Wie’s war un net hätt kenne bleiwe
[Mei Mottersproch, Banater Post Nr.17-18 * 15. Sep 2015

Unlängscht han ich widdr an drhemm gedenkt, wie des alles mol war un wie’s sich verännert hat. Im Fernsehe han se grad driwwer dischkutiert, wie die Reiche immer reicher wärre un die Arme immer ärmer. Do kann mer uf de Gedanke kumme, dass es aach drhemm, grad in de gute alte Zeite, doch so etwas Ähnliches gin hat. Wie war’s in de Derfer korz vor‘m Kriech? Großi Armut hat’s kaum gin, awwr große Unnerschide schun. Manchi Familje mit villi Kinner han sich net gut gstann. Und dann hat‘s reichi Baure gin, mit iwwer hunnert odr zwaahunnert Joch Feld. Des war so weit kumm, in de verzicher Johre, ‘s war awwr am Anfang ganz annerscht gwen. Bei der Ansiedlung hat jede Baur e Session mit so zwaaundreißich Joch Feld griet. Des Feld hat de ältschte Sohn geerbt, des hat mer net ufteele kenne. Später hat mer des Feld uf mähr Kinner ufteele kenne. Außrdem hat mer des Feld vrkaafe kenne. Des war schun e Fortschritt, awwr dr Gleichheit hat’s nicks genutzt. Manchi han entwedr ‘s Geld ghat, for sich mähr Feld kaafe, odr sie han sich des Geld vun irgendwu gelehnt un später zuruckgezahlt. Manchi han’s Geld vun Amerika gebrung, un han mähr Feld gekaaft. Manchi han kenne mit mähr Risiko lewe un manchi han villeicht aach gschwindelt. A Zeit lang hat mer noch Feld kaafe kenne, villeicht vum Nochber, villeicht vun de Rumäner in Pesak.

Sie han alli vill un schwer gearweit, manchi villeicht mähr wie anri. Manchi Leit han awwr des Glick ghat, gsund zu bleiwe un anri han‘s Unglick ghat, krank zu were. Wann jemand in dr Familje krank is gin, war mer manchmol drzu gezwung, Feld zu vrkaafe um dem Dokter zu zahle. So sin manchi Baure reicher gin un anri sin ärmer gin.  Des is villeicht e Zeit lang gut gang, awwr dann is es soweit kumm, dass die Reiche ihre Kinner nor mit de Kinner vun anri Reiche verheirat han. Es heescht, dass in unsrem Dorf e armer Bu un e reiches Mädl han wille heirate, un weil die reichi Eltre se net gelosst han, han se sich umgebrung. Sie sin awwr mitnanner begrab gin. ‘s war also so, dass es for arme Leit iwerhaupt net meglich war, aus ihre Armut rauskumme. Reichi Baure han ihre Kinner kenne in die Schule schicke, arme Leit han sich des net erlauwe kenne, aach wann ihre Kinner noch so gut gelernt han. Dann ware do noch die Professioniste. Die han sich meischtns iwr’em Wasser ghal, awwr reich sin se net gin un ihre Kinner han se aach net kenne in die Schule schicke.

Die Zuständ ware uf die Dauer aach for’s Land net gut. Wann die Reiche immer reicher wärre un die Arme immer ärmer, dann wärd die Mittlklass immer klenner, bis se ganz verschwind. Des han mer doch im „reale Sozialismus“ erlebt: Mir ware alli arm, nor die Kader (also die hechere Parteileit) han’s besser ghat. Die han dann ufs gwehlichi Volk runner­gschaut. Wie mer sogar in Temeschwar e ganze Summer lang ke Bier kriet hat, hat’s beim Jugendfestival in Bukarest gheescht: „Trink mer noch e Bier, ‘s Volk arweit jo“. Un des ware nor die kleene Mitlaafer, die Große han alles zu esse un zu trinke ghat, un han ihre Urlaab im Kenich seine Schlesser in Sinaia un am Schwarze Meer vrbrung. Die han gelebt "wie Gott in Frankreich", wie mer so gsaat hat. Wie sich de Unnergang vun dene „sozialistische“ Staate schun gezeicht hat, kann sich e Land ohne Mittelklass net lang am Lewe halle. Sogar eenfachi Mensche han des Unrecht gsiehn un dernoh ghandlt: "Die behaupte, dass se uns bezahle, un mir behaupte, dass mer uns anstrenge!" An dem hat ke Erschte Mai un ke Dreiunzwanzich-schte August etwas ännre kenne.

Die schwere Zeite noh’m Kriech han bei allem Elend doch schun irgendwie in die Zukunft gewies: Unser Leit han die Schule entdeckt. Weil mer ne alles weggholt hat, sin nor die Schule iwrich geblieb, for sich’s Lewe etwas leichter mache. Es hat gheescht „Was er im Kopp hat, kann mer em net wegholle“. Do ware Berufsschule, technische Schule, Schule for Lehrer, s‘ Lyzeum un die Hochschule. Un so sin villi Kinner in die Schule gang, so weit wie ‘s ne halt meglich war.

Ich menn awwr, aach vor dem unseliche Kriech wär’s iwwrhaupt for ärmeri Buwe un Mädle so gut wie unmeglich gwenn, aus ihre vorbestimmte Rolle rauskumme un etwas Besseres erreiche. Heit tät mer‘s wahrscheinlich "fehlende soziale Mobilität" nenne. Des hätt aach ohne de Kriech net so bleiwe kenne, aus wenigschtens zwaa gute Grinde. Erschtns hätt mer mit de neije Maschine wenicher Leit gebraucht for des Feld verarweite. Neijes Feld is jo net drzu kumm, weil jede Quaratmeter schun angebaut war. Un zweitns hätt mer de Fortschritt net umhale kenne. Friher odr später hätt sich jedes Land entwicklt, unner e jede Art vun Regierung, kapitalistisch, sozialistisch, odr was immer. Drzu hätt mer awwr mähr ausgebildti (wann schun net ingebildti) Mensche gebraucht. So manchi wäre also uf jede Fall in die Städte gezoo, man-chi wäre Arweiter gin, und anri wäre in vrschiedeni Schule gang, wäre Facharweiter gin, odr Beamte, Lehre, Doktre, Wissnschaftler, sogar Inscheniere. Villi drvun hätte ihre Arweit in dr Stadt ghat un hätte aach dort gewohnt. So manchi hätte awwr sicher ihre Familje un Freind im Dorf net vrgess. Die hätte sich sicher ihre Haus im Dorf for e Ferienhaus ausgebaut, so wie in Wolfsberg un Weidntal

How it was and how it could not have stayed
Translated by Nick Tullius

Recently I was thinking about back home again, how it once was and how it changed over the years. On television they were just discussing about how the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. It was a kind of reminder, that something similar happened back home in the olden days. How was it in the villages before the war? There was hardly extreme poverty, but large differences existed. Some families with many children did not do well. And then there were rich farmers, with more than a hundred or two hundred Joch* of arable land. That was the situation in de forties, but at the beginning it was quite different. At the time of their settlement, each farmer had received a “session” of around thirty-two Joch of cultivable field. The eldest son inherited this land, it could not be divided. Later on, the land could be divided among multiple children, and it could also be sold. That was a step forward, but it did away with equality. Some people either had the money to buy more land, or they borrowed the money somewhere and repaid it later. Some brought the money from America and bought more land. Some were able to live with more risk and others perhaps even cheated. For a time it was possible to buy land, perhaps from a neighbour, or from the Romanians in Pesak.

All our folks worked long and hard, some perhaps more than others. But some people had the good fortune to be healthy, while others had the misfortune to get sick. If someone in the family got sick, it could become necessary to sell land for paying the doctor. In this way, some farmers got richer and others got poorer. That may have worked for a while, but eventually it got to the point that the rich married off their children only with the children of other rich people. It is said that in our village a poor boy and a rich girl wanted to get married, and because the rich parents did not allow it, the young couple killed themselves. They were finally buried together. It became impossible for poor people to get out of poverty. Rich farmers could send their children to higher schools, but poor people could not afford it, even if their children were better in school. Then there were the so-called professionists. They mostly kept  their heads above water, but they did not get rich and could not send their children to secondary school.

In the long run, these conditions were not good for the country. When the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, the middle class gets smaller and smaller, until it disappears altogether. We have certainly experienced that under the "real socialism": We were all poor, only the so-called cadres (i.e. the higher party people) had it better. Then they looked down on the ordinary people. There was a whole long summer when one could not find a beer in the city of Temeswar, while those participating at the Youth Festival in Bucharest toasted one another: "Let’s have another beer; the people are working". And those were just the small hangers-on, the big shots had all the food and drink they wanted, and spent their holidays in the royal castles in Sinaia and on the Black Sea. They lived "like God in France", as the saying went. The demise of these “socialist" states proved once more, that a country with no middle class can not survive very long. Even ordinary people could see the injustice and reacted accordingly: "They pretend that they pay us, and we pretend that we work hard!" No May Day or Twenty-third August could change that.

With all their misery, the hard times after the war did somehow point to the future: our people paid attention to the schools. Because everything had been taken away from them, only the schools were left to make life easier. It was stated as "What he has in his head, they can not take away from him". There were vocational schools, technical schools, schools for teachers, the lyceum, and the university. And thus, many children went to school, as far as it was possible for each one of them.

But in general, even before the disastrous war, it was almost impossible for poorer boys and girls to leave their pre-defined roles behind and achieve something better. Today you would probably call it "missing social mobility". There are at least two good reasons why this situation could not have persisted, even without the war. First, with the new machines, fewer people were needed to work in the field. No new arable land could be added, because every square meter was already cultivated. And secondly, progress could not be held back. Sooner or later, every country would be affected by development, under any government - capitalist, socialist, or whatever. To support this development, more skilled (but not necessarily conceited) people would be needed. Many villagers would move to the cities, some would become workers, others would attend various schools, to become skilled workers, or administrators, teachers, doctors, scientists, even engineers. Many of them would have their jobs in the city and live there, too. Many would not forget their family and friends in the village. They would convert their house in the village to vacation homes, as happened in Wolfsberg and in Weidntal.