March 18, 1985 Late at night!
This is my life!
First I would like to pay tribute to my Mother! Then to my Husband!
This one the only people that really cared about me and loved me unconditionally. The family I came from is unsurpassed. Never again in my life after my marriage have I found the same kind of people! Every one of the relatives I have met in my childhood and teen years has been a faithful, truthful, God-fearing individual. Every one of my relatives - and I have met a good many - has always loved and respected me and I have felt comfortable in every home we have visited. We were always welcomed with open arms and I mean this literally! Today many of them are dead and I thank my Father in Heaven for the privilege I had to be born in to such a wonderful family.
My mother was the best Mother anyone could ever have. I can not remember ever having heard a cross or negative word from the lips of my Mother or from any of my relatives! Having been watching the people here now for 19 years, I have not found one family which is like my relatives. That is quite like my family! They went to church every Sunday - everyone would go to church. Then we had dinner, which always included a delicious cake and milk for us children and coffee for the adults, and I was always served in the living room with tablecloth! (On weekdays we ate in the kitchen.)
Most of my relatives on Mother's side were farmers. They all lived in one town: Wittlingen/Kreis, Lorrach, Germany. My Grandfather, (my Grandmother died when mother was only nine years old of a heart attack) raised his children alone and they all were wonderful, loving people. I really wish I could go back to my childhood and re-live it again - just for the unconditional love I received from everyone!
When my Mother, my two sisters and I and our cousins (2 girls and 4 boys) got together, there was always fun and lots of joy we experienced together. My aunts would tell us where to go and what to do and we went! Never have I heard that one of us said, "Oh, I don't like to go there" or "I don't like to do this" - the children would obey their parents and elders!
At least that's how it was in the family I came from! The word "No" was never heard and was just plain taboo. But we were happy and content together, even so it was mixed with work, it was just fun to be together. We were sheltered within our families. We never knew anything else and never desired anything else. I can not remember that neither our cousins nor we ever had any friends in the house. We could go outside whenever we wanted (of course, we had to ask if we could and if there was work to do, it had to be done first) and play with our friends or go to the park, which we had many in our city.
At my relatives, we would go to one house to stay overnight and in the morning go to the other uncle's house and play all together either hide and seek (inside, when the weather was bad or play some other fun games), outside around the house and in the meadows, which all had lots of fruit trees, cherries, apples, pears, apricots or peaches. The land started right behind Grandfather's house and did include many, many meadows, as far as the eye could see.
Sometimes one of our aunts would say, "Go into the vineyard and see if the grapes are ripe." Needless to say, that we did not walk - we ran and at the same time would try to outrun each other to see who would be at the vineyard first. (We were all about the same age, but if the younger ones could not keep up with us older ones, we would all wait for them and then start running again for a spell and the whole procedure would be repeated. Never would any one of us even think of teasing one of our younger siblings. I think the punishment from our parents would have caused us too much shame and embarrassment in front of the others.
Or we would be allowed to go in the peach yard and eat peaches to our hearts content, but only those which the wind had blown down and after we were full, we had to gather the rest and bring them home so they could be processed for jam! Oh, how delicious that jam was in the evening on a piece of freshly baked bread with homemade butter!
Or we would we would go early in the morning when the dew was still on the ground to rake the freshly cut grass, which smelled so heavenly, like nothing ever could and we would get our shoes soaked and our feet wet. Either it was loaded on a wagon and hauled home to feed the cows and horses or left for hay, which was hauled in one or two days later when it was dry (depending on the weather)!
Either way, we children had the privilege to sit on top of the wagon, singing, laughing, and having lots of fun with our aunts, uncles, and our grandfather!
A time I will never forget as long as I live! It seems it was yesterday because it was so enjoyable. Sometimes, only the older children could go and we would sit on my Uncle Ernst's truck - the joy and pride of the family and the first and only one in town. With it he would do work for other farmers in town, which were not as fortunate as he was. Never have I seen him getting paid for any of his jobs. He just was living the greatest law Jesus Christ gave us: love thy neighbor as thyself, as did to my knowledge all my relatives.
My grandfather was the richest farmer in town and my two uncles, Fritz and Ernst, were not far behind him financially! They had the biggest houses in town and the most modern machinery. Uncle Fritz was the oldest in the family and took over the house and farming from grandfather with the later still living there til he died.
I was 17 years old when that happened and was working in a nursery at the time. So, I made him a pretty wreath, about one yard in diameter, from red and white dalies (the little ones of which I must have used about 200). It was the ? my grandfather had and my mother told me later, when I was married and had children of my own, that as I laid it down by the casket, my Aunt Emma asked her, "Who is that pretty girl?" to which my mother proudly answered: "Well, that is Christel!" (That is what I was called until I came to America and was named Christine by people, because that is what they saw on my church records.)
I got that name from my mother, which in turn took it over (that is, it was given to her) from her mother. Three generations of Christine's in a row, was quite a family record and I was determined to name my first girl Christine! But then, at the age fo 22 I married a man, whose nationality was Italian and as most all people of his descent have an "a" at the end of female names and an "o" at the end of male names.
I named my first daughter Angela because it means "Angel" and that is what I considered her to be. She also received my name as her middle name and because I loved her so much, she got a third: Silvia.
1. Angela Christine Sylvia
This is my life!
First I would like to pay tribute to my Mother! Then to my Husband!
This one the only people that really cared about me and loved me unconditionally. The family I came from is unsurpassed. Never again in my life after my marriage have I found the same kind of people! Every one of the relatives I have met in my childhood and teen years has been a faithful, truthful, God-fearing individual. Every one of my relatives - and I have met a good many - has always loved and respected me and I have felt comfortable in every home we have visited. We were always welcomed with open arms and I mean this literally! Today many of them are dead and I thank my Father in Heaven for the privilege I had to be born in to such a wonderful family.
My mother was the best Mother anyone could ever have. I can not remember ever having heard a cross or negative word from the lips of my Mother or from any of my relatives! Having been watching the people here now for 19 years, I have not found one family which is like my relatives. That is quite like my family! They went to church every Sunday - everyone would go to church. Then we had dinner, which always included a delicious cake and milk for us children and coffee for the adults, and I was always served in the living room with tablecloth! (On weekdays we ate in the kitchen.)
Most of my relatives on Mother's side were farmers. They all lived in one town: Wittlingen/Kreis, Lorrach, Germany. My Grandfather, (my Grandmother died when mother was only nine years old of a heart attack) raised his children alone and they all were wonderful, loving people. I really wish I could go back to my childhood and re-live it again - just for the unconditional love I received from everyone!
When my Mother, my two sisters and I and our cousins (2 girls and 4 boys) got together, there was always fun and lots of joy we experienced together. My aunts would tell us where to go and what to do and we went! Never have I heard that one of us said, "Oh, I don't like to go there" or "I don't like to do this" - the children would obey their parents and elders!
At least that's how it was in the family I came from! The word "No" was never heard and was just plain taboo. But we were happy and content together, even so it was mixed with work, it was just fun to be together. We were sheltered within our families. We never knew anything else and never desired anything else. I can not remember that neither our cousins nor we ever had any friends in the house. We could go outside whenever we wanted (of course, we had to ask if we could and if there was work to do, it had to be done first) and play with our friends or go to the park, which we had many in our city.
At my relatives, we would go to one house to stay overnight and in the morning go to the other uncle's house and play all together either hide and seek (inside, when the weather was bad or play some other fun games), outside around the house and in the meadows, which all had lots of fruit trees, cherries, apples, pears, apricots or peaches. The land started right behind Grandfather's house and did include many, many meadows, as far as the eye could see.
Sometimes one of our aunts would say, "Go into the vineyard and see if the grapes are ripe." Needless to say, that we did not walk - we ran and at the same time would try to outrun each other to see who would be at the vineyard first. (We were all about the same age, but if the younger ones could not keep up with us older ones, we would all wait for them and then start running again for a spell and the whole procedure would be repeated. Never would any one of us even think of teasing one of our younger siblings. I think the punishment from our parents would have caused us too much shame and embarrassment in front of the others.
Or we would be allowed to go in the peach yard and eat peaches to our hearts content, but only those which the wind had blown down and after we were full, we had to gather the rest and bring them home so they could be processed for jam! Oh, how delicious that jam was in the evening on a piece of freshly baked bread with homemade butter!
Or we would we would go early in the morning when the dew was still on the ground to rake the freshly cut grass, which smelled so heavenly, like nothing ever could and we would get our shoes soaked and our feet wet. Either it was loaded on a wagon and hauled home to feed the cows and horses or left for hay, which was hauled in one or two days later when it was dry (depending on the weather)!
Either way, we children had the privilege to sit on top of the wagon, singing, laughing, and having lots of fun with our aunts, uncles, and our grandfather!
A time I will never forget as long as I live! It seems it was yesterday because it was so enjoyable. Sometimes, only the older children could go and we would sit on my Uncle Ernst's truck - the joy and pride of the family and the first and only one in town. With it he would do work for other farmers in town, which were not as fortunate as he was. Never have I seen him getting paid for any of his jobs. He just was living the greatest law Jesus Christ gave us: love thy neighbor as thyself, as did to my knowledge all my relatives.
My grandfather was the richest farmer in town and my two uncles, Fritz and Ernst, were not far behind him financially! They had the biggest houses in town and the most modern machinery. Uncle Fritz was the oldest in the family and took over the house and farming from grandfather with the later still living there til he died.
I was 17 years old when that happened and was working in a nursery at the time. So, I made him a pretty wreath, about one yard in diameter, from red and white dalies (the little ones of which I must have used about 200). It was the ? my grandfather had and my mother told me later, when I was married and had children of my own, that as I laid it down by the casket, my Aunt Emma asked her, "Who is that pretty girl?" to which my mother proudly answered: "Well, that is Christel!" (That is what I was called until I came to America and was named Christine by people, because that is what they saw on my church records.)
I got that name from my mother, which in turn took it over (that is, it was given to her) from her mother. Three generations of Christine's in a row, was quite a family record and I was determined to name my first girl Christine! But then, at the age fo 22 I married a man, whose nationality was Italian and as most all people of his descent have an "a" at the end of female names and an "o" at the end of male names.
I named my first daughter Angela because it means "Angel" and that is what I considered her to be. She also received my name as her middle name and because I loved her so much, she got a third: Silvia.
1. Angela Christine Sylvia
My son's names are:
2. Mario Antonio Rolando (my husband's first and second names)
3. Renato Pietro Angelo (my husband's third name). Renato was born on Sunday morning, while churchbells were ringing.
4. Orlando (the R behind the O) Italo I did think it better not to have two of the same names in the family. Orlando has Papa's name, with the R changed to the end of the O.
5. Romeo Aldo (the great lover)
One of the twins was asking me not long ago: "Why did you never give Papa's name to any of the boys?" to which I answered, "Because if you call the name, none of them knows if he is the one to answer!"
And I loved to call my husband by his first name, not "Papa" (that was the privilege of the children,). I also do not believe in nicknames.
With the birth of the twins I started to run out of names I liked so each child got only two names from there on, but they are pretty, are they not?
6. Christiano Fiorello (by now I started to winder if there would be another girl, so I gave this baby my name-in male form in Italian.) Christiano's second name, Fiorello, means flower in Italian!
7. Ernesto Michael (I was giving him the name of one of my uncles, Ernst in Italian form, Michael because it is the archangel's name, which was also Adam on the earth).
I really can not explain why each child got the names it has! Papa and I talked about them before birth, after birth, when the nurse wanted to know, what do I put on the record. I said the names I loved best at the time. Perhaps you children wanted them and let me know in my ear!
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