Episode 13: Vanaema Vilma
Grandma Vilma
Grandma Vilma was sweet and stubborn, typical of the people from the island. She grew up in Saaremaa, the biggest island in Estonia. Both of her parents were deeply rooted islanders who tended the land and raised their children in the village of Kärla.
Grandma Vilma’s two granddaughters Merilin and Merelle started recording her stories in 2018 to fill out their grandparents’ memory book. In the following interview grandma Vilma shares a story about one of her most memorable birthdays from her childhood. She remembered birthdays as a special time, filled with sweet braided bread and thoughtful gifts. When she was around nine or ten, she stumbled upon a piece of dress fabric in her mother’s drawer. She instantly knew it was meant to be her birthday present. Every day, she would sneak into her parents’ room just to admire its pattern and beautiful shades of pink. Despite knowing, she kept it a secret and acted surprised when she finally received it.
Grandma Vilma carried on the tradition of baking sweet braided bread for every family member’s birthday. Each person also received flowers (almost always carnations), a box of chocolates, and a birthday card with a poem. Perhaps those carefully selected words in the card were meant to be a spell or an affirmation for the year ahead.
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Merilin: Nii, järgmine küsimus.
Merilin: OK, next question.
Merelle: Sa oled siuke staar täna.
Merelle: You’re such a star today.
Merilin: Jaa, üle kümne lehekülje on juba täidetud.
Merilin: Yep, we have more than 10 pages filled already.
Vanaema Vilma: Ole rahulik!
Grandma Vilma: Oh, calm now!
Merilin: Jaa! Nii et väga vahva.
Merilin: Yea, that’s terrific!
Vanaema Vilma: Et siuksed raamatud kõik nii müügil on, see on ime. Ja mis hirmsad hinnad need on. Ma TEAN seda. Ma tean, üks lugemisraamat maksab juba 25…Sirje ütles, et nüüd üks toiduraamat on, ta pole ostnud seda, et nii kallis on. A nüüd tehti 7 euro peale. See maksab 30 eurot või? Või rohkem veel? Mai tea seda.
Grandma Vilma: Such miracle books are in the store now. And what prices! I KNOW that, I know that a reading book alone costs 25 already…Sirje told me that there’s this food book, she didn’t buy it, it’s so expensive. But now they brought it down to 7 euros. This book here costs 30 euros? Or more? I don’t know that.
Merilin: Ja siin veel peab ise ka tööd tegema. Isegi ei ole valmis raamat.
Merilin: And here you have to put in work as well. It’s not even a finished book.
Vanaema Vilma: Jah, see ei ole valmis raamat.
Grandma Vilma: True, that’s not even a finished book.
Merilin: Nii, vaatame nüüd.
Merilin: Ok, let’s continue now.
Merelle: Mida sa mäletad oma lapsepõlve sünnipäevadest? Kas neid tähistati ka?
Merelle: What do you remember of your childhood birthdays? Did you celebrate?
Vanaema Vilma: Jaa, ikka ikka. Sünnipäevakook, kringel oli alati laual. Seda kodus tehti siis. Ju siis ema tegi, kes seda siis ka poes käis ostmas. Siis ei olnd ju…Kus me poest siis linnas seda ostmas käisime, ei käind ju. Kodus tehti ikka. Kui suuremat suurt ei olnud, siis sünnipäeva kringel, ikka oli see. Sünnipäeva sai oodatud, siis oli kingitust ka ju.
Grandma Vilma: Yes, of course, of course. Birthday cake, the braided bread was always on the table. It was made at home. Apparently mom made it, who would have possibly gotten it from the store…It wasn’t available then. Where and how could we have gone to the city…It was all made at home. Even if there wasn’t much, birthday bread was always there. Birthday was something to look forward to, cause then there was a present as well.
Merelle: Aga on meeles mingi eriti ere sünnipäevakink ka?
Merelle: Do you remember an extra special birthday present?
Vanaema Vilma: Ma tean ükskord ema kinkis mul kleidiriide. Kleidiriide jah. Ja teadsa, ma olin siukene et, ema peitis küll mu eest ta ära, aga kui mina läksin kummuti juurde ju ma ikka teda vähe näind olin. Siis ma käisin iga päev seda kleiti, et ema vist siis kingib selle mulle. Siis ema peitis ära, aga ma olin juba nuhkind välja! Aga see oli nagu kogemata. Ega ma siuke nuhk ka ei olnud, et ma nüüd ema järgi nuhkima.
Grandma Vilma: I know one time mom gave me a dress fabric. Fabric for a dress. And you know, I was like that – mom hid it from me, but when I went to the dresser, I had seen it a little. Then I went to see it every day, thinking mom will give it to me. Mom hid it, but I had snooped it out! But it was accidentally. I wasn’t a spy like that, snooping after mother…
Merilin: Jaa-jaa…
Merilin: Sure, sure…
Vanaema Vilma: Aga see oli sedasi, et kummutis oli teisi asju ning ma siis mõtlesin, et tõesti ju siis ta kingib mulle selle.
Grandma Vilma: It was that there were also other things in the dresser and then I thought “I guess she has to give that one to me.”
Merelle: Ja siis sa olid rõõmus juba?
Merelle: And you were already happy?
Vanaema Vilma: Jah jah.
Grandma Vilma: Yes, yes.
Merilin: Kui vana sa olid siis?
Merilin: How old were you then?
Vanaema Vilma: Ei no seda ma küll absoluutselt ei tea. Ega ma nüüd nii suur…
Grandma Vilma: Oh that I definitely don’t know. I wasn’t that old…
Merelle: Aga piisavalt nutikas juba, et aru saada.
Merelle: But smart enough to figure it out.
Merilin: Teismeline või noorem?
Merilin: Teenager or younger?
Vanaema Vilma: Ei noorem-noorem ikka. Oli see kümnene või mai teagi täpselt. Aga siis see jäi mulle meelde, et ema mõtles, et ma ei tea. Aga mul oli see ära nuhitud seal. Ega ma tema järele ei otsind ka! Aga see kogemata tuli, ema oli seal teiste asjade vahele pand sinna ja ju ma siis seda….Oi jumal hoidku.
Grandma Vilma: No, younger, younger for sure. Maybe 10, I don’t know exactly. But I remember how mom thought that I didn’t know about it although I had snooped it out. I wasn’t looking for her! It was an accident, mom had put it between other things and I guess I…Oh my, oh my.
Merelle: Nii vahva.
Merelle: That’s great.
