Christmas 1946 – An Austrian Christmas Song

The Austrian Alps in the background, a Christmas song in a dialect our neighbors the Germans cannot understand, even though we talk the same language. The dialect of the mountains, soft and harsh at the same time, comforting to the ear and still, oh, so familiar to me. The song tells about Christmas 1946, during a time when the world was at war. And while you might not understand, listen to the music and read the lyrics and you will quickly understand why I love this Christmas song so much.

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About Losing Everything

I had packed a small kid-size suitcase with my pajamas and Dusie. Her real name was Susie, but it seems I had problems with the “S” as a child, so I had renamed my doll. I wore my red winter coat, black shiny summer shoes even though it was cold outside and my favorite dress, that’s all I took with me, and of course, my school backpack.

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Will COVID Split the World in Two? Part 2

UNICEF begins shipping syringes for the global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines  under COVAX

Monier Bouazar, the head of COVAX logistics in Copenhagen, sprints up the metal steps of a staircase on a March morning. The 39-year-old has a dimpled chin and a subtle sense of humor. “Three to four months” – that’s how long he had to prepare for the start of the first deliveries. He says he hasn’t slept much in the past year. “I don’t really count the number of hours. For me personally, it’s not just a job.”

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My Summer in the Alps

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Sometimes, very seldom, I feel something like homesickness, even though it’s not for a home or family, but rather for a tradition and or perhaps rituals I remember so vividly. Right about now, at the beginning of summer, I was always called back home to our farm in Austria. I got an extra week of vacation, like so many of us farm-children who had to help. Continue reading