Postscript: Learning from History
VATER
FRIEDRICK KOSCHNICK
GEB. 1. MÄRZ 1832
GEST. 16. MÄRZ 1901
MUTTER
AUGUSTE KOSCHNICK
GEB. ELIAS
GEB. 29. SEPT. 1845
At age 55, Auguste Elias Koschnick had survived her husband and six children. No death date is given on her tombstone. What are the possibilities?
Perhaps, there was no one left to complete her headstone with a date of death. A more positive spin would be that she remarried and is buried with her second husband. After so much heartbreak, I hope she found happiness.
Learning from History
Forest Park, a suburb of Chicago
June 28, 2010
7:30 am
A mother sits at the breakfast table with five of her six children. It's Monday morning, and the backtalk, squabbling, bossiness, and tantrums are driving her mad. Finally, the children are off to summer school, and Mom has a few hours of quiet time before lunch. She drives around near her home, exploring some sights that are new to her.
Chicago
May 17, 1895
A mother weeps as her son Theo dies. In a few days, she'll bury him at Concordia Cemetery in Forest Park, laying him to rest near his five siblings. She will read the headstones, remembering each child's birth and life before they were taken away:
CHRISTIAN J. F. KOSCHNICK
GEB. 29. MAI 1869
GEST. 7. MÄRZ 1873
[almost 4 years old]
HERMANN KOSCHNICK
GEB. 8. JAN. 1872
GEST. 8. MAI 1890
[8 years old]
LOUISE E. KOSCHNICK
GEB. 20. DEZ. 1877
GEST. 21. AUG. 1880
[2½ years old]
EMMA P. R. KOSCHNICK
GEB. 27. FEB. 1880
GEST. 15. FEB. 1882
[almost 2 years old]
BERTHA H. K. KOSCHNICK
GEB. 31. MAI 1881
GEST. 20. SEPT. 1881
[about 4 months old]
Soon, the headstone of her last child will join the others:
THEODOR KOSCHNICK
GEB. 19. DEZ. 1887
GEST. 17. MAI 1895
[about 8½ years old]
___________________
Forest Park, a suburb of Chicago
June 28, 2010
10:00 am
The difficulties at the breakfast table don't look so bad anymore.
Postscript: Our TREE
This is a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who have helped us, in many different ways, to deal with our downed tree. The care shown to us from our neighbors and church friends has turned a difficult situation into one of ministry and love. Bless you!
Conspiracy
Our two dogs are very efficient at cleaning up crumbs under the table. They are even better at helping out the children who don't like what we serve!
Our TREE
Last Friday, half of our ancient oak tree fell down in a storm. An arborist told us that the tree was heavy with water from recent rains in our area. Combine that weight with a little bit of trunk rot and a massive amount of leaves that can catch a strong wind, and down it came. Here is the half of the tree that remains standing. (To get an idea of the scale, please note that the back door of the house is topped by a window.)
Here's the split from which half the tree fell and then the base of that branch:
The crown of the tree fills our back yard, part of our parking pad, and half of our neighbor's yard. The children's playhouse took a direct hit, but luckily we were away from home, and none of the neighborhood kids were there. The tree fell perfectly between our house and the neighbor's garage, with damage only to our porch's gutter. I'm sad to lose such an old beautiful tree, but grateful that no one was injured.
Two Sides of a Word
"s . . o . . r . . r . . y"This version comes almost daily from the children who want to get past their misdeeds as quickly as possible. He/she hopes that this magic word will solve all their problems and return their world to normal. Only seldom are they actually penitent.
"SORRY!@*!"For these children, I can count on one hand how many times in five years they've uttered this word--and only a few fingers can be counted! Sometimes I think these children feel completely diminished if they admit guilt. And maybe in the past it was just too dangerous to look weak. But now when they can get themselves to say "sorry," they really mean it.
"Our Little Grownup" OR "The Teacher's Mimic"?
Here's a comment that we heard a few months ago, after a meal that Jonathan had prepared:Kola: "Dad, I like your lunches! I'm impressed with your work."
Living in Style
I grew up in Texas, where it stays hot from May to September. In Chicago, however, the weather may sizzle for a while, but then a storm blows through and drops the temperature to comfortable levels.
Once our heavy a/c units are installed in the windows for the summer, it's not possible to open the windows anymore. Therefore, Jonathan and I delay putting them in as long as possible, since we enjoy the fresh air (
frische Luft, as our German friends would say).
Last week, however, we almost cried uncle. The house was unbearably hot, even with multiple fans blowing. Paul, however, was quite comfortable. His backyard playhouse, solidly built high on stilts and carefully sealed shut, was cool as a cucumber. He had furnished it with an a/c unit, connecting it to our house with a long extension cord. It's amazing what one can find in our neighborhood alleys!
ATTITUDE
Need I say more?
