I was going through a folder of old family papers looking for genealogy information, and ran across this pencil drawing of a castle. Mom had written on the back: "Sketch made by Herman Klinger in Germany as a young man. Very precious."
Herman was her father. Mom always wrote on the backs of photographs, inside books, and attached notes to family heirlooms. It was kind of a family joke, but helpful now. Although I'm one of the few people left who can still read Mom and Grandma's archaic handwriting.
Herman signed the bottom of the sketch in a very fine hand, "Schloss Liechtenstein 22.8.20. He would have been 20 years old. I'm not surprised he was a good artist, since he was trained as an draftsman before emigrating to America in the 1920's. He was only able to find work in machine shops here, and mom said he changed jobs often. She said it was a bad day for the family when he came home with his tool box. He was a good, hard-working man, although Germans of that generation were not known for their easy-going personalities.
I'll have a little frame made for the sketch and put it on my desk. It's too nice to hide away in a drawer. I like drawing castles, too. It's funny, isn't it, how some things feel so natural, almost like you did them before in another life? On the other hand, I never feel that way playing the ukulele! Sheer plod and determination finally got me to the intermediate stage, where I've likely plateaued. I don't have a musical gene in my body, but that's OK. They say creativity is influenced by our DNA, but it means absolutely nothing without hard work and effort.
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