My Bavarian Education

I just said goodbye to the people who have been my family for the past month. I cried when I kissed Hanna, and my eyes continued to glisten as I hung my head out the train window to spend a parting moment with the four of them. Hanna reassured me she would soon visit Bordeaux and Hildagard encouraged me with smiles and hand signals to dry my eyes--alles ist in ordnung, Mary! But the tears streamed down my face in spite of my efforts. I caught the eye of Harald and then those of his father and before I could blow a kiss to Hanna the train pulled her from my sight and headed off with a heavy thud towards Paris.

It is difficult to put words to their kindness and generosity. L'affluence d'émotions a l'air plus acceptable dans la langue française; donc je dirai tout simplement que j'ai passé des vacances de rêve chez eux. I felt like a child in the most positive sense. Everyday someone taught me something new. Hanna trained me in table tennis deftly hitting the ball ten times to the left side the tens times to the right side of the table, patiently fetching my wayward balls when I hit them into the garage, the flower garden, down the hill, etc. Helmut taught me to hit a tennis ball, cheerfully running back and forth across the court to return my clumsy serves in exactly the same spot on my side of the court.

One of the first mornings after my arrival we all decided to go to the lake for a day of wind sports. Hanna, excited to be on her surf board after months of waiting, was off like a flash, sailing skillfully against the strong alpine wind. Her father helped me construct a second sail and showed me physically what I was to do. I got in the water. Freezing cold lake I thought then (in fact it was only my second day in Germany and I had yet to habituate myself to the German taste for cold). I balanced myself on the board, feeling fairly confident--my legs firmly planted slightly more than shoulder length apart, toes spread, muscles engaged--fertig! I found the rope attached to the sail. Hanna had told me that I might find it a bit heavy the first time. What an understatement. The thing wouldn't budge--I mean not in a million years could I hope to lift this 5 million square meter submerged sail out of its lake. But Hanna's father continued relentlessly to advise in a language that I did not understand. And I, frustrated that I could not obey, tried again. This time slipped off the board completely. Halt! Halt! Halt! said my teacher, and without delay he went off in search of another boat onto which he loaded my board, my sail, and me. We rowed to another side of the lake where the wind was less strong. We reconstructed the sail, rather he constructed as I looked on, and I tried again. Harald arrived on his sailboat to translate the words of his father and lend me a hand. By now I was exhausted, but with Harald's help I managed to pull the sail out of the water and even sailed a few meters before losing my balance and tumbling back into that cold ass lake. When we arrived back at the house, my sentiment was still one of frustration. As I mounted the stairs, Harald, who as descending, tousled my hair as if to say cela n'est pas grave; I appreciated that!

Hanna's mom taught me how to make knudel--a delicious Bavarian specialty made from day old bread, eggs, herbs, and veggies. Her father taught me how to chose the ripe hazelnuts from the trees and how to crack them open with the light stroke of a hammer. Together, Helmet and Hildegard showed me the best places in the high Alpes to find wild mushrooms. I have no idea how we didn't get lost that day! Harald taught me some basic chess strategies. And Hanna, since the first day that I met her, has never stopped teaching me the most important things! From introducing me to the works of the Blaue Reiter, in particular those of Franz Marc, to showing me the proper way to tie the bow on the back of a dirndl, to explaining the petite nuances of French adjectives and their placements. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to spend time with this family and to have learned so much from each member. It all makes me feel so proud to be human!