I was amazed because he was later than he could have been, but when he started to tell me what had happened to him, my mind travelled back many years ....
Back to his early childhood, when he was a little boy and spent a lot of time with us in a little holiday house up there on the mountain.
From an early age, my husband and I admired how compassionate and respectful he was towards nature, towards all living things. I remember how he used to cry when my husband was digging the garden. In doing so, he accidentally cut an earthworm, and the little one burst into tears. Because he was really small, he could not yet say the word earthworm. We laughed at him when he said that he had mbo.
We will never forget the love with which he held it in his hand.
We will never forget the tenderness with which he held the bird that crashed into the window and fell to the ground.
We will never forget how angry he was at the cat who caught a mole and brought it to the door. He carried the mole around and petted it all morning. He caressed it with the tenderness that only an innocent angelic being can.
"Maybe he was already building respect and belonging. We are all connected to each other in this world," my grandfather always said.
"Maybe, because even later, when he was growing up, he would lovingly rescue blind people from the neighbour's puppy and kitten," I agreed with him.
And now, a few days ago, I heard a young boy, full of energy, jumping up the stairs and rushing towards the train. He was not looking left or right, but he saw a man with crutches walking in front of him, also towards the train.
"The train was almost here, but I looked back. I saw a man sitting on the step, bent over. I asked him if he needed help. He nodded, so I turned and ran to him. I saw that he was wearing crutches because of the prosthesis on his leg. It had come off and fallen on the step below him. Without thinking, I picked it up, handed it to him and helped him put it back on his leg. Together we reached our destination and the train moved on."
"How did they survive the hour they had until the next train?" I wondered.
"Simple. We sat and talked. I actually listened to him while he told me that he came from Bosnia as a boy, that he now lives in Trbovlje, that he learned the most from the elderly... That he will never forget how kind-hearted I was to stop and help him. That I couldn't have done it on my own, so he is eternally grateful to me. I didn't understand how he could be so positive and happy despite such an injury," said his grandson. Then he said this:
"I tell you, I will recognise you wherever I meet you. Even if someone just looks like you, I will walk up to them and see if it is you. You know, next to love, gratitude is the strongest force that makes people happy."
"I believed him, because I will always remember that meeting too," he said with a smile.
Darinka Kobal, 10. 3. 2025
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