JUST what we needed... NOT!

Four dogs, 10 chickens, 2 lambs, 1 horse, 1 canary, 1 snake. That is the extent of the "critter list." Tonight our daughter added: 1 very tame lop eared bunny. I think her name is Clara. She is awfully cute, very soft, and we did NOT need her. Not even a little.

The power of "we..."

For twenty five years I have been one half of a couple. My husband and I would agree, if you asked us, that we are blessed to have an unusually good marriage. And yet, there are times when I imagine, for a moment or a day, being single again. It may be hormones that cause this thinking, or some irritation that my partner causes, or a combination of the two. At these moments my mind trips gaily along, thinking of what life would be like if I wasn't half of a union. In my imagination, the thoughts along these lines are typically sunny.

And then, I listen to my conversation with others. "Oh yes," I hear myself say, "We liked that movie." Or, "We loved our trip!" Or, "We worked hard on that project." At these times I recognize the extreme power of "we."

Early in our relationship, when I was shallower and even more self centered than I am now, my husband said to me, "I love knowing that we are in this together, that we always have each others back." At that point I was all about him having my back. I was not always so interested in guarding his, however.

Thankfully time has bestowed gifts upon me, and one of those gifts has been the ability to grow into our "we-ness." I recognize the wisdom of my husband when he helped me learn that the way to a long union involves keeping the other half's best interests at the forefront. When those occasions come that have me thinking that flying solo might be fun, I am often lured back into marital harmony by thinking how very much I enjoy all sentences that begin with that magical little word, "we." Those two letters, joined, are a mighty pair.

Rhinefalls...

Our hosts in Germany were so very, very kind and thoughtful to us. On the day we departed, they arranged for a car to take us to the airport. They even had the driver detour so that we could see this amazingly beautiful waterfall created by the Rhine river. It was the perfect ending to our wonderful trip.

Black Forrest times two...

AND... we ate Black Forrest cake IN the Black Forrest. Oh yeah. We did. And we liked it a LOT!

Konstanz, Germany...

This historic city escaped bombing during WWII because of its proximity to Switzerland. Buildings remain that date back to Midevil times! The Rhine river meets Lake Constance here, (also known as Bodensee.) We walked the cobblestones, stared slack jawed at buildings with dates from the 1400's on thier walls, saw a Zepplin and a hot air balloon sail over the lake, and watched the enormous Imperia statue twirl majestically in the harbor. There was music spilling into the air and people wearing colorful traditional German garments.

Our friend Erich gave us the tour... complete with a ferry trip across the lake and a wonderful dinner of fresh local fish in a restaurant that was snuggled up to the waters edge.

We passed immaculate vineyards, apple orchards, acres of rolling farmland, one house more beautiful than than the other. I knew I would enjoy my trip here, but I had no idea how beautiful Germany would be.

What is to love about Germany..?

What I love about Germany:

Art and architecture, flowers everywhere, street mimes in Munich, Swans on the Danube River, bake shops and German cusine, Oktoberfest and public transit, beautiful gates, rolling farms dotted with villages that look like they came from a story book.

I love apple strudel and hospitality and people so well educated that they speak multiple languages with total ease. I love the cobblestones and bicyles with baskets everywhere as people run errands. Did I mention chocolate? Chocolate! I love Lufthansa airlines and dogs in shops and dogs in restaurants and dogs at street cafes. I love the lace curtains that decorate so many windows and the pride the German people have for thier country. I love Germany.

Dachau, Germany

Dachau is the most charming imaginable Bavarian village. Bakeries perfume the air with the scent of pastries and breads, houses with high-pitched roofs of russet tile dot the skyline. People are polite and friendly, the word "quaint" keeps stumbling to the tip of ones tounge.

On the outskirts of town is the Dachau concentration camp museum. We traveled there by cab, our cab driver was an elderly German man who was literally moved to tears as he told us of the evil that had taken over his beloved country and caused a place such as this to exist.

I entered with an open mind and heart, and was amazed to feel the oppression that seemed to be surrounding me in the very air I breathed. The museum was wonderfully, honestly and simply presented. "Here are the facts," the displays seemed to say. "This is what happened." No excuses. Photos and words and atmosphere blended to suck the energy from the space, from my body, from my soul. I could barely speak. And on I went, reading each paragraph, viewing each photo, absorbing the facts of the numbers of humans who lived and died in such unspeakable horror.

It was a relief to go outside... but then there were the barracks and the religious memorials and the crematoriam to view and absorb. The empty row upon row where barracks full of imprisoned humans once stood. More than I could have imagined.

My father and my husbands father were both GI's in WWII. This war that forever changed their lives changed the lives of others in ways I had never before fully grasped until now. I have walked the ground where evil dwelled.

Outside the gates to the prison camp is a sign of thanks to the troops that freed the prisoners of this camp. Inside the gates is a memorial containing the ashes of an unknown prisoner. Behind it the words, "NEVER AGAIN" are printed in raised, bronze letters, in many languages. How many times until those words are truely true?

I wept on the grounds of the prison camp. My tears joining the millions of tears that landed there before mine. This place should be a river.