To be continued - not E-Book

Erich Skopek

• Herausgeber: novum pro Verlag
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 153

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Since the Enlightenment, man has pushed God out of his daily life. What remains of the original God of history is merely an external religious sugar coating without content. Because God is apparently dead, man is also dying and wandering haphazardly on this planet. Are there answers to the big questions of life and survival and where can they be found? In this book, the author attempts to provide guidance based on the eventful and moving story of the Baumgartner family. An entertaining, insightful, thought-provoking and touching read.

Leseprobe

To be continued - not

I was inspired to write 'To be continued - not' by the periodic reading aloud in a retirement home. The older ladies and gentlemen also view the texts read aloud critically. And since good stories are scarce, I began to write some myself. Ultimately, the short stories I have written myself are to end in an extensive family saga. Therefore the title 'To be continued' is not an empty threat. It should be said that not all of the stories are suitable for reading aloud in a retirement home, since some of them touch on subjects that may no longer move older people so strongly. However, they are essential for the overall understanding of the story. The reader is therefore challenged to make a selection depending on the audience. The frequent repetition of basic truths results from the fact that the present narrative is read aloud in sections and therefore this stylistic device cannot be avoided.

Friedrich Baumgartner was a handsome person with his height of one hundred and eighty-five centimeters and his athletic figure. His sixty-four years could only be seen when he sometimes came out of his factory late at night. He was usually dressed in a suit, tie and white shirt. Quite different from on the golf course, where he was completely casual. But even there he showed who was the top dog and expected the others on the turf to show him respect and deference. This did not please many doctors or court councillors in any way.

At home, too, he expected everyone to dance to his tune. Baumgartner's son in particular didn't like it at all, while his daughter didn't really care. She was rarely at home anyway. But Baumgartner had many arguments with his son, often ignited by trivialities. Friedrich's wife also looked at her husband more and more critically year after year, because his lifestyle was becoming more and more ostentatious. A large car alone was no longer enough, no, an expensive stereo system and a small bar made of the finest woods had to be installed in the limousine. The best leather seats were just good enough. Everything else was also of the finest.

The small yacht in Croatia was also extremely luxurious. The best materials had to be used on the outside and inside. Everyone should see how much money had been paid for it. Inside on the walls hung two expensive pictures with motifs from the Wachau, painted by a well-known artist from Krems, and the porcelain was of course also of the finest. Meissen was written on every piece and the crossed swords were clearly visible on the back. Silverware and ornate glassware went without saying. The kitchen and living room, where one could represent, had been made by a carpenter from the most expensive woods. All in all, Frederick could hold court here in front of his customers and his friends, who always came in large numbers. According to his status, that's what he called his kingdom.

Likewise, his house, with its expensive facade and luxurious interior, testified to his wealth. Baumgartner's philosophy of life was to make his company bigger and bigger and to open up new sales markets. Wealth was his goal in life. He had started with a small locksmith's shop, which he continuously expanded. On an impulse, Friedrich began to manufacture special screws. These were in such demand that he now manufactured them in a factory. Of course, there were still custom-made products here and there, which were mainly used in the construction of lookout towers. In the sunniest state of his homeland, the highest wooden lookout tower was built at a height of one hundred meters. All the screws, from the largest to the smallest, came from his flourishing factory. This also ensured a good reputation for his products abroad and secured new sales markets.

Baumgartner planned to rest on his laurels in a few years and retire from professional life to then enjoy only the sunny side of life. And that to the fullest. That was his dream. He could already see himself enjoying the sunrises and sunsets in a villa by the sea. He wanted to drink only the best wines on the terrace, and he could almost taste the matching dishes on his tongue. It was a foregone conclusion that his children would continue his life's work. But more of that later.

With all his work and lifestyle, Friedrich's family always came up short. Instead of expensive gifts, Baumgartner's children would have loved to spend time with their father. Instead of luxurious trips and exclusive parties, his wife would have preferred to go on vacation alone with her husband to a small hotel in the mountains. It didn't always have to be St. Moritz; a small village in the Tyrolean or Vorarlberg mountains would have been more to her taste. She didn't like high society and side-eye society anyway.

When there was another crisis between the two spouses, the wife burst out laughing: "What do you get out of all the luxuries you're going to enjoy in your retirement if you're going to spend all your time on the company? You invest all your energy and time in it. Friedrich, we all understand that running a company is not easy, but if you don't have time for us now, it might be too late for that once and for all. One day the children will be out of the house, and what will happen to the company is not yet clear. And above all, remember one thing: You won't be able to take anything with you - just as you came into the world, you will also leave it again: without an expensive house, without a yacht and without your expensive evening parties. Because your friends, who are only around you because they enjoy the luxurious life, you won't have around you forever either."

Then Friedrich Baumgartner laughed and said to his wife, "I won't be doing you this favor for a long time yet. Certainly not. Death is still so far away, I don't want to think about it. After all, I have worked hard, to my limits, to secure a carefree future for myself. After all, I want to enjoy my luxury even longer. What are these thoughts about death? I don't philosophize about that. That's something for old women or old men. But not for me." So he talked on for a long time, telling his life story, pointing out again and again what he had accomplished. After talking himself into a frenzy like this, it took him longer to finally stop his boasting. Then he lay down in the separate bedroom.

When Friedrich Baumgartner did not show up for breakfast in the morning and was still not sitting at the table at ten o'clock, his wife went to his room to check. When she opened the door, her loud cry echoed through the house, because Friedrich was lying dead in bed: without a car, without a yacht, and also without his friends, who had always enjoyed coming to the parties. He had died of a heart attack. He had probably been thinking after all, and had gotten far too excited about the conversation with his wife. It wasn't all idle chatter after all, as he had claimed the day before.

This is what happens to someone who accumulates treasures in his life without asking the really important questions. Questions about the meaning of life, the question about God and life after death. Perhaps the reader will one day pass by his grave in Baumgartner's home village. On the expensive gravestone it says: Work was his whole life. But that could also be written on the gravestone of a packhorse.

Who was now to take over the company had not been settled during Baumgartner's lifetime. He would have liked both children to run the company together now, sharing the areas of responsibility. A few days after the funeral, the mother called daughter and son to talk about the future. Beforehand, she had baked a nut strudel and put a pot of coffee on the table, because Mrs. Baumgartner thought that it was easier to talk in a comfortable atmosphere.

But no sooner had the daughter sipped her coffee than she took the floor and began in a loud voice: "I have no interest in the company at all. It doesn't interest me in any way. I want to see the world and not be crushed by work." For although she had not cared for the plant during her father's lifetime either, she knew very well that running a company was no easy undertaking. Baumgartner's son, on the other hand, was - at least partially - familiar with the company and knew roughly the processes and economic connections.

"I want you to pay me off," Frederick's daughter said to her brother. "Where is he going to get that kind of money?" her mother interjected justifiably. "I'll have the company appraised," Frederick Jr. said, "and then make a decision." It took him fourteen days to go through the necessary documents. Then he thought about how he could raise the amount for his sister. He would sell the yacht and some land to boot. Some cash was also still available in the company. The yacht was soon sold, even if the proceeds were below its true value. The plots of land, on the other hand, fetched high prices. In a few months, he had enough money to pay off his sister Renate.

As soon as Renate had the money in her account, things started to happen. She moved to Spain, bought a small house there and began a lavish life. Not a week went by without a great party. Renate bought her clothes in the most expensive boutiques, and she also spent too much money on food and exquisite wines. In the beginning, when there was plenty of money and she spent it generously, she had enough friends and girlfriends who enjoyed themselves at her parties. She was courted, they flattered her, admired her looks and praised her. But the money was pretty much used up after half a year. Even if she still invited her supposedly good friends to the parties, the wines were now from the supermarket and no longer from the wine shop. She could no longer get the food from the delicatessen, now special offers had to do. She also soon could no longer remember her last purchase in the boutique.

The cheaper the food became, the fewer friends came. Renate was now no longer the wooed party queen, but sometimes her friends withdrew and avoided her company. Eventually, it got to the point where she had to sell the little house she had grown fond of and move into a small cheap apartment. Eventually, she owed her rent there for several months and bought her groceries in social markets. The descent was not sudden, but it was hard. One day, the bailiff showed up at her door. But he found no attachable items, and it wasn't long before Renate was evicted.

In the beginning, she lived in condemned houses or in unfinished buildings that were still waiting to be completed. She had stowed the few things she had left in a backpack. Her friends from the past no longer wanted to know her, and when Renate asked them for money, they turned away without a word. She had to beg for food, and she could no longer make demands on what satisfied her hunger. At times she found work in a market garden, where she was allowed to bite to her heart's content into the harvested fruits, which were not for sale and of course were. But there was work only at harvest time and it was also poorly paid. In between, Renate lived on the street again and begged.

One day, when tomatoes were being harvested and Renate sat down on the floor to rest during the break, she thought to herself: The workers in my brother's company have a steady income, a comfortable home, maybe family - and what do I have? It was not easy for her to make a decision to return home. But she was already thinking about what to tell her mother and brother. Maybe my brother will have a job for me in his company, she said to herself. This thought crossed her mind and she decided to leave for home today. The little money the gardener paid her was just enough for a ticket and some food.

When Renate arrived in her hometown and was only a few meters away from home, her mother caught sight of her. Full of love, she ran to meet the decrepit figure and embraced her. "We're going to have a big party and invite a lot of people to come and celebrate with me and your brother." The priest was also invited and came gladly. Before saying grace before the meal, he gave a short speech, for he knew the fortunes of the family. He began to speak, "The circumstances of this family remind me of the story of the prodigal son from the Gospel of Luke. Only here it is the daughter who has returned."

After the prayer, Frederick Jr. took the floor: "All this time I have toiled in my company, many evenings and weekends I have spent there to keep the factory going. But you didn't organize a party for me, Mother." Then the priest rose for the second time and said, "Your sister was away and now she is back. In worn clothes and hungry, she came the last few yards up the hill. Now you are reunited. If that is not a cause for celebration."

In the evening, as Frederick Jr. lay in bed, he reviewed the day. Especially the words that the pastor had spoken before the prayer and after Baumgartner's speech had struck him to the heart. He would have liked to read the Bible passage that was quoted. He got up again and went to his late father's library. Not recognizing any system by which the books were arranged, he braced himself for a long search. He found lots of literature about business science, about computers and tax law. After looking through more than half of the books, he found some classical works, Goethe's 'Faust', Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and Schiller's 'The Robbers'. But he did not find a Bible. He looked through the various encyclopedias only superficially. After some time he gave up his search to go back to bed. He tossed and turned for hours without finding sleep. Before he finally managed to fall asleep, he decided to buy a Bible the next day.

Early in the morning after breakfast, he went to the company to check on things. He checked the inventory for the next month and talked to the secretary in his office. When he thought everything was in order, he drove to the next town. Finding a parking place was not easy, so he had to walk a larger part of the way. In doing so, he was able to clear his head again and put his thoughts in order. Because he had soon realized that, running a company alone and having the responsibility for it was not easy. He thought about asking his sister if she wanted to join the company. This was certainly not easy, because Renate had completed an artistic education and taught 'fine arts education' in a high school. But Baumgartner junior could imagine her taking over the advertising and marketing.

Finally he had arrived at the bookstore. The saleswoman presented him with several editions of the Holy Scriptures. Frederick said he was looking for a modern edition, but one that was true to the text. The saleswoman presented him with two volumes, and Baumgartner immediately took the first one. He paid with his ATM card and went home again. But that didn't solve the problem. For he no longer knew the passage to which the priest had referred. Baumgartner thought about it for a while, then called the parish office, where he got the right information. The passage was in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 15 from verse 11.

A man had two sons and the younger one said to his father, "I would like to have my inheritance from your property already now. Then the father agreed to divide the inheritance between the two sons already now. The story continued with the younger of the sons leaving his father's house to travel far away. There he squandered his entire inheritance and eventually became a swineherd. It was then, at the latest, that Friedrich realized that the story fit Renate exactly.

So he returned to his father. Full of compassion and love, he ran to meet his son, as the Holy Scripture continues, embraced him and kissed him. Then his son said to him: "Father, I have sinned against God and against you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.