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| Credit: meronhaderowrites |
Synopsis - Moving to the United States from Ethiopia via Berlin, our narrator meets fellow German speaker Herr Weill who agrees to tutor them in English. A brief memoir recounting friendship, empathy and the limits of language and how such unclear meanings and the ability to portray ourselves can be as restrictive as a physical border.
Review - brief and intimate, this short story touches upon themes of alienation, longing and even belonging so beautifully. The juxtaposition of two people - one younger, one older, and fleeing the same country for similar yet strikingly different reasons - really speaks volumes on the value of familiarity.
While details are sparse, that adds to the overarching theme of a universal language - whether this be love, friendship or even pain and trauma.
Of the few details given about Her Weill, one touching exchange sticks out. On recounting Kristallnacht, the idea of memory as something we either cannot help to remember of struggle to forget is raised. With a childlike innocence, our narrator recalls “ I forgot to ask him which things are which,” a question that follows, and resonates with many well into adulthood and old age.
Concluding with the aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall, boarders, displacement, and the architects which orchestrate them are judged for the impact they unknowingly (or perhaps intentionally) leave behind. Any wall, no matter it’s size, can cast a shadow upon those on either side of it. Not the sort offering shade and solace, but dark, imposing and obstructive all the same.
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