In the Emmenthal, in far-away Switzerland, is a small town, Grosshöchstetten, where can be found my wife’s childhood home. It is a lovely region, with old villages, rolling meadows, orchards, forests and chalets. The cows are wearing cow bells, which can be heard from miles away. On clear days there are distant vistas of the snow-capped high Alps. The traditional architecture shows us huge wooden farmhouses, with great overhanging roofs, and countless window boxes bursting with geranium flowers. It is a good land in which to live.
Present day Switzerland has the reputation of being a rich country, but there still is living memory, especially with the older people in rural areas, of real poverty, and of times when people lived simpler, more modest lives. Two ancient and rustic looking…
