Fotoessay: I Lost My Heart in Heidelberg (Satis Shroff)

I LOST MY HEART IN HEIDELBERG

Ever lost your heart in Heidelberg? Here's a song dedicated to this wonderful city in Baden-Württemberg:
 

I lost my heart in Heidelberg's fair city,
'twas in a gentle summer night,
I was in love, so deep in love entangled,
Her rosebud mouth was laughing with delight.
..What has become of you, my dear, since I had to be wise,
Old Heidelberg, so beautiful, you German Paradise!
I went away in sorrow, left happiness, ease and wine,
I think of you, I long for you,
You are my 'auld lang syne!'

We know the magical powers of witches and shamans today mostly through fairy tales and children's books (Harald Topfer). Sometimes we hear that witches knew a lot about healing. Which healing medication were known in the early days? Prescriptions for magical potions have been passed down with the passage of time. They were said to make people lover others against their will. This is still practiced in many cultures where there are shamans who have good or evil magical practices. The belief in witches began not in the sinister Middle Ages but earlier in the 15th century. In order to protect ourselves from witches (Hexen) we have amulets made, and learn about the different ways of protecting ourselves. In the Tumor Biology it has become normal additionally to use herbal medicine or such amulets to ward off evil spirits because faith or belief in the power of such artifacts blessed by the shaman or witch,if you may, can be beneficial. A great percentage of the effect of medicine is belief and to a lesser degree the actual effect of the medication itself. At the Apocathery Museum in Heidelberg you even learn how to make a salve which won't help you to fly (take a broom or the Lufthansa!) but will enable you to have scented and soft hands.

 It's not the fastest train in the world but it's fun, this rickety, creaky affair that squeaks and jolts all the way to the peak. The ride downhill was faster. Reminded me of the funicular train to the top of Salzburg, Austria. You are rewarded with a majestic view of the Neckar river, as it snakes in the valley below and the Heidelberger bridge, the tourist boats, the cars speeding along the highways, and everywhere lush green, blooming vegetation. The Philosopher's Path looked inviting. The castle garden was extensive and there were students lolling on the grass, tourists walking around in swarms with their respective guides. Your could hear: English, Japanese, Chinese, French and other tongues.

 

Zwei Entlein: two ducks chillaxing despite the many visitors to the castle of Heidelberg which was built in the 13th and 17th century. The early Gothic buildings are the ruins, and was the seat of the Pfälsische Wittelbacher.

 Heidelberg is a wonderful university town.

Heidelberg castle is the epitome of the Romantic and depicts the

 splendour of the Renaissance as well as the sad devastation left behind by the 30 years war. Then the reconstruction, the renewed prosperity and the final destruction during the French-Palatinate War.

The sights of the castle? The King's Hall, a gigantic wine barrel, so big you have to climb a creaky, wooden, spiral staircase and if you're medical-minded,a GP, a pharmacist, stud.med.or cand.med.or a nursing student doing evidence-based-nursing, why, you must visit the German Pharmacy Museum located in the castle. 

Haus zum Ritter: This house was built in 1592 for the family of a wealthy textile trader and is one of the most beautiful Renaissance houses in Europe. Today it's an expensive hotel with a restaurant for visitors from all over the world.

FREIBURGER CHRONICLE (Satis Shroff): Towards a Culture of Remembering the Past (Satis S...

FREIBURGER CHRONICLE (Satis Shroff): Towards a Culture of Remembering the Past (Satis S...: Towards a Culture of Remembering the Past: GRUESOME GURS NEVERMORE (Satis Shroff) The Blue Bridge stretches over the rail...

Towards a Culture of Remembering the Past (Satis Shroff)

Towards a Culture of Remembering the Past:

GRUESOME GURS NEVERMORE(Satis Shroff)

The Blue Bridge stretches over the railroad tracks,

A bronze greyish-blue overcoat hangs near the bridge.

The sleek, white intercity Express glides below,

On its way to Basle (Switzerland).

Shortly thereafter a TGV-train from Freiburg to Paris.

The overcoat reminds us of the trains in October 1940,

That took Freiburg's Jewish population,

400 of them,

To Gurs, a concentration-camp in southern France.

And from there to Auschwitz,

To be murdered.

That was state-organised racism.

The deported Jews had lived in Baden,

Saarland and the Pfalz.

6,504 deported Jews.

Most were forced like cattle in wagons

In the summer of 1942,

Deported to concentration camps in Eastern Europe.

A few could escape,

Many died in the inhuman camps,

Which had barbed-wire, Alsatian dogs and armed guards.

The winter was hard.

Some children were saved by help-organisations.

These survivors are the time-witnesses,

Who have lived to tell

Of the cruelty of deportation,

Life in the Lager Gurs,

1027 kilometres away from Freiburg,

And their rescue from the clutches of the Gestapo

In the end.

Ah, in this very town there are people,

Who want to keep this shameful deed in mind.

The Zeitzeugin Renate Haberer-Krauss came in 2010,

To tell us how it was in those days.

The Basic Law now holds for all,

Irrespective of nationality, faith or colour.

We have realised that without respect and tolerance,

There can be no peaceful togetherness.

Tolerance should not lead to indifference.

Let us march in demonstrative silence,

To the blue Wiwili Bridge,

Where the bronze overcoat is.

Denke, Du, was uns geschah.

Think, yes you, of what happened to us.

* * *

HOPE HEALS (Satis Shroff)

Unto you that fear my name

Shall the sun of righteousness

Arise with healing in his wings

(Malachi)

Bridges of peace, friendship and togetherness

Are built on mutual respect,

Tolerance and Miteinander.

We must talk about the symbols

Of tyranny in your villages, towns and cities.

On Memorial Day we gather with earnest faces,

To honour and remember the people

Whose names are engraved on stones,

Who died in the two World Wars.

The suns and husbands have fallen,

But a new ghost raises its ugly head again,

The Neonazis who work for

The Bundesnachrichtendienst.,

Who receive money for their incompetence,

In Thuringen, Saxony,

Hessen and Lower Saxony.

The lesson of faschism taught us

Never to combine

The police with the secret service,

For it would be akin to the Gestapo,

The Geheimen Staatspolizei.

The sixteen secret services in Germany

Cannot coordinate and cooperate.

Since thirteen years have we given

Neonazis a free hand,

Who robbed banks,

Executed Turkish and Greek migrants.

The constitution makes it possible:

‘Germany for the Germany,

All aliens out!’

Long live the Freedom of Speech.

But prithee, where is the protection

Of the migrants and underdogs

Of the society?

Is a new holocaust in the offing?

Yet there is no way

But the path of peace and togetherness.

The ewig gestrigen and the neos

Are still licking the wounds of war,

Wounds that won’t heal,

For they are infected with hate anew,

With brown-propaganda.

War has always been ugly and brutal.

The widows of the on-going krieg in the Hindukush,

The survivors who don’t understand their own world,

After the trauma of Vietnam, Irak, Afghanistan.

When the NATO sirens are tested,

The air vibrates with a monstrous noise.

Fear makes the olde soldier’s heart beats faster,

His pulse races and he almost chokes.

The memories and the fury of war overwhelm him.

Who will restore the faces we’ve adored?

Love, faith, togetherness and peace

Haven’t been lulled to sleep.

We still hear the clarion call

To the dangers of war,

To the hoarse shouts

Of the Neos in the street,

Who strut and fret,

And believe Auschwitz was a lie.

A silence treads like clouds shadows,

Among the people of Germany.

Hope hasn’t abandoned us yet,

Despite the petite victories of the rightists,

In Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

The people in these lands

Think otherwise.

In every good person there is a bad part,

In every bad person there’s a good trait,

Like ying and yang.

We can only appeal to humans,

Hope and pray for peace,

And the old wounds to heal,

Between humans in this world.

 

Freiburger Creative Writing Workshop (Satis Shroff)

CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP 2014 (Satis Shroff)

WELCOME to Creative Writing at the Freiburger Writing Center (Schreibzentrum PH-Freiburg). Satis Shroff is a published writer, and if you’re interested in Creative Writing he will be guiding you in your writings. We can’t offer you credit-points for your writing but if you write for fun and want to take your writing forward then just come along and give it a try. Satis Shroff is an experienced lecturer, poet and writer and the published author of five books. You can read his books on www.Lulu.com/spotlight/satisle.

 Satis Shroff describes himself as a mediator between western and eastern cultures and sees his future as a writer and poet. Since literature is one of the most important means of cross-cultural learning, he is dedicated to promoting and creating awareness for Creative Writing and transcultural togetherness in his writings, and in preserving an attitude of Miteinander in this world. He lectures in Basle (Switzerland) and in Germany at the Academy for Medical Professions (University Klinikum Freiburg) and the VHS-Freiburg and VHS-Dreisamtal. He has worked as a Lehrbeauftragter for Creative Writing and Scientific English at the Uni Freiburg, and now at the PH.

Die Termine sind am: Montag, 12. Mai 2014 (von 18 Uhr bis 21 Uhr), Montag, 2. Juni, 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr) und Montag, 7. Juli 7, 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr).  

Creative Writing Workshop (Englisch): Öffnungszeiten: Mo 12-16, Di 14-16, Do 10-14 Uhr , (Telefon: 0761-682-191)  

Verbindliche Anmeldung unter: info@schreibzentrum-freiburg.de Gerd Bräuer PhD, braeuer@ph-freiburg.de Satis Shroff: satisle@myway.com What others have said about the author: Satis Shroff writes with intelligence, wit and grace. (Bruce Dobler, Associate Professor in Creative Writing MFA, University of Iowa).

 'The manner in which Satis Shroff writes takes the reader right along with him. Extremely vivid and just enough and the irony of the music. Beautiful prosaic thought and astounding writing.  'Your muscles flex, the nerves flatter, the heart gallops, As you feel how puny you are, Among all those incessant and powerful waves.'
 “Satis Shroff's writing is refined – pure undistilled.” (Susan Marie,Journalist & Writer, www.Gather.com)

  “I was extremely delighted with Satis Shroff’s work. Many people write poetry for years and never obtain the level of artistry that is present in his work. He is an elite poet with an undying passion for poetry.” Nigel Hillary, Publisher, Poetry Division - Noble House U.K.

 Copyright © 2014, Satis Shroff (Freiburg). You may republish this article online provided you keep the byline, the authors’ note, and the active hyperlinks. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COMMUNICATION
 Module: Creative Writing: Poems, Short-stories, Microstories Lecturer: Satish Shroff, B.Sc. (Zoology, Botany), Dipl. Social Sciences, Creative Writing Uni Freiburg and Manchester (UK), writer, poet, journalist and artist. Max. students:

20 ECTS Points: none

 Ziel: The aim of this course is to develop and improve language creativity in English, learn successful writing habits, work on one’s creative impulse, learn basic writing techniques, and develop an idea factory, improve writing skills and try different genres. Whether it’s poetry, short-stories, microstories, fiction or non-fiction, you have to learn the precise use of language and that’s where Creative Writing comes in. If you’ve always wanted to write an anthology or a book, then join us in an atmosphere of mutual respect, tolerance, cooperation and fun in writing. Creative Writing leads to the critical appreciation of literary works and through it you learn to be a critical writer and a demanding reader. It offers a challenge to the mythology of a writer as a ‘genius.’ The idea of a Creative Writing course, seminar or workshop is nothing new, for writers and poets have in the past such as Lord Byron and Mary Shelley and her husband PB Shelley and Goethe and Schiller have always worked together. It was Ezra Pound who advised TS Eliot to rewrite The Waste Land. I like George Bernard Shaw’s advice: ‘If you do not write for publication, there is little point to writing at all.’  

Public Reading: At the end of the course you will get the opportunity to have your submissions (poems, microstories, short-stories printed in an anthology in the internet, if and when, you give your consent. I think it’s fun to share your creative works. There will also be a public reading with Annette Pehnt's students (German Literature) who will be doing Kreatives Schreiben in a parallel course in German.  

Inhalt: Every student has to write when he or she studies at the university. In this course we do the basics of writing techniques which can be used for poetry, fiction, non-fiction and short-story and microstory writing. 1 . Microstories (flash fiction, prose poems) 2. A Cross-pollination of Forms (Imagery, Inspiration, Poetry) 3. The Interview 2 4. How to gather stories: Notebooks, Journals, Mining Memory 5. Variety in Your Writing 6. Fiction Techniques in Non-fiction Writing 7. Dialogue and Plot 8. Writing the Short Story  

Zu erbringende Leistungen: Active participation throughout the course, writing classwork and homework submissions,writing exercises during the extended weekend courses,The writing workshop at the PH-Schreibzentrum is open for non-PH people as well. A one-time fee of 10 euros has to be paid for the entire series of workshops.  

Bemerkungen: Knowledge of English literature welcome but not a necessity. Students from all PH faculties and non-PH faculties (University students, Fachhochschule,FH) and scribblers from all walks of life are welcome. Curious? Just drop in at the Schreibzentrum. Die Angebote des Schreibzentrums sind für die Studierenden der PH Freiburg kostenfrei. Alle anderen Nutzer/innen der Creative Writing Workshop bezahlen 10. Die Bezahlung erfolgt bar und gegen Quittung im Schreibzentrum.

Savvy Creative Writing Workshop in Freiburg?

Freiburger Creative Writing Workshop mit Satish Shroff 2014 Satis Shroff leitet den Freiburger englischen Creative Writing Workshop in das Schreibzentrum der PH-Freiburg for PH-Studentinnen und nicht-PH Leute die Interesse haben Mikrogeschichten, Kurzgeschichten, Stream-of-Consciousness zu schreiben, wie einst James Joyce und Virginia Woolf, Gedichte usw. Die zu erbringende Leistungen sind: aktive Partizipation während der Workshop, Klassenübungen und Schreibhausaufgaben. Alle studentische und Leute die Lust am Schreiben haben sind Willkommen. Der Workshop findet in der PH-Schreibzentrum statt. Ein einmaliges Gebühr von 10 Euro wird von Ihnen verlangt für das ganze Workshop. Erkenntnis von englische Literatur ist Willkommen aber nicht erzwingend. Studenten von alle PH Fakultäten und Nicht-PH Leute sind Willkommen. Die Termine sind am: Montag, 2. Juni, 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr) und Montag, 7. Juli , 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr). Public Reading: At the end of the semester there will be a public reading with Satis Shroff and Annette Pehnt's students of Creative Writing in English and German respectively. The date for the public reading will be announced in due time. Satis Shroff lebt in Freiburg (poems, fiction, non-fiction). Er hat Zoologie und Botanik in Nepal (Tribhuvan University), Sozialarbeit (FH) und Medizin (Uni) in Freiburg studiert. Creative Writing hat er in Freiburg unter Professor Bruce Dobler (Uni Freiburg) und Manchester (UK) gelernt. Da Literatur eine der wichtigsten Wege ist, um die Kulturen kennenzulernen, hat er sein Leben dem Kreatives Schreiben gewidmet. Er arbeitete früher als Dozent in Basel (Schweiz) und jetzt in Freiburg an der Akademie für medizinische Berufe (Uniklinik Freiburg) und VHS-Freiburg und VHS-Dreisamtal. Er hat auch an der Freiburger Uni Creative Writing gelehrt. Ihm wurde der DAAD-Preis verliehen und andere Preise für sein Soziales Engagement. Creative Writing Workshop (Englisch): Öffnungszeiten: Mo 12-16, Di 14-16, Do 10-14 Uhr , (Telefon: 0761-682-191) Verbindliche Anmeldung unter: info@schreibzentrum-freiburg.de Gerd Bräuer PhD, braeuer@ph-freiburg.de Satis Shroff: satisle@myway.com CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP 2014 (Satis Shroff) WELCOME to Creative Writing at the Freiburger Writing Center (Schreibzentrum PH-Freiburg). Satis Shroff is a published writer, and if you’re interested in Creative Writing he will be guiding you in your writings. We can’t offer you credit-points for your writing but if you write for fun and want to take your writing forward then just come along and give it a try. Satis Shroff is an experienced lecturer, poet and writer and the published author of five books. You can read his books on www.Lulu.com/spotlight/satisle. Satis Shroff describes himself as a mediator between western and eastern cultures and sees his future as a writer and poet. Since literature is one of the most important means of cross-cultural learning, he is dedicated to promoting and creating awareness for Creative Writing and transcultural togetherness in his writings, and in preserving an attitude of Miteinander in this world. He lectures in Basle (Switzerland) and in Germany at the Academy for Medical Professions (University Klinikum Freiburg) and the VHS-Freiburg and VHS-Dreisamtal. He has worked as a Lehrbeauftragter for Creative Writing and Scientific English at the Uni Freiburg, and now at the University of Education (PH-Freiburg). Die Termine sind am: Montag, 12. Mai 2014 (von 18 Uhr bis 21 Uhr), Montag, 2. Juni, 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr) und Montag, 7. Juli 7, 2014 (18.00 bis 21 Uhr). Creative Writing Workshop (Englisch): Öffnungszeiten: Mo 12-16, Di 14-16, Do 10-14 Uhr , (Telefon: 0761-682-191) Verbindliche Anmeldung unter: info@schreibzentrum-freiburg.de Gerd Bräuer PhD, braeuer@ph-freiburg.de Satis Shroff: satisle@myway.com What others have said about the author: Satis Shroff writes with intelligence, wit and grace. (Bruce Dobler, Associate Professor in Creative Writing MFA, University of Iowa). 'The manner in which Satis Shroff writes takes the reader right along with him. Extremely vivid and just enough and the irony of the music. Beautiful prosaic thought and astounding writing.  'Your muscles flex, the nerves flatter, the heart gallops, As you feel how puny you are, Among all those incessant and powerful waves.' “Satis Shroff's writing is refined – pure undistilled.” (Susan Marie,Journalist & Writer, www.Gather.com) “I was extremely delighted with Satis Shroff’s work. Many people write poetry for years and never obtain the level of artistry that is present in his work. He is an elite poet with an undying passion for poetry.” Nigel Hillary, Publisher, Poetry Division - Noble House U.K.

Zeitgeistlyrik: HOW COULD I EXIST? (Satis Shroff)

Zeitgeistlyrik: HOW COULD I EXIST? (Satis Shroff) How could I further exist Without the Basmati rice from the Ganges delta, The garam masala from Punjab, The olive oil from Liguria, The Mountain cheese from Austria, The Bauernbrot from the Schwarzwald And the limoncello from Sirmione? How could I live any more Without the novels of Dickens, Hardy, Goethe, The poems of Schiller, Poe, Rilke, Wordsworth, Yeats, Burns and Keats, Sonnets of Shakespeare? How could I live Without having seen the majestic Himalayas, Alps and Dolomites, Felt the biting winds of the North Sea in winter, The solace of the Atlantic Ocean in summer, Or without having experienced the wrath of the Monsoon rain, Or the reassuring warmth of the sun, Which creates great wines in Ihringen and Freiburg? How could I exist without having experienced the angst of imminent war Against the teeming Chinese army in Sikkim, The war against West and East Pakistan And the birth of Bangladesh, The British Gurkhas in the Falklands, The victims of Sebrenica, And Russians in Crimea. How could I exist Without having drunk beer with Nepalese, German and Czech students in Prague, Eaten Schollen with Italian friends in Chioggia, Pasta in Giacomo's Spaghetteria near Brescia, Crimean sekt in Freiburg with Alemannic women, Salad with Aceto balsamico from Modena. How could I exist Without seeing the poppies gow in Flanders, The green grass in the Normandy, French children with wide eyes in La Rochelle as a trawler chugs to the harbour. There are no quarrels between the former foes. How could I exist in Europe Without witnessing the sea dead of Lampedusa? Men and women huddled, tossed and turned in rickety African fisherboats, Gone to rough sea with hope of a better life in the fortress that is Europe. This is the sad tenor of humanity, Where no bed awaits the travel-sore, weak and poor in the northern hemisphere. This is the turbid ebb and flow Of haves and have-nots.

Kappler Octogenarian Edgar Huber Celebrates his 85th Birthday (Satis Shroff)

Es war ein wunderschöner Tag im Wonnemonat Mai und das Geburtstagskind Edgar Huber hat den MGV-Kappel "Liederkranz" am 31.05.2014 zu seiner Geburtagsfeier eingeladen. Wir haben den Tag versüßt mit den Liedern "Mala Moja," "Das Morgen Rot" (nach einem Gedicht von Dr. K. Hoffmann), "'s Wiesetal" und zu Schluß "Heaven is a Wonderful Place." Obwohl der Himmel so schön sein soll, möchte ich aber ein bißchen Länger hier mit euch verweilen," sagte Edgar Huber und lud uns allen zu einem kleinen Büffet in seinem Garten mit herrlichen Ausblick ein. Es war schön über seine Großenkelkinder und über die Vergangenheit von Kappel zu plaudern. Edgar war offensichtlich glücklich. Es ist sein zwanzig Jahren Mitglied beim Männergesangverein.