People and their Landscapes

I’m currently immersed in Ulla Lachauer’s book, Ostpreußische Lebensläufe (1998). It had been gathering dust on my bedside shelf for a long while. Not sure why I was avoiding it. Perhaps it was the effort required to read German. Perhaps it was the dark contents. After all the research I’d done for Crow Stone, about the downfall of East Prussia, I was leery of going into another dark abyss. But it’s January and full of resolution, I decided to get the dark, heavy reading over with first.

Turns out, I had nothing to fear. Ulla Lachauer writes in an engaging, easy-going style, that didn’t stress this English reader too much. It’s not a book about war, it’s about people and this book showcases her obvious empathy for the ten East Prussians featured here. She highlights the resilience of these characters shaped by their Baltic environment and the difficult years of political turmoil.

Photographs add to the depth of connection the reader gets to enjoy. I found myself turning, again and again, to the images searching out the stories etched in their faces like they're  landscapes of their lives. 

Portrait of my mom done by Julia Penny

As I read, I’m searching the internet for names of tiny, forgotten villages mentioned in the chapters, checking to see if I might have cycled past back some of these ruins back in 2019 when I explored the Lithuanian and north Kaliningrad area near the city of Klaipeda (once Memel).

This beautiful, conflicted area comes to life for me again as I read this book and I can imagine my own family members living their simple, rustic lives … trying their best to survive. Aren’t we all?  So grateful for books like this. 

Ruins near the Baltic in former East Prussia

Fairy Tale Setting

First book I read for 2026 was a fairy tale retold by the master of horror, Stephen King:  Hansel and Gretel (with illustrations by Maurice Sendek). 

Fairy tale retelling by Stephen King

The fairy tale caught my focus while I’ve been lost in research about the post-war period as East Prussia transitioned to Kaliningrad. Families broken, children hungry, forests dangerous, adults not to be trusted.  Those were not fairy tale horrors, those were real life dangers. There is an unworldly quality to the years between 1945 and 1948. 

I'll repeat mention of an earlier non-fiction book called The Wolf Children of the Eastern Front by Sonya Winterberg and Kerstin Lieff. It explores how the orphaned children managed later in life. Did they, in fact, live happily ever after? 

middle grade novel by Australian author
Katrina Nannested

I highly recommend Katrina Nannested’s middle grade novel, We are Wolves, for anyone interested in the plight of orphans after the war in this no man’s land corner of eastern Europe. And of course, read Stephen King’s new retelling of Hansel and Gretel. (spoiler alert: there’s a happy ending … which I wish for all of us in 2026). 

Kaliningrad: Portal to a dark past?

one of those years ...

A writer friend shared a blogpost where she adapted questions from the New York Times to sum up the past year. I found her post inspirational and have borrowed her questions for my own reflective exercise.  Here goes. 

Question 1. What I have learned in the past year? 

That I have the power within me, and just need the courage to use it. 

Question 2. When did I feel the most carefree? 

Riding my bike, not being in a hurry, and picking saskatoon berries along the way.  

Question 3. What gave me energy and inspiration? 

The garden. Nurturing it and letting it nurture me back. 

Question 4. What habit had a positive effect? 

My reading habit feeds my curiousity and keeps me inspired to write my own stories.

Question 5. What did I do this year that I thought was almost impossible? 

I've supported a couple of family members through some difficult issues which has deepened my own faith and reminded me that if we don’t look after ourselves, we can’t support anyone else.

2025 was a challenging year and I’m hoping for an easier go in 2026. No matter, 2025 has empowered me to keep my chin up, ride my bike slow, read and be kind. We're all in this time together!                                                                     

Solace in Solstice

The shortest day and the longest night. The beginning of winter means a return to light.

It’s been bone-chilling cold with blizzard-like conditions. I’m dealing with a misery-making cold or flu. My holiday season to-do list remains mostly undone and my messy snow shovelling could use an edit. They moved my husband to a hospital much farther away and the roads are terribly icy.  Meanwhile, the second batch of ginger cookies I made ended up spreading as bad as the first. 

But today the sun is shining. Fresh snow looks brilliant and our Christmas tree looks resplendent. Plus, the no-bake batch of chocolate macaroons turned out! I’m hoping this darn cold makes me cold-proof for the rest of the season. Pass the tissue box! 

Wishing you solace in solstice. Plus, good health, good friends, safe driving and the magic of story.

Hedgehogs

Decorating our sentimental Christmas tree every year is like time travel. My current favourite ornament is this wooden hedgehog. I was thrilled when I spotted a real one during my 2019 cycling trip through former East Prussia, in the Kaliningrad region. 

Love how little, unexpected things can become the best souvenirs … treasures of the heart. 

Sadly, I learned from a recent news report that certain camouflaged Ukrainian tanks are now being nicknamed 'hedgehogs'.   War's impact is everywhere.  Read the story and view images here:

https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-invasion-hedgehog-armor-fpv-drone-evolution-war/33614379.html

Perseverence

                Even when the trail seems long and monotonous . 

            ... keep moving.   

                    It's not the destination that's important anyway, 

                           .... it's the step after step after step. 

Savouring Saskatoons When It's Cold Out

 

I had no idea when I picked up a displayed copy of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s book, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World, that I’d be reading about saskatoon berries. Because I’ve picked saskatoon berries almost every June for decades now, I’m instantly in love with the message of this book. Saskatoon berries are prolific here on the prairies. 

Slow down! More berries!

This past year had a particularly abundant harvest. My aging canine companion could only walk slowly and I benefited by having more time to pick. It simply amazed me that no one else was out here picking. I managed to bake saskatoon muffins for neighbours on Canada Day and was able to re-establish contact with them. We had saskatoon pie for thanksgiving and look forward to more for Christmas. 

Our serviceberries have served us well and I’m grateful that the berry bushes have been preserved in the ever-shrinking patches of wilderness in this suburban maze of development. After reading Kimmerer’s book, my appreciation of wild berries has not grown, because it was already huge … but my appreciation has been validated.

Local serviceberries, aka saskatoons

Connecting foraging to my ongoing novel research is easy. Hunger created foragers in eastern Europe during the twenties, thirties and forties. My mom and her sisters were expert mushroom, berry pickers and linden blossom gatherers. Even lowly weeds like thistle and dandelion offered sustenance. We’re surrounded by abundance.  

Never mind the political message. Walking in nature, picking berries and sharing them with friends feels good!

Local chokecherries make great syrups

Quotes from Kimmerer's book:  

"Imagine a fruit that tastes like a Blueberry crossed with the satisfying heft of an Apple, a touch of rosewater, and a minuscule crunch of almond-flavored seeds." (p. 6)

",,,status is determined not by how much one accumulates, but by how much one gives away." (p.32)

"Take only what you need." (p. 84/5)