Romantic Bohemian(PART 2 OF 3)
Memories of
Saint Germain des Prés
In spring, I was sitting in the cafe of Saint Germain des Prés.
It was raining and cold.
I've taken two cups of café au lait.
Soon it started downpouring. Nobody walked outside.
I looked out blankly when an old woman came in with a mandolin, followed by two dogs with drooping ears.
The old lady in a shaggy overcoat and the two dogs were soaked up in the rain.
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The lady sat down at a table near me.
After wiping her dogs, she then wiped herself.
She was about 70 years old, apparently one of the street artists of Saint Germain des Prés.
Both dogs were gentle, tightly wrapped up for protection with a tiny blanket.
When a boy came in, the old lady ordered two café au lait, hot milk, and a snack.
The boy didn't throw out two wet dogs.
In Paris people care about dogs as much as themselves.
(2dogs.jpg)
When the boy brought the drinks, the old lady took out a pan from her luggage, and poured some milk into it, then gave each dog some food.
Both dogs started licking warm milk happily.
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The lady also sipped café au lait, holding the cup with cold-numb hands.
Relieved somewhat, I glanced at the adorable dogs once in a while.
Aftre half an hour, the old lady took out her purse and cheked into it, then she called the boy and asked for a favor.
Apparently, she didn't have enough money.
Although I was poor myself at the time, I couldn't ignore the scene, and walked up and paid on her behalf.
It wasn't much anyway.
The old lady thanked me a lot, saying that she would pay later after doing her performances on the street.
"Oh, don't bother. It was my present for your adorable dogs."
I like animals. So, I really meant it.
"Well, they are brothers, and I love both," said the old warm-hearted lady.
Whenever I walk through Saint Germain des Prés, the lady and the dogs come into my mind, warming my heart.
(Note: Picture from the Denman library
Translated by Kato)
SOURCE: "My heart's in Paris"
by Fujiko Hemming
５７ページ 『我が心のパリ』
著者： フジ子・へミング
２００５年２月２５日 初版発行
発行所： 株式会社 阪急コミュニケーションズ
Oh, it is a heart-warming episode, isn't it?
Yes, I think so, too. And the old lady in the above episode reminds me of your e-mail.
My e-mail?
Yes... Diane, do you remember the following mail?
Subj:Seniors' dinner party
was successful.
(dinner02.jpg)
(banzai02.jpg)
From: diane@vancouver.ca
To: barclay1720@aol.com
Date: Mon., Dec. 10, 2012 4:10:37 PM
Pacific Standard Time
Hi Kato,
Thanks for asking.
Yes, the seniors' dinner party was successful.
We did have a wonderful evening and I loved every minute of it.
As one of the volunteers, I served wine, served meals and served coffee.
There were about a dozen students from the highschool next door and they were a great help serving meals and for cleanup, but the organizers said they couldn't serve alcohol and they didn't trust the kids with the coffee.
It seems we all enjoyed ourselves.
When the dinners were all served, the volunteers were able to sit together and have a turkey dinner ourselves, so that was a lot of fun, too.
Did you peek your head in the door of the auditorium to see how we were doing?
If so, you'd have seen a packed house and lots of smiles.
I'll read your blog later, kiddo,
Thanks for sending it along.
Of course, you're too young-minded to join a group of seniors,
Forever young, that's my Kato.
And you're my real romantic Bohemian.
Love, Diane ~
Come to think of Fujiko who paid on behalf of the old lady, your serving the seniors at the party as a volunteer is quite heart-warming.
Do you really think so?
Oh yes, most definitely. Volunteering is considered an altruistic activity, which promotes good and improve human quality of life, which in return produces a feeling of self-worth and respect.
Yes, but no financial gain.
You're telling me, Diane. That's why volunteering is an act of heart-warming. As you wrote, when the dinners were all served, the volunteers were able to sit together and have a turkey dinner ourselves, so that was a lot of fun, too.
【Himiko's Monologue】
As you know, Fujiko Hemming is a classical music pianist.
Born on December 5, 1932 in Berlin, Germany to a Japanese mother and a Swedish-Russian father but educated in Japan, Fujiko began learning to play the piano at a young age from her mother.
She was identified as a child prodigy and performed her first concert at seventeen.
She graduated from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music and began her professional career immediately.
Hemming received many prestigious honors during this time, including the NHK-Mainichi Music Concour and the Bunka Radio Broadcasting Company Music Prize.
She relocated to Germany at the age of 28 to study at the Berlin Institute of Music.
During a concert in Vienna in 1971, Hemming lost her hearing from a bout of high fever.
She relocated again to Stockholm, Sweden to take advantage of its medical facilities.
She performed many more concerts throughout continental Europe before returning to Japan in 1995.
A documentary that aired in 1999 raised public interest in her music.
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ETAJVv-1jQg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Her subsequent debut CD, La Campanella, sold over two million copies.
Hemming performed at Carnegie Hall in New York in June 2001.
By 2002, Hemming had performed at every major population center in the world.
In any case, I hope Kato will write another interesting article soon.
So please come back to see me.
Have a nice day!
Bye bye ...
(To be followed)