Last week I have been skiing. So no Garden story today. However, I would
like to tell you about a special encounter.
In the corner of the chair lift, a small Austrian girl is sitting next
to me. She looks like a rag doll in her bulky snowsuit. I hold my breath, because
she easily could slip under the safety bracket. I have to skip that thought........
Suddenly the girl starts talking to me. She noticed we have the same
brand of skis. That creates a bond. I tell her how I love the colour of her
skis. They match perfectly with the rest of her ski outfit. Excitedly she tells
me how she has chosen everything in pink and purple. Only the vest of her ski
class detonates. That is in red and yellow. But obviously that has not been not
chosen by herself.
She looks at me through her pink ski goggles. Then, out of the blue, she
says, "Meine Eltern haben sich getrennt". Feverishly I search my
memory. Getrennt? That is divorced!
Well, that is not nice, I say. And to fill the gap in the conversation,
I ask: "Do you live with your father or your mother?” She lives with her
mother, together with her sister, she tells me. She is on vacation with her
mother now, but - if possible - she will go with her father too.
Suddenly she shows me her hand. Have you seen my mittens? she asks. Rabbits,
with large ears, are depicted on her mittens. Look, she says as she turns her mitten.
On the inside a root has been embroidered. Such cute mittens I would loved to
have bought for my daughter I tell her. But nowadays my daughter is too old for
that.
How old is she? she asks. I tell her, but she cannot cope with such a
huge figure. I'm 5, well four and a half actually, she says. We have reached
the end of the ski lift. She pops out of the chair lift and disappears among
the other coloured ski suits of her ski class and I am left behind with all
kinds of thoughts.
I admire her resilience. Last week she has been on my mind a lot.
Little girl, I wish you the best.
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