H. Adler - The Journey

The suitcase is already gone with all of its goodies inside. Memories for a better day. Why better? All right, of earlier days. All days are alike. They pass. They crawl out of their caves and then they are there, then they creep back under the earth again. Only man remains. He runs along throughout the day and knows nothing. Or do the days run through him? How about the mayflies? They don’t outlast the day and remain caught within it always. They don’t see that the sun rises and sets; thus they live in an eternity. To them the sun appears eternal, eternal is the light. They are the happiest of creatures, creatures of fable. Something like Zerlina. Each moment is full of tender life, without any worries about food or drink, then comes a gentle death that harms no one.

Ida holds her bags in both hands. From her shoulder a large bag hangs and a small knapsack is attached to her back. Everything is precisely labeled. You can read IDA SCHWARZ from any direction and know immediately how old the lady is who is traveling with you. Notice in particular the birth date, you dear fellow travelers, for then on the first of June you can congratulate her. It won’t be too long before the date rolls around and a couple of sweet words will make Ida happy.

“But how do you all know that it’s my …?”

“We saw it on your bags and that’s why we brought along flowers. It’s so hard to get flowers here, yet what we won’t do for you!”

“That is so sweet of you! I will never forget it.”

Yet Caroline will not be among the well-wishers, nor the children, whom Ida loves as if they were her own. Nor Leopold, who rarely came around, though he was always there for her birthday. Meanwhile her dear Albert is safe in America.

“Where are my family members?”

“Holed up in Ruhenthal. They would love to be here, but it rained too hard and because of that they didn’t catch the train.”

“That’s not very nice. They should have arrived at the station an hour earlier.”

Caroline cannot stand the guilt she feels. You don’t allow a sister to travel alone, at least not in this war. Ida is gone and so are all the others. Separated from one another. The song is torn in two. Different train cars. The railroad does with people what it wants, no one is never allowed to complain. Please don’t forget to send a telegram. Arrived safely. Lovely here. Weather like at home. Healthy. Luggage unharmed. Excellent accommodations. Five meals a day with a wide choice of menu. A comfortable room in the hotel with a view of the lake. On the balcony, lounge chairs with umbrellas to protect against the sun. There you can lie low in comfort. Pleasant company. Charming staff. Running water, central heating. Nearby is the spa where the band plays from morning to evening. Overtures to Martha, Martha who disappeared. Nice relations here. Everything just like home or even better, since you don’t have to worry about anything. The cook and the housemaid do everything themselves, no need to hassle them. Everything works without a hitch. The hours for meals are fixed. There is nothing to eat. No, there is something. But it’s pretty bad. The potatoes are black and hard. There are only peels. That’s why it costs nothing to stay. No need to pay anything, not even the luxury tax on spas. One would only like to know just where the money for such luxurious expenditures is coming from. It makes no sense. This new social order is perfect. The oppression and enslavement of people has stopped, they are all perfect ladies and gentlemen, each as happy as the next.

Therefore no one needs to worry about Ida, given how well she’s taken care of. Caroline, Paul, and Zerlina accompany the passengers who are ready to board. Ida says good-bye to her housemates. “Head high, dear Frau Schwarz! It won’t be so bad! And then we’ll see each other again after the war, it’s a promise, so good-bye for now, for now good-bye!” Then they’re gone. Only Leopold is not there. He is too weak and is lying in the sickroom. Why bother disturbing the old man as well? He says that it’s not fair, but he doesn’t understand. It would also bother Ida to see Leopold there. He was in agony as he spoke to her when Ida went with Caroline to say good-bye.

“Well then, Ida, you’re off. Safe journey! Be brave! Write us as soon as you can! If you really like it there, we’ll come join you. I’ll talk about it with Paul so that he can make the arrangements. But if you think it’s better here, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise and come right back as soon as you can! Paul will pick you up. And be careful, Ida! You can’t be too careful when you travel because there are so many shady characters who especially like to take advantage of women traveling alone. Never let your bag out of sight! Also, remember your rheumatism! It’s important to stay warm on the trip! You’re so easily distracted, but engine smoke is poisonous to you! Keep your legs wrapped in a blanket, and wear your wool gloves, Ida! And don’t forget to use your umbrella as soon as you get off the train!”

Caroline was beside herself. He would never get it. All this about Ida getting sick! He’s crazy or he’s putting on an act by behaving as if the world had not turned upside down.

“Let him be, Caroline, it’s what he needs! He hasn’t changed a bit, only the world has, and he doesn’t see it.”

Then they leave the house. Paul and Zerlina grab the luggage, Caroline takes her sister’s arm.

“You must be brave, Caroline. I’ll make it after all!”

Now they are by the gate, beyond which no one is allowed to accompany the departing passengers, who spend their last moments in Ruhenthal guarded only by the train attendants. Paul and Zerlina drape their aunt with her bags. Caroline laughs with tears in her eyes. The aunt also cries and laughs.

“Take care of yourself, Ida!”

And then she is gone. Those left behind look on as she slowly shuffles across the dirty floor, but Ida no longer looks back.

“She’s gone.”

Caroline is alone and has let her only sister be hauled off. What would her parents have said? Siblings stick together through thick and thin. Once we sat together at the same table. You in a little dress, me in a little dress, you a little doll, me a little doll. The doll is gone, the dress is gone. The sister tossed away as well. Betrayed and sold off. Not enough packed away in her bags. Tossed into the unknown like a piece of rubbish on the rubbish heap. No one by her side. Released to the dark depths of Hades and with only mementos packed in around her. Caroline had seen the same in a museum, the things that are given to the dead in order to release them, particularly the Egyptians. They heaped up treasures for the dead. But Ida had nothing more than a bit of stuff that she pressed to herself. She cannot carry it all, but she will take it all with her. “What do you need that for, dear lady? Give it here, dead is dead! Unburden yourself and your conscience!” The suitcase is gone for good. It is yanked open, everything is strewn around, the empty suitcase thrown onto the rubbish heap. What good are the large white letters now? The Egyptian graves have been broken into and robbed, yet the thieves are made famous by their theft, write books about it, and are celebrated in the newspapers for their misdeeds. But the thieves are not made happier by their violation of the corpses. The ancient curse has caught up with them, they die like flies, though the treasure is stacked up in the museum and no one feels any shame over such a scandal.

What will happen to the treasures of the departed? Everything is displayed in glass cases after it has been cleaned and conserved, the neat writing explains everything. Burial goods for Frau Ida Schwarz. Knit stockings and a piece of soap. The little nightcap whose band is somewhat damaged, and the coffee cup with just a small crack. The glasses in the open case. The photographs of Ida’s husband and her dear son behind the glass on a wire stand. The teacher leads the children into the museum and has to explain everything in detail.