01:53

Ruth Deutschmann

Benjamin Epp

Lienz

2008-05-06

Sylvia Manning - Baumgartner

Nicole D´Incecco

1944

...I was the one who had to go to the farmers most often and... was always gone. One of my sisters was able to learn to sew. She learned to be a seamstress. But I didn't learn anything. As I said, I always was on a farm, tending the cows... Until I was 14 I was on a farm. Then I was sent to town for a bit. And I was able to earn some money for myself and could buy a bicycle so I didn't have to walk everywhere. And then... I never really went home again. I was always away. Only for short transitional periods, when I was home for a month or a fortnight maybe. Then I said: "I'm leaving again and will do my thing, then I'll learn something new and will see how that works and so on" - I got along quite well. One brother learned to be a smith... he was an artistic smith. Another was a painter, one was a mason and the girls didn't learn a trade. None of them. Only one learned to sew, yes. It's amazing how independent and purposeful you were! Yes, I have to say so myself. Our mother always told us: "Go out into the world, then you will learn what you need in life." So we all went, when we were old enough, we all went away to earn a little bit somewhere, we all went away. All of us, except for the youngest who stayed at home until the end, until my parents were no longer.