Children's page, ev-luth - Christina Cherry

We are Susi and Franz and have been living with you in the church tower since summer 2016! Sometimes we trip past the community office and tell Sonja what’s going on with us. Sometimes we write something down, which you can read here and in the community letter.

Susi’s star wonder

Of wishes and miracles

do you know what it is like to want something really special? When the wish is so huge and special that you can no longer think of anything? Yes, then you know exactly what I mean and how I have fared recently. Mom asked me three days ago what I would most like to get for Christmas. Actually, I always have a lot Wishes, but I couldn’t think of that day. Maybe I was just too tired. Immediately after kindergarten I snuggled into a larger pillow with a tiny blanket and fell asleep. I hadn’t even eaten anything then, I was so exhausted.

Everything was also very quiet, because my brother Franz was still at school. Mama wrote a Christmas card to Grandma Gerda in Bremen. She lives in Bremen Cathedral. And Papa swept away the last leaves in the stairwell that the wind had blown into the church tower. It was so peaceful – I just fell asleep.

But after a short while I suddenly felt completely awake again. And believe it or not, I was somewhere else. There was a window above me. I immediately climbed the ledge and looked out. After all, a mouse needs to know what’s going on.

It was already night outside and there was a dark, mysterious world around me. The night was blacker than in downtown Hamburg, where we all live. "Maybe we went on a trip to Onno in the country?" I thought. There was a small, old church. Then I looked up at the sky. And all of a sudden I didn’t care. Because a huge starry sky stretched over me … I had never experienced the night like this. Everything was just there. And at full height stood the full, round moon with its darker spots. I stretched out my paws and wished: moon, I would so much like to fly between you among the stars! And then I want one of these bright and shining stars so that I can always be happy because it shines so beautifully.

Now, unfortunately, I knew that I could not have wished for a star because the stars are far away. So someone would have to come down to me and even then I would be unsure what to do with it. So I stood amazed for a long time. Happy and sad at the same time. And I thought how nice it would be if I had much better eyes to see the stars very clearly. Several lights even moved in an arc across the otherwise unchanged dark sky. Could God possibly see me? "How nice!" I thought.

"Hello!", I suddenly heard Franz shouting loudly, and that didn’t fit the starry sky at all, "I’m hungry. What are we eating today? ”I woke up. The pillow under me was very cozy, the little blanket over me too.

Now I knew what I could wish for at Christmas: a book about the stars and maybe some kind of binoculars. Then I would like to go on a trip to the country, because the stars shine brighter in the dark. A very personal star experience!

Your Susi … and many greetings from Franz!

Organ in the country

How Franz got stuck in an organ pipe and I found a favorite pipe.

Dear children, our huge organ has been disassembled, cleaned and repaired. When you come in, you can see them on the right side of the church wall. The organ has been played for many, many years. She hummed and laughed, cried and hollered, sang, prayed and dreamed. And with her all the musicians, people and mice that she heard. The dove in the church also loves playing the organ very much. Because an organ has so many pipes and whistles that it makes up an entire orchestra or a choir of many voices.

The instrument has about 2500 pipes. Organ builder Frank appreciated that. Organ pipes are made of wood, copper or various alloys, including lead and tin. These are metals. And an alloy is a mixture of different metals, my brother Franz explained to me. They are made hot, melted and mixed like in a cauldron. Then you can pour, bend and cut them into shape. Great thing?

We siblings were very curious, you can imagine that. Organ builder Frank has almost the same name as Franz – we weren’t afraid of him. We asked him a hole in the stomach and looked at everything. Unfortunately, mice can’t really see well, and that was stupid. We can hear, smell and hear much better our Feel whiskers. It quickly became clear that we would have to come back secretly at night, that was the only chance.

Said and done. When papa’s snoring noises were finally heard, we threw our blankets aside and sneaked away on tiptoes. Mom has an easy one sleep. We had to be careful. We slipped into the nave through the side aisle. It was dark and eerie. And there they lay and stood before us like a great treasure with a silver and red-gold glow: the metal pipes. Tiny little tubes and huge big ones. Somewhere everyone had a hole through which the air should escape when playing the organ.

Franz and I scurried very close to the pipes and sniffed them. Smell metals, did you know that? I suggested exploring the inside of a big pipe. Maybe there was something hidden in it? But no, this flute was hollow. But when we were there, we climbed into the larger pipes and ran through them. Wherever a mouse head fits, the whole body fits through, they say.

We played hide and seek, and it was not easy at all, because the pipes reacted to sound when touched. Because it wasn’t possible to play hide and seek, we played catch until Franz suddenly got stuck. That was a shock. The pipe was blocked. At first I pushed his butt to press it through, but Franz is a chubby mouse and it hurt him. So I pulled on his feet and he always turned a little so that he slips better. It suddenly came loose like a cork and we both rolled through the tube.

Franz was serious that the crap is what we are doing and that it is better to blow into the little pipes. We didn’t want to break anything. "Good idea," I said. I found a tiny pipe that I could play. It was only a few centimeters tall. I blew it in with all my strength. The flute responded with a beautiful tone. We had a conversation, the pipe and me. Finally dawn came and we had to hurry to get some sleep. And when the organ in the church is in tune, I know that my little favorite pipe is playing along.

Your Susi and Franz

Blooming flowers everywhere

Dave is visiting from London

Franz went on a school exchange to London. The first time with a real airplane! It went through the air! With all the mice from his class and the teacher. He was so excited, he almost left his hat and hand luggage.

London is the capital of England. It is much larger than Hamburg, my parents say. I can’t really imagine that, because St. Andreas and the kindergarten are big too. More than four times as many mice and people as in Hamburg live in London. And the Thames flows through it. It’s a big river. Just as the Elbe flows through Hamburg, the Thames flows through London. One of Dave’s uncles even sails from London to Hamburg more often. It works like this: Thames down – through the North Sea – up the Elbe – already there. You get to see a lot on the way: bridges and buildings, a ferris wheel, tiny cutters and bombastic, fully loaded container ships, the gorgeous sea, bellowing seals, curious cows, apple trees and finally the almost lively looking harbor cranes and the Elbe Philharmonic Hall in Hamburg. Maybe you’ve even seen the Elfi?

Franz visited the mouse children in their English school and a few months later Dave came to us in St. Andreas for two whole weeks. During the student exchange, one visits each other. Dave is one of the larger students at London Fields Primary School. He is very nice and funny – we all laughed a lot.

Because Dave likes everything that’s colorful, just like me. Even its fur is slightly reddish. He has bright blue eyes and a pink nose. He has a small gap between his upper mouse teeth. I find that special. He is wearing a purple cap and a green and yellow vest. He also needs them because he has flower seeds in his pockets. So that all streets and parks become more lively and fragrant, he sows seeds all around: at the school gate, at the bus stop, under trees, in parking lots, on the banks of the Thames – simply everywhere. Dave thinks he’s a gardener, a gardener. Just one without a garden. "So what", he laughs over the whole mouse face, because his garden is the whole city!

He brought us this idea from London. Well what? All bumblebees, bees, hoverflies and butterflies are happy about it. By the way, Dave particularly likes the flower garden in front of the pastorate. And of course all the many new beds besides them. Flowers are so wonderful …

Your Susi, Dave and Franz

Would you like to plant flowers like Dave?

You can make seed balls for yourself!

You need a level tablespoon full of flower seeds, 5 heaping tablespoons of earth and 5 heaping tablespoons of clay powder from the health food store. Mix everything with very little water and form small balls. Let them dry for two days. Finished!

At the summer festival in St. Andreas we will also make some. Are you participating One more thing: Dave explained to me that we can only sow flowers where there are no gardens. Otherwise the owners are annoyed because they want to determine which flowers should grow where!

Franz has convinced Mama .

… and Susi doesn’t have a sweater …

it’s like bewitched: I want something and mom says no. Again and again. And my brother Franz, he also thinks it’s good. He is not a bit of solidarity.

It was like I wanted a particularly cozy sweater because it is still cold in spring – one with a leopard print like a fur – but mom didn’t want to buy it. She should explain that to me! I would have looked great with that, somehow daring for a mouse. The sweater was not expensive either. That was really mean.

"Well," said Mama, when I got really angry, the sweater was pretty and soft too. Sure, the price is cheap and I could always use a sweater. "Still" – she glanced at a small piece of paper that was sewn into the sweater – "no!" There was polyacrylic and that was a plastic, plastic.

If she had to wash the sweater, plastic fibers would end up in the water and she didn’t want to. I thought that the sweater couldn’t help it, but Mama stayed hard. This year she wanted to do something different than usual, she explained. I was irritated because I thought that clothes were made from wool and cotton. That was in a children’s book. There were sheep and cotton fields. All lie?

Because I was so sad, Franz sat down with me. He is in a group in the mouse school that explains the other mice about the plastic. Yes, not long ago, clothes were made of natural things, said Franz. At least often. But the different plastics are simply incredibly practical today, because they can be shaped like any magic material. The machines do that. They spin thin threads for plush and they press plastic into foils. You inject it into molds and it becomes objects. Thicker plastic films are heated and blown, drawn or pressed into molds. This is how packaging for cheese or sausage is made. You can also lather it up into mattresses or polystyrene packaging.

Large parts for cars are possible, but also tiny little grains that act as if they were sand. Plastic has replaced other materials, Franz said, and plastics are usually made from petroleum just like automobile gasoline. Plastic is outrageous, you know, and the biggest copycat X in the world. Just because we use so much of it, it is now also in nature with trees and fish, and there it harms. It crumbles into small pieces over time, but it doesn’t go away. It is even eaten by animals because they do not recognize plastic. Now I also remember that the old Lutz next door had a stomach ache last year because he had eaten foil with a cookie residue. It can be that bad.

I understand that now with the plastic, but I cried very, very much because of the leopard print sweater. But the next day Mama suddenly called: "Look Suzy!" We were shopping again and she had found a light blue sweater with yellow spots. It was soft and just a little more expensive. She pointed to the label (the little sign in the sweater) and said: “It’s made of viscose. Viscose is made of wood. Do you like him? ”Yes, I even liked it as much. A really nice Easter sweater! I will put it on Easter Monday for the family service. And afterwards I will collect Easter eggs in the garden, but hush, not give them away!

Greetings from Susi and the clever Franz!

Red balls are on the tree

Christmas preparations with Susi and Franz

Do you know what my friends and I find great every year? Christmas tree balls! They are completely round, sometimes transparent, sometimes decorated, then once again in one color – and they almost always reflect the light. They appear shiny red, white or golden. Many glass balls are bigger than me, some are smaller. I can discover so much on it because they reflect me and the world around me.

And when I poke them, they turn like a carousel, always around. Sometimes I secretly climb into a Christmas tree. It’s easy for me with my little claws. There it smells of fir and forest and being outside. It also smells of apples and cookies and chocolate rings when people have hung them in the tree. And when the candles burn, everything glitters and shines in the December darkness. Yes, I love Christmas. I just have to take care of my fur because the candles burn hot

Mom and Dad wanted a star from my brother Franz and me. It should remind us of the tree at the top and the star of Bethlehem. Mom said that we shouldn’t just think about food on Christmas Eve, she would find it really stupid. And that’s not easy for a mouse, oh no, not at all. Franz wants to saw the star out of plywood with a fretsaw and I’ll paint it quite nicely. And we want to add a poem to it. This will be our surprise. Franz and I, we worked on the poem for a long time – well, Franz more than I did. We will then present it for the gift giving. I can memorize well.

Papa said that we will go to church very early this year – to Pastor Schoeler at eleven o’clock. That brings calm and peace to the day, he says. And a very festive mood. We don’t want a hectic Christmas, no, really not. This day is just too wonderful for that. Do you like our poem too?

Greetings from Susi and Franz!

Heavenly blue and raspberry ice cream

Bye summer! Until next year!

Were you so hot this summer? I couldn’t take off my fur. Franz has hardly come out of the cool church tower. I was so warm that I could only think of raspberry ice cream. Raspberry ice cream! Franz only thought co-la-eis. Papa Scho-ko-la-den-eis. Just mom, she wanted watermelon. And we were so thirsty that we licked the leaves when Küster Seiß blew up the garden. There was no more water in nature. We were all exhausted.

But then Hofmaus Onno, the relative of ollen Lutz from next door, called unexpectedly and asked if we didn’t all want to go to the sea. A fresh breeze is blowing, he said, and besides, it would have rained so little that the harvest on his farm wasn’t so tasty anyway. Just sad. But because a mouse can never get down and always makes the best of everything, we all wanted to go to the sea. It promised to be great and very exciting.

"Being able to swim is innate in mice," Mama now lectured. But since mice prefer to have solid ground under their paws, Papa and Onno were also beginners when it came to swimming. They both looked a little tired. We drove to St. Peter-Ording, cheated in one of those holiday cars that kept going. When we got there we just played beach ball. Franz and I gradually got really good, but in the beginning we were absolute rivets. It was embarrassing. And then this slippery sand. Mama, Papa, Onno and Lutz sat in beach chairs and read the newspaper. Maybe they were boring.

Suddenly it caught my brother Franz and he ran to the sea. People have to learn to swim thoroughly. A mouse, on the other hand, just has to be careful that the water doesn’t run off the beach. Because then it is pulled into the sea. It’s not to be trifled with ebb and flow. But since we just had running water, Franz with his coat plunged wildly into the water. He blew and fidgeted and made very unusual movements. I was both concerned and curious. But believe it or not, Franz suddenly swam. "It works, it works!" He cheered. Only the coat was too heavy, it always pulled it down. I have now dared to go into the water without clothes, and after a clumsy start, I swam like a young seal. Well, maybe not quite …

Only now have the adults come. The amount of salt water was probably scary to them. Then Franz had to go first. Well, he’s hardly weaker than my dad, just a lot younger. After all, there were six of us splashing around in the water and that was really great. We screamed and dropped balls.

We have been back home for a few weeks now and soon it will be Thanksgiving. I’ve already told you that the farmers had crop failures. Franz and I still want to thank God because we were allowed to be at the sea. And we bring grapes to the Thanksgiving Day on October 7th. Grapes love the sun. They are deeply rooted and drink groundwater. This year they are particularly tasty.

Mmmmhh! Your Susi and Franz

Summer party for Susi and Franz .

I, Susi, look forward to the summer party on July 1st! You too? The fact is that there will only be a really happy service. We will hear the story of Daniel in the lion’s den and also great music. The story sounds bad, but Daniel will make it. I’m pretty sure about that. Then, like every year, we plunge outdoors and have fun. My brother Franz will definitely look for goodies again. He’ll be hiding under the cake stand, and if volunteers drop a bit there, he’ll be there. If there are a lot of crumbs and crumbs, he collects them in his backpack and carries them to a secret hiding place.

Last year, a large crumb of bread even fell from his hat from the grill stand. Mama rolled the piece right at her feet and Franz blushed a little because he was embarrassed. Mom said that it was amazing what such a big boy could squeeze away. And then there were a few tips on the topic of healthy eating and whether he had already eaten fruit today. Dad was there too. He asked if Franz would go jogging with him afterwards. I don’t think my brother was still listening, but he didn’t get angry either.

Franz likes to go through with good advice. Finally he took the big bread crumb and gave it to the dove in the church. She was really happy! She promptly gave up her dignified church pigeon breeding. Because she also appreciates a treat. But she doesn’t like to plunge into the fray. Because in addition to us mice, sparrows and ants are also looking for food. Franz holds up pretty well. However, we have to be careful, because if Lotti is there, every mouse has to be on guard. Lotti is a small terrier. She is old and dear to everyone, but a dog is and remains a dog and a mouse is a mouse.

I myself watch what the children do. They run in the garden, slide, swing or play in the sand. They tinker and carve and make very imaginative role-playing games. Some girls and boys even bake stick bread by the fire. And still others watch a puppet show with big eyes.

I have fun in this hustle and bustle: when a child wears a loose dress or a jacket, I sometimes play hitchhiking around the world. This is how it works: I hang on to my clothes and hold on. It’s easy with my claws. Or else I crawl into a pocket. If you children run now, I rock and rock wildly back and forth. This is funny! My friends play along and we wave to each other secretly. The pastors with their long gowns – that is their cloak – are doing particularly well, but of course Pastor Schoeler and Pastor Parra shouldn’t know that. It is not proper how you can imagine. So please don’t piss!

Easter bunny, where are you??

"Hihi – haha - huhu," I giggled. I almost fell for an Easter egg, a colorful cardboard one. The Easter bunny had probably put it between the daffodils and it had slipped down there. That was last year after the family service on Easter Monday. I am Susi, a church mouse, for those who do not know me. My brown fur is a great camouflage.

Franz, my big brother, is easy to find with his blue coat – he always wants to be cool. He himself looks like an Easter egg, but with a cap and tail. The Easter Bunny would see that immediately. My hair clips are enough for me. I wanted to meet the Easter Bunny last year, but it didn’t work. Such a crap! Was i late Did he hear me? Mice rustle very little and we only make very high noises, you know. I may have buzzed "Sing a Bird" …

When we talk to mice, you humans can hardly hear it, but rabbits have a fine ear. Nothing is hidden from them! The long ears can turn them independently and they are as quick as they are smart. That’s why we never see them. My friend Lucy means that too. I was sad even though I found such a big egg.

But Papa said that it was very nice and good with his colleague Hase and that he would also enjoy it (Papa likes to eat chocolate eggs), but it was more important for Easter to be happy that God’s son Jesus rose again after his death and ascended to God, because that’s exactly what happened to Easter almost 2000 years ago. And – oh yes – it occurred to me, that was so. I had almost forgotten that because of all the Easter bunny annoyance. Isn’t it wonderful that something great happened at all? Because it is terrible for a dad if his child has to die. Be it a mouse, a person or God. And so God is father and son together again, and Jesus, who lived as a human being and loved human beings, can now assist us all – above all, of course, you humans.

I really want to discuss this with the white dove. She lives in the nave and knows a lot about these things – much better than dad. But I don’t tell dad. Because then he might be a little sad. And at Easter we all want to be happy! A mouse can hardly ask a pastor, because mouse language is too high for human ears. People think mice would only beep, but that’s not true. Such nonsense … The cardboard egg that just came from above gave me and Lucy a lot of pleasure: I climbed in and played boat with it. Because it consisted of two halves, we even had two boats. And for a picnic, we had small chocolate Easter eggs and a few gummy bears. I love gummy bears! Everything was sticky, but we didn’t care. I even gave away a few eggs. Mama got a very dark chocolate egg. She likes them most. Just the few gummy bears, I kept them to myself.

Land of milk and honey for mice

Susi and Franz in the middle of it

once a year is the land of milk and honey for mice! Lutz, the caretaker mouse from the Helene-Lange-Gymnasium, told me that. Lutz wants to come to us on this day, even before the family service. He says that people decorate delicious things in the church, and they hang a crown of corn on the vaulted ceiling. Corn and tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, apples and carrots surround the altar. Lutz smiled mischievously, rubbed his fat belly and shouted "This is a feast!".

I immediately ran to mom to tell her the news. But believe it or not, mom got angry. "Land of milk and honey, pah!", She said. “You don’t have to believe ollen Lutz everything he says. He probably nibbled too many fermented cherries from the garden, the schnapps nose! Susi, run over there and tell him to stay home thanks to Thanksgiving! And take your brother Franz with you. He’s sitting next to the church bells in the tower with his Nintendo and has to move. ”Mom was angry. So I quickly ran up to Franz and he came along enthusiastically. He had just reached a new game level, now had to cancel everything, blablabla …

Well, what can I say. Franz had to tell old Lutz what was going on (I didn’t dare), and he in turn left the mouse ears hanging and sniffing. We wanted to know what Thanksgiving was, but Lutz wanted to be left alone. "Are we looking for the pigeon?" I asked Franz. "She must know what’s going on there!" He agreed. The pigeon was visibly amused. She explained Thanksgiving to us like this: “Children, Thanksgiving is at the beginning and end of every agricultural year. One year is over, the new begins. The land is worked in autumn and winter, sown in spring, and harvested in summer and autumn thereafter. You ate delicious all year round, didn’t you? And winter supplies are also there. Franz, you even have a Nintendo game.

And Suzy, didn’t you get a jump rope recently? And you have a whole range of bows for your hair, right? Thanksgiving, we all say thank you. We thank God for taking care of us so well that he helps and supports us. And all the vegetables and fruits in the church are given to those in need when the service is over. ”We promised the dove to think about it. Franz asked if we shouldn’t at least sniff the corn. Well, that was probably allowed, the pigeon meant, and then she had that funny expression on her pigeon face again.

She also suggested that we add a few nuts from us. I’m going to do that now! It will be very difficult for Franz to just sniff and not bite the fruit. But before the service I will climb over the vegetables and have fun. Maybe Franz will join in. And nobody forbade me to do that either.

Greetings and see you soon!

Your Susi and of course Franz

Franz is Franz!

you know, if mom thinks my brother Franz is lazy, then Papa gives him a head movement to tell him to tidy up his things. And then he takes Franz under protection, says that he is comfortable, but if it really matters, Franz is fully there and has the heart of a lion. I usually think dad is exaggerating, but sometimes I’m on his side.

Recently Franz came too late. And because it gets dark so early in December, we were concerned. "He shouldn’t be dawdling like that," came from Mama, and Papa also looked grumpy because the evening grains were already on the tablecloth. We were hungry and had made ourselves comfortable on the church vault. You know the vault – that is, the church ceiling from the inside – from seeing. You can also look at it from above. There is a door to it from the tower. There are curves that we mice can slide down very well, and on one of these hills we had our evening meal.

Franz finally came. "On the way home I met a desert mouse," he said, "it’s called Rana. I think she’s just starting school. And because she comes from the desert, she has no way of knowing and has not looked at the road. It’s just over there. A driver had to brake very sharply. Phew, I was scared! The driver dropped the window and shouted at Rana. Rana didn’t understand a word and cried.

She was also cold because she only has such a thin fur. "Well, then what?" We wanted to know. "She had to go to the bus stop on Grindelallee. I took her there briefly and lent me my coat. ”Franz was even a bit out of breath and his thick fur shimmered damp. "And where does she live?" Asked Mama. "Are you okay?" "No," said Franz, she was currently all alone because her mom had to go to the hospital and somehow the dad wasn’t there. "Hm," Papa said now and looked at Mama. “I invited her for tomorrow,” we heard Franz again, “to bake cookies. Little girls like to do that, don’t they? ”Now he looked at me. I nodded. "You don’t have anything against it?" Came from Franz, but it was clear that he had agreed that firmly.

"We bake all cookies!" I called and slapped my paws. "But afterwards you clean up the kitchen again!", Mama threatened Franz with his finger and tried to look very strictly. Tomorrow, Franz wants to persuade the Rana to do traffic training so that she won’t be run over. Count me in. By the way, I decided that we would bake cinnamon buns.

They are delicious!

Your Susi and your Franz!

Something else!

Mom and Dad want us to do something different in the Passion. Mom calls it living more consciously. The time of passion is the time before Easter, Papa explained. One can assume 40 days or less. We agreed on two weeks.

So dad wants to do without cheese at the weekend. Cheese eating is his favorite habit. He makes small pieces and puts them one by one in his muzzle. When chewing, he smacks something and does "mmmh". Mom laughed because two weeks only had four weekend days, but Dad found that difficult enough.

Franz and I suggested that he prefer to avoid his Friday beer, because we didn’t want to risk that cheese would no longer be bought. Papa didn’t want that. And mom, she doesn’t want to nibble ham anymore and be patient for the whole 14 days. "It’s good for the figure and for the nerves too," says Mama. Franz thinks the whole action is exaggerated and a little embarrassing, but of course he still participates. Franz would like to prove to us that he can endure two weeks without computer games. When he announced that, Mama noted that if he did, he would be awarded the Mouse Order for special bravery. Then Franz rolled his eyes and groaned.

And me? There is no way I can do without gummy bears. Dad said that it would be really, really great of me if I tried not to complain for a long time if I wasn’t allowed to do something. I can complain very successfully, you have to know. Adults can hardly stand this and often give way. I’m a professional. And should I leave that for two weeks? Hm. The dove who lives in the church is often sad in the Passion. She remembers God’s son, Jesus of Nazareth, and how he lived, what he taught us, and how he died.

It was Good Friday, the pigeon said. But on Easter Sunday, you know, Jesus rose again from the dead and we all want to celebrate that together! "You will manage not to moan so much," the pigeon cheered me up. "After all, you can also search for Easter eggs on Easter Sunday." I asked the pigeon if Jesus also liked Easter eggs, but she didn’t know that. “There’s nothing in the Bible about that. So we can’t read it, ”answered the dove,“ but celebrated and ate, that’s what Jesus likes. Have a look in the children’s bible. "

When I bite my first Easter egg – I think the one with nougat is great! – then I will think of Jesus. Maybe he’ll notice and be happy with me about the nougat egg. That would be great!

Greetings from Susi

Dear God, where are you??

recently I had a really bad morning: I took my brand new pencils to the mice kindergarten. These are really nice felt pens with two ends of different thickness. I was so happy! But when I was painting, many mice wanted to borrow some from me and of course I didn’t want to. It was my new pens! I got really angry, said no. (I pushed too.) The other children didn’t want to be my friends afterwards. Even Kati, my very best friend.

I became very sad and angrier. I cried and screamed. Ms. Liebmaus, our kindergarten teacher, heard that and took the pencils away from me. "You will get it back when you go home," she said. That was mean too. At home I ran straight to Franz. But he sent me away, can you imagine something like that? "Leave me alone," he said, "I’m going to do a math work tomorrow and have to concentrate." My mom was cooking. On the side, she called Grandma Gerda from the Bremen Cathedral. I started talking immediately. But mom, she doesn’t understand anything either. She said I shouldn’t intervene when adults talk. She could never make phone calls in peace.

I was able to do without mom now. Then it’s not possible. God, it occurred to me, God is always there for us. I learned that at the children’s church service. I quickly ran to church and looked for him. He wasn’t sitting on a bench. I would have seen that immediately – although I have no idea what God actually looks like. Not even next to the stone altar or on the pulpit. "God?" I asked carefully. No Answer. So I crouched very quietly on a bench into a fluffy ball, like a mouse. It was quiet as a mouse in the church room, but the room didn’t seem empty to me. There was no organ tone, no steps, no rustling. I listened attentively, inside and out. At first I didn’t even think about praying – I was very upset. And then I found God. Or he found me.

I told him about my experiences. In silence. Later I even had the feeling that he gave me tips. Isn’t that strange? I now know how to get on with my friend Kati tomorrow. Thank God! You are really great!

Greetings from Susi

Popcorn – that too!

I was really happy recently when some school children dropped popcorn in front of the church. Such a popcorn is pretty big for me and very tasty! I dragged ten of them into the church tower. Franz of course wanted to get some and also the old Lutz from next door. And mom and dad, they also beamed. We sat, nibbled and smacked on a landing in the tower. Mmm! But then dad came up with a typical dad question …

"What is popcorn actually made of?" He asked. I almost choked. Unfortunately I had no idea, and even Franz, who knows everything else, had no idea. He looked at ollen Lutz, but he let us get so full. Then Papa was so upset that we didn’t know the answer that he said to mom that the children – so we – had to go to Schleswig-Holstein in the country. They’re just harvesting. And because mice have a lot of relatives, the Lutz immediately thought of a cousin on a farm in Quickborn. We were moderately enthusiastic …

Said and done. Mama delivered us to Hofmaus Onno just two days later. We hardly had time to orientate ourselves, when Mama was already gone. Franz was on the verge of collapse because there was no WLAN there. How should he survive without the Clash of Clans? He should have left the phone at home, but somehow it slipped into his pocket. "Concentrate on what you hear, smell, see, feel and taste," Mama had said. Hofmaus Onno was happy, chubby and absolutely smart. We were just about to pounce on the harvest, which was stored in sacks and containers in the courtyard, when Onno said: Besides, nobody should notice that we are here. “Onno thought for a moment. Then: “I suggest that we look around the harvested field and have a look. But even there we have to be careful so that no owl chases us and no buzzard, stork or marten. We’ll start very early tomorrow. The stork and buzzard are not there yet and the marten and owl are already gone. At least that’s to be hoped for. "

At sunrise we are out on the field. There was a tired hamster. He was about to sleep. And – what luck! – There were a lot of delicious corn kernels and a few smaller cobs on the field. Franz and I wanted to eat, but Onno said we better collect and eat later. Mice can also be found on a harvested field at dusk. And in fact there was a buzzard circling above us. I am very scared. "Quick, hide in the wild rabbit hole!" Onno called. That saved us. Later we made popcorn together. Here’s how it works: You heat oil in a saucepan and put dried corn kernels in it. And of course sugar or salt, which you like. Then you put the lid on and turn off the heat in the pot shortly afterwards. The corn kernels pop in the pot. It pops: pop, puff, pop! We drank and ate cocoa and the three of us were very happy!

Franz and I would like to thank God for the great time at Onno’s farm. Thanksgiving at the family service on October 8th. At 10:00 o’clock. Can you come too Then we are happy! Of course you can’t see us there because a house mouse is always hiding (that’s a matter of honor!), But we’ll be there and listen.

Your Susi and your Franz!

Oh oh oh. Franz? Of fun and other dangers

Franz, that’s usually a cozy guy. It is not particularly sporty. He thinks it’s only because he sprained his little paw at the back left as a little mouse. That would have taken a long time to heal and unfortunately he would have forgotten the sport. Dad scolds that he’s a real couch potato. And I often find that when I want to play with him and he just stays seated. "No, not now, Suzy!", He grumbles and reads his book.

However, there is one, no: two! Sports where he really picks up speed. Do you already suspect it? My big brother rolls through Eimsbüttel with inline skates in summer and he skates over lakes in winter. I only have sliding shoes for smaller children … But Franz drives really, really fast with his friend Maxi. Sometimes his fur is shed when he falls. But then self-pity is out of the question.

Once Franz did not take off the inliners and stomped up the stairs to the church tower with the rollers on his feet. Suddenly it rumbled very loudly. Mom rolled her eyes and said that he would wake up one day, and then he would have roles on his feet. Fortunately, Franz only had a few 8 bruises from falling on the stairs. When it suddenly got really cold, I mean, really cold and for days, Franz made an appointment with the long, thin maxi for ice skating. I was also allowed to take my slide shoes with me and Mama told Franz to take good care of me. "Sure," Franz replied. And mom also looked at Maxi very critically.

We scurried into the 115 bus and drove to Airbus in Finkenwerder. A little further on, the frozen South Elbe lay still. A huge ice lake in the winter sun … At first we were all speechless, it was so nice! The few skaters present reported that the local farmers had checked the ice thickness in the morning. They then drill round holes in the ice and measure. All right.

Franz and Maxi immediately got into their ice skates and started racing. The Maxi can do great turns. Well, and of course I didn’t follow up. Take care of me. I didn’t think it was that bad and stayed close to the shore. But once I peeked through the dry reeds, I saw Franz full of enthusiasm and shooting at one of these boreholes at the fastest speed. "Franz!" I shouted, "you have to be careful!" But there was no room left to brake. Happy New Year! Splash! Franz was in there. Maxi and I were so scared. We didn’t know what to do. We wanted to give him a long stick, but there wasn’t one right now. And with his wet coat and heavy shoes, we thought he should drown. When we saw no way out, the rescue came suddenly and unexpectedly: a few carp hurried from the depths and helped Franz on the slippery ice. He stood there shivering and just wanted to go home.

Franz climbed through the window into the church tower and secretly hung up his coat to dry. And this time, I’m not going to tell him. Mom and Dad have already noticed that something was wrong, but we are back safely. Franz had an attentive, lovely guardian angel, I think. The deaf in the church said that too. How nice that there are angels!