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OMA’S VILLAGE
by Bärbel Hauer, Toronto
This is a story for Samantha and Nicole. Your Oma Bärbel was born in Traunau, Banat, Rumania. Traunau was a very special village - a long time ago in that part of the country there lived a countess, her name was Traun, she loved that part of the Banat so much, so she named the place Traunau - Because there were so many beautiful meadows with wild flowers - “Au” translated into English “meadow”. This is how the name from the village - your Oma Bärbel was born in - has been chosen:- TRAUNAU - I think that name is most appropriate for the village.
In Traunau there lived about thousand souls. It has 3 main streets that went parallel as well as several side streets. All the houses were bungalow style farmhouses, on the outside they were painted pink, blue or green. every house had a big garden for vegetables and fruit trees. There was a big courtyard with lots of flowers on every house, also every house had a fence around it. Where Oma lived, the house had a brick wall around it.
Most of the people in Traunau were farmers, but there was also a smithshop, a shoemaker, a weaver, a barbershop and there were ‘Tagelöhner’ (farmhands) they were called that, because they got paid by the day, when they worked for the farmers. There were several shepherds - every day during the spring and summer - the cows were collected by the shepherds and were walked through the village to municipal grazing pasture. In the evening the cows were driven home by the shepherds for milking. Your Oma Bärbel is still amazed how each cow knew its own house to go to. Every farmhouse had only one or two cows, because the farmers grew mostly wheat and had also vineyards.
There was one general store, one restaurant or one could call it an inn or community center, it was also the butcher shop in town, that was owned by Oma Bärbel’s Titzler grandparents. It was called the ‘Wirtshaus’ and everyone called them the ‘Wirtsleut’. In this inn there was a big recreation hall for weddings. Weddings as a rule lasted for five days and mostly three to four hundred guests took part in the wedding celebration.
Once a year a ‘Kirchweihfest’ was put on, all the young people from the village dressed beautifully in silk and embroidered dresses, the men had their special ‘Leibls’ with sterling silver buttons on. Their hats were adorned with colorful banners and silk flowers. It was a weekend of dance and festivity.
Once a year a traveling circus came to town and on another time a traveling theater group came to town. There was also a Traunauer Theater Group, which put on a play once a year. Oma Bärbel has a very vivid memory - when she was four years old she had the honour to play ‘Das Sandmännchen’ in Hansel and Gretel.
Traunau had the most beautiful church with a regular choir. All the people were Roman Catholic and very religious. There were two school houses and a music school - mostly folk music was taught. Children could only go to grade seven in Traunau - after that some children went away to go into an apprenticeship to learn a trade - others went to Temesburg to the Gimnasium, not very many children could afford that. Oma Bärbel’s Onkel Seppi (Wirts Seppi he was called) went to the Gimnasium in Temesburg. Some weekends he would come home - he would bring some candied and chocolates for your Oma and her siblings. Every time he came home to Traunau it was for us children like a big celebration.
All the people of Traunau went on a pilgrimage to Maria Radna once a year, it was a big procession with many wagons and horses all beautifully decorated, the old people and children were sitting on the wagon, others walked in the procession singing and praying with the priest - and some carried religious banners. Traunau had a very good brass band, which was always playing on the way to Maria Radna. Your Oma Bärbel still remembers her first pilgrimage - she must have been around two and a half years old. She remembers it because her father bought her a doll there and a picture was taken, with her sister and the two girls each held a doll in their hands. In the background of the picture one can see the church of Maria Radna.
Traunau also housed a court building or a registrar’s office, in there was the only telephone from all of Traunau. - At the time - Samantha and Nicole - when your Oma Bärbel lived in Traunau as a child - Traunau did not have electricity, then all the houses were lit by petroleum lamps.
People in Traunau were very friendly with each other, once the farm work was done in autumn, the Traunauer went to the ‘Spinnstube’ in the evening from each neighborhood block in the village, they met for an evening to spin, to knit, crochet or embroider. the men would play cards, a light snack was usually served with wine. Every other week the ‘Spinnstube’ was in someone else’s house, also story telling and singing was practiced, everyone had always something interesting to contribute.
Before going to bed, each evening your Oma Bärbel with her family would kneel down to pray, they prayed for all their relatives and for their king, so God would give him wisdom to know how to rule his country Rumania. - Unfortunately there came a very horrible war and Onkel Seppi had to go to war, so did Oma Bärbel’s father, it was a very sad time when the news reached Traunau that both of them died in the war. Your Oma both loved them so much - she still in her mind is in communication with them, they were so very much loved by her.
Then in September 1944 with the advance of communism in eastern Europe, Oma’s mother decided to flee with the family. they left Traunau with one horse and a wagon, many other Traunauers fled too, even our King had to flee Rumania. because of communism a beautiful serene culture was forever destroyed.
So Samantha and Nicole, I think even if we cannot be famous, but we can at least brighten up the corner where ever God put us in, in our life. Every day Oma Bärbel prays: ‘O lord let me be a blessing in my chosen homeland Canada.
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