Monday, September 11, 2006

Joseph And His Teddy Bear

When Teresa Wipir watches the TV coverage of Pope Benedict visiting his native Bavaria, her mind races back almost 80 years and she sees a toddler crying for a teddy bear.

Teresa, 82, remembers how young Joseph Ratzinger would dash out of his family's house and press his nose against the window of the shop across the road.

"He was looking at a teddy bear. He wanted it so much that he would stand there gazing at it," Teresa said.

"He was only two years old. I was a little older, but I wanted that teddy too.

"Then I remember that one day Joseph was in floods of tears. The teddy bear had gone from the window. I cried too!

"But what we didn't know was that his mother had bought him it for Christmas. I had to settle for a doll."

Teresa was three years older than Joseph, who was born in the small Bavarian town of Marktl-am-Inn on April 16, 1927, an Easter Saturday. His father, Joseph senior, was the local policeman and his mother, Maria, a cook. [source]

No comments: