Dear Reader
This issue does not have a theme as we usually seem to have.
This issue is about nothing in particular, because the Carnival
that used to be the emphasis of February is not what it used to
be in the past. I myself have not been to a Carnival event in a
while and am likely not to go again, as are many of my
contemporaries. The old fools are just that, old fools, more
comfortable at home. The young fools abandoned ship long before
they could become firmly hooked on this frivolity. Winter
Carnival Canadian style is more their cup of tea, pond hockey
and skating, skiing and ski doing, not to forget the inviting
activities of après ski.
The weather certainly is partially playing along, not in the
very south of Ontario, where January brought a meltdown, not in
Olympia country out west either, no problem- they have
solutions, but in the traditional winter sports arenas of our
neighbors in Quebec and more to the north of Toronto conditions
for wintery sports and delights were satisfactory.
What Toronto thought were the early signs of spring turned out
to be a foolish notion, because winter did catch up with us and
an arctic freeze caught us by surprise. Birds and animals
nervously scuttled around looking for extra food. In my garden
the supply of peanuts, grapes and seeds, bread and other
leftovers needed constantly to be replenished. Snow
accumulations were negligible, a good thing, no one loves to
shovel snow, especially when you are getting older.
I noticed that the travel commercials spoke of cabin fever. I
think I got a bit of that, but unfortunately had no opportunity
to get away to the south. Unless it is for a bit longer than a
week I would not be interested in setting my body up for such a
cold shock on my return. But in my observation I find people
that do not get away are behaving a bit strange at times,
including me. I think the lack of Vitamin D is showing. Good
thing you can get it in a bottle and it is not even expensive.
Think of all the money saved.
But back to our issue: I hope you will enjoy ultimately to go to
our website and look at other articles then the ones in the
paper. We welcome Paul-Bernhard Berghorn back with a most
interesting study on human behavior, the one that deals with
money and greed. It is a bit too long to print, but I did not
want to deprive our interested readers from his point of view. I
think he hits the nail, or in this case the nails - a whole lot
of them - right on the head. I understand that the online
version is always a bit later in being delivered to the net than
our paper version, but I know you come and visit often for
updates of current issues and special categories like our human
rights or environmental entries.
 February
will invite you to lots of indoor activities like Via Salzburg
and Opera York, Tafelmusik and activities like the only true
ball left in our ranks, the Austrian Gala Ball, and also the
Princess Ball in the Danube Swabian Club. The latter is a most
worthy cause to support, as our young people struggle to keep
their heritage intact and vibrant.
I want to thank so many of you who lately called and let me know
how much you appreciate Echo Germanica as it addresses issues
not found in other publications and is largely written in
English , which enables a lot of spouses to understand their
partners heritage and culture. I have always known that there is
a need to build that bridge into other communities and
generations, and as we are entering soon our third decade of
publishing, we shall continue to do so.
 I
hope we all enjoy the Olympic Games on Canadian soil. May all
our athletes do well and be part of an unforgettable world
event!
Happy Valentine’s Day
Sybille Forster-Rentmeister
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