"Eine kleine Dick Madam
Fuhr mal mit der Eisenbahn;
Dick Madam, die lachte
Eisenbahn, die krachte
Eins, zwei, drei,
Und du bist frei!"
The words of a German nursery rhyme
Mother taught me when I was little.
Which was a strange thing to do
Given the family's history and its silences.
About the missing extended family
Replaced by fake aunts and uncles;
About staying home when other kids
Went matter-of-factly to religion classes;
About cases of oranges that arrived in winter
And were carefully hidden from neighbors;
About letters in strange script
Written late at night...
...
Perhaps Mother couldn't help herself
And smuggled a nursery rhyme
From my Grandmother who otherwise didn't exist.
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