It's a beech tree, over 100 years old.  It should stand for a while yet.  There's a group of 10 or maybe 12 of us who'll be interred there.  None of us are related except by friendship.

There are wild blueberry bushes nearby.  And blackberries, too, but it's too early for them.

Here's a poem that says some of what I mean.

WOODLAND BURIAL by Pam Ayres.

Don’t lay me down in some gloomy churchyard shaded by a wall
Where the dust of ancient bones has spread dryness over all.
Lay me in some leafy loam where, sheltered from the cold
Little seeds investigate and tender leaves unfold.
There  kindly and affectionately plant a native tree
To grow resplendent before God and hold some part of me.
The roots will not disturb me as they wend their peaceful way
To build the fine and bountiful, from closure and decay.
To seek their small requirements so that when their work is done
I’ll be tall and standing strongly in the beauty of the Sun.

 P.S.

We went with Renate and Gerd later in the week to see if the tree was a good fit for them (it was!).  But next to our tree, there had been a recent burial.  I found it soothing. 

A slice of a tree, greenery placed around it, looking so natural in this natural setting.

US Visit, April June

This has been one of our longest trips - 39 days/daze - living from the suitcases, lots of miles on the rental car, a good many individual places to visit.  Hard?  Yes.  Fun? Also yes!

As has become usual, we landed in Orlando where Dylan immediately wanted to have a picnic!  I hope we get to do a lot of picnics in Bremen.

Then a quick stop in St. Augustine.  We hadn't seen Sharon diFino for years and years but catching up was easy. And our vegan dinner was delish!

Then off to Jacksonville.  My 55th high school reunion.  What fun!  Several friends were there I had not seen since graduation in 1962, but thanks to FB, I did recognize them after all this time.  Friday was a casual dinner and meet up, Saturday somewhat more formal with a band and very good buffet, but it was all about talking and reminiscing and finding out what's up with each other these days.

Then off to Atlanta. Not much changes visit to visit.  Ginny and Barry are redoing the kitchen/living room/dining room area, little kids keep getting bigger, Carla and Tim have a new house.  We did visit the Jimmy Carter Center this time and had my picture taken in his Oval Office.  And often we met around the table.  Just ask the scales!

Off to the beach!!  We scheduled enough time this visit to have a few days with Nancy at the beach and our timing was absolutely perfect. The weather could not have been better, the surf was soothing and the sun was warming.  St. George Island is a little bit a paradise.

Apalachicola, only a little drive across the bridge, meant shopping and oysters and fried shrimp. Even if they're not great, they are wonderful. Fresh shrimp in Bremen is the equivalent of snowballs in hell, so when we are anywhere near the gulf, we gorge on shrimp and other seafood.

 And Apalach is now looking like I always knew it could.  The shop facades are colorful and classy and the insides are as good as the outsides.  The book shop is always a must see.

A short trip back east to Tallahassee, and then good bye to Nancy till next time. Old friends are great friends!  I'm not entirely sure when we first met.  It may have been at FSU but probably in Atlanta when our (then) husbands were at Emory Medical School and then later when they were doing their residencies. I know she baby-sat Michelle one evening, so, it has been at least 50 years.  Time does fly and bonds grow stronger.

Then on to Panama City.  We had presents for Hunter and Hannah.  Always.  But these last few years, the presents have been a bit, well, modest.  Favorite chocolate, for instance.  This visit is extra special though because Hannah is graduating from high school. An E V E N T.  It deserves a special gift, so it was. It didn't happen overnight, but there was a quilt from Meemaw to Hannah on this special occasion.  She was nicely surprised.  And Meemaw felt lots of love. 

There was a gift for Hunter, too, left over from last year's birthday which he'd graciously forgotten.  Werner made him a special display case for some of Hunter's special knives.  I have to say, it is so much fun giving a gift to Hunter because he is always so happy to receive it!!  It's a double gift for us!

Lucky us got to have a boat day.  Out to Shell Island, fun in the water, a walk to the Gulf side, lots of food and company.  Florida life can be really ... Florida.

And the obligatory family photo.  How often I forget the little travel tripod!  How often I forget to press the right button!  How often I am NOT in the picture the first time - or two!  But eventually, there's a picture. 

Then it was back to Orlando, just a day or two and then get Dylan packed and ready for her German adventure!  If you're interested, you can read all about it at www.avisitfromdylan.blogspot.com  

It was fun - and long - and it was about to get longer.  But I wouldn't trade the time for anything.  I hope everyone took away some memories at least as happy as mine.  

Heilegenrode - Holy Clearing

Not what you think - NOT Rome, not a holy city  Just a place in the woods cleared for a holy place.  A convent.

It was time for a little day trip and somehow we have never visited Heiligenrode though it's just a hop, skip and a jump from where we live.

The convent, established in  1182, has long since disappeared - all the nuns from the years it was catholic, all the "church ladies" from when it was protestant. The last died in1965.

I suppose so many of these convents and monasteries were set up in quiet pastoral places so that the religious folks wouldn't be distracted by the sounds of the city.  Regardless, that's were many of them are/were.

There's a nice cluster of old buildings in the center of the old town - most importantly, the water mill.

The funny thing on the right?  That's way for the fish to wander back to their birthplace to spawn again. How they figure that out is beyond me.

You all know we love biking here, and next to the water mill is a filling station for bike tires.  Frankly, I think we could use more of these!

The picture at the beginning is the mill pond.  In the summer there's a grouping of clay figures  standing in the pond.  We'll have to go back later to see them! 

Of course there's a church, quite old,dating from the 13th century.  The towns are smaller these days, fewer folks attend services, fewer still are called to the ministry, so  services are not held ever week and the protestant churches are seldom open outside of worship times.  So, there was no visit to the interior.  That's too bad.

Outside, there were the old gravestones of those long gone.  It would be hard to decipher who and when from these ancient markers.

A bit outside the old town, we walked along the small stream.  I know that looks like a group of dead trunks, but so not dead!  These are willows, severely pruned so that when the new, fresh, tender branches sprout, they can be used for weaving baskets to hold grain, potatoes, whatever was needed on the farm.

These days, they harvest the wood.  No, I have not colored the picture!!! These felled trees were so green from moss and fungus.  How .... colorful!?

A view of the watermill from across the mill pond. Though the day was dry, sadly not too sunny.  But what a reflection!

And after all that work (which included about 20 minutes of driving around just trying to find the place!!!) there was ice cream and coffee, though we still are in warm jackets and scarves.  It's OK- spring is on the way!!

Syrian Feast

Werner's been tutoring Eilaf in English.  She's a refugee from Syria who had studied English before she and her family hit the long, hard road to escape the war there, going through Greece to Turkey and finally (part of the family) settling in Germany.  She wants to get her German Abitur so she can go to university and study and have a career.

We haven't "sponsored" her family - we give no money - that is something that the German state provides.  But in the months that Werner has worked with Eilaf, we have learned about her family and their struggles and I don't know how anyone could not be moved by their story.  And frankly, in the big picture, they've not done badly.

Eilaf's mother and the brothers who were with her in Turkey for so long are now in Bremen - the family is finally together.  One of her uncles and his wife are in another German town.  The rest of the extended family is still in Turkey awaiting papers and permissions.  They are at least out of the war-torn area.

At Christmas, we had Eilaf, her sister, one brother and her father here for dinner.  Today, they returned the favor.  We celebrated with them, with her mother and the other two brothers, her uncle and his wife.   What a great looking bunch of folks! And what a spread!!

Ten more could have come and we'd still be full!  We had Kibbeh, a bulghur/flour mixture worked into a mass and then filled with meat.  Salad, of course, with tomato and lettuce and the usual but then the unusual of thin slices of lemon peel. Yummy!  And stuffed dried aubergine.  The stuffing was spicy and the dried aubergine tender and tasty.  I made this myself one time, but not nearly as well.

Werner and I were a little bit worried about this event since there were so many language barriers.  Eilaf speaks English and German pretty well, dad some English and less German, the sister a fair amount of German.  Mother and younger brothers only Kurdish.  You get the idea.  The larger burden was on Eilaf and she was a trouper.

We avoided politics but talked a lot about cultural differences and just getting adjusted to a new life.  They were a little surprised, and I think a little teeny bit disappointed, that their foods were not unknown to us. But you all know how much we love to eat and to experiment, so, sorry Eilaf!  Regardless, it was all delicious. 

Afterwards, we talked a bit more and then we had live music.  Eilaf's uncle is a professional musician and studied classical guitar in Syria.  We got a taste of his talent. 

All in all a wonderful afternoon!  I am looking forward to more "Fests" with Eilaf and her family.

Major Catch Up

Frankly, I have wondered whether to continue writing this blog or not.  I have my pictures, but it does seem that the story fails if/when there is no continuity of text.  So, at least for I while, I will continue.

Therefore:   A very abbreviated look back at the last several months.

The Baums plus Merle, a friend of Amina's, came to Bremen to visit us and the Christmas market.  There are traditions here - as in the USofA -- that you just don't mess with no matter how old you get!  There's of course the walk along the Schlachte

the ride on the one ride

and of course mulled wine for the grown-ups and hot chocolate for the kiddies.  We had a good time!

Our dear friend Ulli Brandt celebrated his 70th birthday on 20 December with lots of friends, great food, and not a small bit of silliness.  We had a great time.

There was a lovely Christmas dinner at out house with Eilaf, the Syrian young woman Werner has been tutoring, and her family - or her partial family.  Dad, one brother and sister are here in Germany while mother and two brothers are still in Turkey waiting for visas.  Biggest hit:  pecan pie!!

Christmas celebration with René and family was - as always - a celebration.  Great company, great food.

Meanwhile, my mother's situation was deteriorating daily. What to do, what to do? Finally we decided to go and so left for the US on Jan 29 but didn't arrive until 24 hours+ later due to fog and delayed flights.

Nevertheless, we were able to visit with Mother before she died, comfortably and in her sleep at the ripe age of 96.  As Michelle said, we should all be so lucky.

The funeral was a time of celebration of family; cousins came from Texas and Tennessee and Michelle and family and Lee were there from Florida to join everyone in Atlanta.  Mother would have been ecstatic, and it was wonderful to see all these folks together in one place.

Returning to Bremen, there was our annual Kohl und Pinkel dinner, a bit smaller this year since one regular was in Mexico (!), another in therapy (sadly), and Ilsemarie came late since she needed to attend a funeral, also sad.  Regardless, we enjoyed our tradition, and personally, I enjoy it more every year.  Good traditions engender good feelings year after year.  Good grief, sorry,  I am getting old.

I continue to teach my English groups, Werner continues with his volunteer activities, and the winter continues pass, the daylight getting longer day by day.

And recently we went to watch the Samba parade before Mardi Gras.  What a celebration.  Lots of noise, beats to dance by, and garish costumes and colors that make winter fly away.

I'll try to do better and try too to remember it's the little things that fill in the spaces of our lives.



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Art with Friends

Art and crafts are Werner and me.  We look at it, we love it, we do it.  Professionals we are not, but frankly, we're not too bad at the projects we tackle.  Agreed? 

I think I've sewn everything in the house that can be - slipcovers, curtains, pillows out the wazoo, needlepoint, cross stitch, upholstery (small), several of them more than once.  Especially pillows!!

And then there's Art with a capital A. Our friend Renate does Art.  And she had a small exhibit in a small gallery near us.  Worth the trip.

The theme was From Reality to Abstract so there were paintings from her earlier "realistic" work to the more abstract work she does now.   

Since I love sheep, especially sheep on the dikes, this was a real favorite of mine.

This is not as abstract as at first glance.  It's fish.  Though you could say the colors are a bit on the weird side.

 But then Renate gets into more cubist and abstract  forms, but the colors are still appealing and pleasant.

We enjoyed it! And it's great to support our local artists.  Maybe Werner will be up there with an exhibit before we know it.  After all, he's Werner the Artist. 

Advent, Advent

It's a children's song, a popular tune this time of year... Advent, Advent, one candle burns...though in German it rhymes!

First Advent was a week ago, and as usual, or many of the first Advents we've spent here in Germany, we were with René and family.  The gathering this year was a bit smaller, or a different configuration.  We used to have a pretty big group, but that was before Mutti died, before Monika and Lex moved to Curacao, when First Advent didn't conflict with Rima's parent's visit to home in Lebanon.  Regardless, it is festive.

 Rima is great at decorating and that includes the stocking I made for Amina a few years back.  But what's this?? Someone's been nibbling on the stocking, it seems.  Yes, Mr. Mouse. I'll take it home and put some patch there....

 Then there's food.  Of course.  Let's start with a soup - a beef broth with noodles and veggies and egg.  It's steamingly wonderful.

Other foods followed - breast of duck, potatoes, red cabbage.  By then, of course, I am too much into eating to remember the camera.  I think it is an annual affliction.  It's delicous, of course.

The whole time, I am sitting across these three ladies - Maya, Amina's godmother (and life-long friend of Rima's), Amina and Rima.  Not a bad view at all.

Neighbors and friends were already dropping in for late coffee and cake and chatting when we had to head out, back home to get ready for Monday and the week ahead.... including another get together next week  since we have to visit the Christmas market in Bremen.