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Walking through history

September 23, 2004


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• The Changing Scene

The Changing Scene

By Milton Bass

Recalling 'Heidi'

But on the other side of Bradford Street lived the Millets, the doctor, his wife, three daughters and two sons. One of their rooms was called the library and it had what seemed an uncountable number of books on the dozens of shelves. And they said I could borrow any book I wanted any time I wanted.

I was so excited by my new-found ability to read well that I planned to read all of the books on all of the shelves.

By chance, the first book I took was "Heidi" by Johanna Spyri. I don't remember if one of the school teacher sisters recommended it or it happened by chance, but I went through that book like croton oil through a short man. I was completely captivated by the 5-year-old heroine, her adventures and how she brightened the world around her. I read the book twice before bringing it back. And then began a habit that went until I was old enough to get a library card. I would read a new book and then borrow "Heidi" again, read a new book and borrow “Heidi,” week after week after week. I am sure I read it a hundred times and sometimes would lie in bed at night and let the chapters roll through my mind until I fell asleep.

Although I had no idea what was occurring in the world around me, my formative years were spent during the Great Depression. Like everybody else's, my father’s business suffered, but we always had good food and shelter and occasional treats. However, even though I didn’t know the reason, there was no money to buy me toys and even more importantly, I had no books.

On a recent trip to Switzerland, one of the options offered our tour group was "A visit to Heidiland," and since my wife also devoured the book in her childhood, that was the one we chose.

In the kitchen of the 'Heidi' house in Maienfeld, Switzerland, Milton Bass discovered that visitors are encouraged to touch the exhibits, sit in the chairs and even lie on the beds

Johanna Spyri was born in 1827 in a village overlooking Lake Zurich so she grew up with the incredible vistas of the Swiss Alps all around her. Her father was a doctor and she lived in an atmosphere of cultural activity. Writing came naturally to her and she had published several books before "Heidi" came out in 1880. The book has been translated into more than 40 languages and it is estimated it has sold over one hundred million copies.

We had always wondered about the genesis of Heidi but Spyri would only say that she had met a girl named Mary near Maienfeld who told her about living there with her grandfather and she had fashioned the story from those bare bones. The flesh of the story has to do with Heidi versus the outside world, the contrasts between wealth and poverty and the differences between health and sickness. You stick true grit in the middle of all these and you can understand why the book has become a classic.

Milton Bass posed outside the 'Heidi' house in Maienfeld, Switzerland, on a recent trip

The Swiss, of course, have made a tourist attraction out of all this in the town of Maienfeld. The 300-year-old house in the village of Oberrofels where Mary lived, has been restored into Heidi's winter home. Authentic furniture and utensils of the period have been installed. You can also hike up what is called Heidi’s Alp to a replica of the summer house and the pastures where Peter the goat herder drove the flock each day from the village. Peter existed in real life, as well as in fiction. In 2001, in commemoration of Spyri’s death, there were all kinds of special attractions but now the site has settled into its regular routine with a small herd of Swiss Brown cows, a small herd of goats, and, to be sure, a gift shop. The scenery is spectacular, the ambiance pastoral and the only unusual note is the herd of Japanese tourists who worship Heidi as much as they do Anne of Green Gables.

The Heidi winter house is a rarity in that you are encouraged to touch anything or sit anywhere or even lie down in Heidi's bed to have your picture taken (which I did). And the docent was very honest in depicting Heidi’s life in both real and fictional terms.

In Maienfeld, my wife went into a gift shop and bought me a copy of "Heidi," which I read again after 70 years on the long plane ride home. I must admit that Heidi seemed a tad too precocious a 5-year-old this time around, but I did get a bit teary on five different occasions during the reading. It is a beautiful story and one that gives you hope for the world even in these parlous times. Our 8-year-old grandson has just finished reading his first Harry Potter and is now deeply involved in Laura Ingalls Wilder and Judy Blume. I think he's ready for Heidi. I wish I could get Dick Cheney to read it.