1st Edition, 2020
Idea and Text:
© Daniela Landsberg, 2019
Editor:
Daniela Landsberg
c/o Familie Moltrecht
Zum Thelenkreuz 22
53859 Niederkassel-Mondorf
Title and Coverdesign:
Dr. Rolf Peter Hampel-Landsberg, MD
Daniela Landsberg
Illustrated by:
Books on Demand GmbH
Dr. Rolf Peter Hampel-Landsberg, MD
Daniela Landsberg
ISBN: 9783751974622
The work including its parts is protected by copyright. Any use without the consent of the publisher and the author is prohibited. This applies in particular to electronic or other duplication, translation, distribution and public access.
Bibliographic information from the German National Library:
The German National Library lists this publication in the German National Bibliography; detailed bibliographical data are available on the Internet at www.dnb.de.
Many thanks to Bianka and Ty Stumpf from Sanford, North Carolina, USA. With your painstaking help, both in the corrections and in the advice and suggestions, the story of little Emma could appear in English.
“Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.” Emma sits in the hospital waiting area looking at the big, round clock with its red second hand. She has been waiting here for more than half an hour. Actually, they had wanted to visit Grandma like every Saturday as before, but Grandma has been in the hospital for a long time. Emma’s mom has said that Grandma is not feeling well at the moment and needs a lot of rest.
An elderly gentleman with a hat enters the waiting area. “Hello, young lady,” he greets Emma warmly. “Hello, sir,” Emma replies in a friendly way, too. The older gentleman sits down opposite to Emma. “Alone here?” he asks her. Emma shakes her head, “No, I’m still too small for that. I’m only five.” Emma lifts her right hand up and spreads her fingers apart. “Look, I’m that old!” she announces to the older gentleman. “Well, then you are really too small to be alone here,” he says. “Yes, I would say so,” Emma says. Emma looks at the clock again, then she shares, “My grandma has cancer.” “Cancer,” repeated the older gentleman, “ah, that’s not good.”
“No, my mom said you can die from that,” replies Emma. “That’s unfortunately right,” says the older gentleman. “Cancer is a bad guy, a really bad guy,” Emma says angry. The older gentleman looks at the floor thoughtfully. Emma first thinks to herself but then asks the older gentleman, “Why are you here? Does your grandma also have cancer?” He shakes his head and answers quietly, “No, not my grandma…my wife has cancer.” Then Emma continues, “And did your mom put you here now, too?” Emma looks at the older man with big eyes. He laughs but then gets serious again, “No, little girl. My parents are long dead. They died before you were born.” Emma raises her eyebrows. “Then you are an orphan,” she says with a start. The older gentleman has to laugh again. “Yes, that’s the way to say that. You are pretty smart for such a little girl,” he notes. “My mom and dad always say I’m pretty smart,” then Emma hesitates for a moment, “but they also say that sometimes I talk a lot and am fidgety. That’s why Daddy sometimes calls me Whirlwind,” she adds. “But are not all little girls your age like you?" asks the older gentleman. Emma muses, “I do not know. The kids in my Kindergarten class are sometimes a bit different. But that does not matter. I still play with them,” Emma laughs. “Do you have any children?” Emma wants to know. “No, unfortunately, my wife and I did not have any children,” the older gentleman replies. “That’s probably sad because then you're all alone and nobody plays with you,” Emma says. She then offers, “If you want, we can play together. You can swing on my swing in the garden or slip on my slide. You just have to take care with your big legs so you do not hurt yourself.” The older gentleman smiles again broadly.
At that moment, Emma’s mother comes in the door, greets the older gentleman, and then turns to Emma, “Are you coming, little one? You can go to Grandma.” Emma hops from her chair, “Oh, great! Is grandma better?” she wants to know from her mother. Her mother shakes her head, “No, Emma, unfortunately not.” Emma asks, “She is not getting well anymore, is she?” Her mother shakes her head again, “No, Emma, she will not get better.” Emma looks at the older gentleman, then asks, “What’s your name?” The older gentleman averts his eyes from Emma’s mother and answers, “My name is Alois.”
“Alois,” Emma repeats, “that’s a funny name you have there.” Emma wrinkles her nose. Alois laughs, “This is not a funny name. That’s an old name,” he tries to explain to Emma. “Well, then you have a funny old name.” Emma hesitates for a moment and then adds, “But you’re still nice.”
“Thanks,” Alois replies, “I’ll gladly give back the compliment.” Emma’s eyebrows contract with thought. Then she asks, “What’s a compliment?” Alois smiles and replies patiently, “That’s when you say something nice to someone.”
“Then I’ll pay Grandma a compliment, too. Maybe she will be happy about that,” Emma declares. Alois nods, “Definitely, Emma. Most people are happy about compliments.” Emma adds, “Then you also have to compliment your wife, so she’s happy too, right?”
“Yes, I do”, says Alois. Emma smiles, “That’s nice.”
Emma goes to the door, turns around again, and beckons, “Take care, Alois.” Alois waves back and answers, “You too, little Emma.” Sighing, Alois stays behind. “A little grandchild, that would have pleased Erna,” he says quietly to himself. “Erna...”
Excited Emma runs across the hall. She is very happy to see her grandmother again. She was not allowed to visit her grandmother the last time because she was too weak. Emma thinks, “If Grandma has been too weak for a visit the last three times, but she is even worse today, why can I see Grandma today?” Just as she asks the question to her mother, she begins, “Emma, if we go to Grandma’s room now, Grandma will look a little different than you're used to.” Emma’s mom thinks about how she can prepare her daughter for the sight. Was it really the right decision to take Emma to the hospital? Should not she remember her grandma as she knew her? Emma notices her mother’s hesitation. Carefully, Emma asks, “Did Grandma cut her hair?” Emma’s mother shakes her head. “Maybe she has new glasses?” Emma continues. Once again, Emma’s mother shakes her head. Emma thinks hard. Then she remembers, “Papa has seen a documentary because there was also a woman cancer. She did not have any hair left.” Emma pauses, then continues, “Does Grandma not have any hair anymore?”
“But Emma, Grandma still has her hair. The woman in the documentary got chemo, and that’s why her hair fell out.”
“Did grandma not get chemo…chemotherapy?” Emma asks. The mother shakes her head, “No, Emma, Grandma has a very bad cancer. You cannot cure it. Besides, Grandma...” Emma’s mother hesitates, “Grandma is a bit older. She does not want to have chemotherapy.” Emma puts her little hands on her hips and scolds, “Grandma is not old!”
“Ok, not that old. However, she does not want to do chemo because she does not want to suffer. In addition, the cancer is already well advanced,” Emma’s mother tries to explain. Emma beams, “But that’s good. If the cancer is