thanks so much Meeta, glad you enjoyed this rather sad story!
]]>glad you enjoyed this post Asha, I often think about this woman when the cherry season starts. It was one of the weirdest moments of my life and as a child it was very confronting to have the idea that because the woman lost her husband she had no other choice than to become a 'madame'. Maybe because the B&B only provided extras to the couple over the summer and nothing in the winter months, or maybe because she suddenly found herself alone, and vulnerable without a man around that she took in girls, to earn, and to stand stronger than being a woman alone. Don't forget, in the past, it was quite common for a widow to either be married off to the brother of the husband, or become a prostitute or mistress to some man. It was the way of the world, and Hungary in that time in the 80's had just gotten out of communism. Times were hard. It is weird that I as a child, without even knowing the way of the world, kinda sensed what was going on and felt very uncomfortable and sad about it. And as we sometimes passed the red light windows in Antwerp, it gave me a sense of feeling that there were men out there that were fathers, and men that were predators. I didn't feel like prostitution was 'ok' as a child, I've always thought about it as abuse that was 'allowed' to keep more fortunate woman safe from those predators who otherwise would just attack innocent woman… It does make you think doesn't it? I'm still not okay with how prostitution is accepted in society…
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