The past is quite a concept. I mean the far past, the past times before you passed time-past times. And if you can figure that one out, finding your heritage is equally as humbling. Living in the past is completely unhealthy, but finding your past, that can considerably rejuvenate you outlook on the future–as it happened in my case. Even in my current time of post-collegiate uncertainty, the future didn’t once cross my mind while visiting Germany.
I arrived in the high-speed German ICE train from Holland. As I bumped from one arriving passenger to the next, we instinctively herded ourselves through a corral of departures. Rushing down the stairs and jocking for position, we made our way to the front of the station where the rest of my group dispersed into the veins of transit. I had arrived: Mönchengladbach.
My cousin Simon met me and within 5 minutes we walked inside a 3-story townhouse built in 1903, destroyed in WWII and later rebuilt, housing three generations of his relatives. On the way up to my room we passed a porcelain plaque with my great-grandfather’s name on it: Walter Pannen. He grew up only 2o kilometers from the house but was known in the area for his quality carpentry work. I still can quite put to words how I felt at that moment.
Not to continue the literary trend, but it just so happened that Simon was an assistant brewer at a local brewery/pub in Dusseldorf– Fuchschen Alt, so in true German fashion we capped the night off with beer and Schnitzel.
Taryn (23:13:10) :
You are a fabulous writer. Your fans all want you to write more! What did you think of Koln and the cathedral, the chocolate museum and the chalk artists? Did get to go down to the river in Dusseldorf? Will you visit Aachen and the Lindt factory? Where are you off to next!? I can’t wait to read more, so keep writing! 