A Token

One look out the window confirms
the season - it's December! I'll be
visiting a Christkindl Markt this
afternoon to get some German candles.
Later, we'll light one candle
to mark the First Advent.

It snows in Ukraine, too, and so I
guess these rocks will be hidden for
the winter.

This pile of red granite is all that's left of my grandfather's windmill. We found it - with Helena's help - in one of the
fields of Federofka. The rocks sit on a slight incline near some lilac bushes which were in full bloom when I was there.

The red granite is flecked with black. It
sparkles just a bit. I know this because
I've got a chunk of my grandfather's windmill
rock beside me as I type. It's my token of the
grandfather I never knew. His character
is symbolized by this rock. I describe him
as hard and determined - but with the
capacity to have a twinkle in his eyes.

When I was researching Lenin's death, I
was amazed to learn that his mauseleum
- rebuilt in 1929 - is partially made of red
granite. Here's a link to read more about
Lenin and his tomb.
http://englishrussia.com/?p=783

Talk to you soon,
-gabe

Word of the day:
Token: an outward sign or expression:
a symbol, or a small part representing
the whole.
(Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Interesting that you've always like rocks, Gabriele.

Recent Posts

Kirsten Boie's novel about post-war friendship

Just finished the middle grade novel, Heul doch nicht, du lebst ja noch, by Kirsten Boie published by Friedrich Oetinger Verlag from Hambur...