This was so poignant, Luigi. So sad but also joyous - liberation and birth on the same day! Amazing that you remember it. And the last letter from Karen’s grandmother; 😭 enough to break a heart. What cruelty. Yes they were different times, seems unimaginable and yet it wasn’t that long ago at all. Always enjoy your memoirs.
Not my memories in this one, Nadine. It is my father's autobiography. I'm sharing his perspective and trying to get my head around why he was the sort of person he was. People were amazed and fascinated by his skills, but he was not a nice guy. Every time I go back to Holland to catch up with my uncles and aunts, they tell me how much they disliked him, and how much he was like his father. When I asked if they would come and visit us, the answer was typically, not while he's alive. Now they are too old and won't come anymore. He put on a good show and was an excellent artist, with a loyal band of followers. He loved to be admired. At home he was a prick, and I told him so, if you'll pardon my French. But that doesn't detract from his experiences, which gave him nightmares for most of his life.
This was so poignant, Luigi. So sad but also joyous - liberation and birth on the same day! Amazing that you remember it. And the last letter from Karen’s grandmother; 😭 enough to break a heart. What cruelty. Yes they were different times, seems unimaginable and yet it wasn’t that long ago at all. Always enjoy your memoirs.
Not my memories in this one, Nadine. It is my father's autobiography. I'm sharing his perspective and trying to get my head around why he was the sort of person he was. People were amazed and fascinated by his skills, but he was not a nice guy. Every time I go back to Holland to catch up with my uncles and aunts, they tell me how much they disliked him, and how much he was like his father. When I asked if they would come and visit us, the answer was typically, not while he's alive. Now they are too old and won't come anymore. He put on a good show and was an excellent artist, with a loyal band of followers. He loved to be admired. At home he was a prick, and I told him so, if you'll pardon my French. But that doesn't detract from his experiences, which gave him nightmares for most of his life.