Читать книгу Westward. Encounters with Swiss American Women онлайн

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“The several years preceding this appointment were hard times for my parents, living on their savings and hopes for acceptance of father’s plans. On May 31, 1922, with my brothers Werner and George, 10 and 12 years old, I arrived as the last addition to the family. ‘Our little one does not give us any problem for the moment. She is alert and has a strong personality. She will find her way,’ father wrote in a letter to his mother in Switzerland. My brothers added, ‘We like our little sister. She smiles at us in the morning.’ They were very good to me. I often heard about how they taught me to swim, throwing me into the water even before I was able to walk. Everyone spoiled ‘Little Margot’. My childhood was happy and without care. We lived in a house with a large garden, surrounded on two sides with woods and a river. One early memory I have is of sitting with my mother on the terrace while she was sewing. I was her little helper by threading needles for her. I also remember staying with father while he worked in the garden or accompanying him for long walks, with him pointing out certain plants or birds or other beauties of nature. I had a special attachment to my father. He was certainly my first sweetheart. Father gave my brothers and me a lasting example of modesty and honesty. He never pushed us to excel nor ever praised us. He only asked of us that we become responsible, honorable and independent citizens.”