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Katrin violin

Violin of the Flowers

Music comes out of all the windows of the tiny house, nestled somewhere, in a small village lost in the middle of the quiet Belgian countryside.

The musician: a young Jewish boy who fled Poland, accompanied by the only member of his family who had survived – his violin. Apparently, the violin’s music ignored the war that roamed the narrow streets of the village.

One day, the young boy didn’t return to the room he was renting from a family in the village. His violin was found on his bed by the hosting family. The boy was arrested by the Germans, some eyewitnesses said. The violin became silent.

After the war, the family offered the silent violin to their niece, a pretty young girl named Catherine, desiring to learn the language of God: music.

The new owner of the violin had to wait many years before learning from her old aunt the real history and origin of the violin. Shocked and wounded in her soul, the young violinist runs toward the fields bordering the village with her musical companion. Somewhere, in the middle of a field, without saying a word, the young girl placed the instrument in its case. Whispering an improvised prayer, Catherine picked some wildflowers and placed them delicately on the violin before closing the lid.

For many decades, the forgotten case remained closed and locked. Throughout this period, Catherine no longer dares to play her instrument. The violin must become as quiet as its former disappeared owner.

Recently, following a report on the “Violins of Hope” broadcast on a French public TV channel, the telephone rang in the workshop of the renowned Master violinmaker, Amnon Weinstein.

“My name is Catherine,” said a frail and fragile voice. “I live in a small village in the Belgian countryside. More than half a century, I keep a violin like no other,” and the trembling voice added “I am an elderly lady, and my health does not improve over time. My fear is to disappear and to know that the violin will end upon sale in a flea market, and no one will know and care about its story. Thanks to the report, I understood that you save and restore destroyed violins that went through the hell of the Holocaust. My wish is to pass on my violin to you. It will be in good hands and the memory it carries within him will live on forever. “

“Dear Catherine, we have good friends in Brussels. I am convinced that they will be delighted and also moved to come and take the violin from you and send it to us,”answered Amnon, the violin maker.  “No way,” answered Catherine. “Despite my precarious medical situation and my difficulties getting around, the first steps of this violin’s journey to the Land of Israel will be taken by me! I shall bring the violin to your friends in Brussels.”

Finally, the violin crossed the sea and arrived in Israel. On an old wooden workbench floating in the magical mess of a workshop from another age, the silent instrument is dismantled into strange and inert pieces by the golden hands of Amnon Weinstein. At that moment, an uncommon surprise awaited the violin maker. By opening the body of the instrument, Amnon discovered some dried and faded flowers having survived the darkness and time.

Day after day, month after month, the violin came back to life. Thanks to Catherine, pretty and young violinist forever, thanks to her sensitivity and prayers, the flowers may be faded, but they will tell us about a spring that will never end. The legendary violin maker embedded them in the body of the instrument. And it is with the violin, the “Violin of the Flowers” that they will live and vibrate.

All this have been made possible thanks to the precious help of:

• Charlotte & Ephraim Gutman Fishgrund from Brussels – Belgium
• Benny Boret – Israel
• And, of course, Catherine Loodts – Saint Gerard – Belgium

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