Roz and Dieter

My sisters, Robin and Rosalind went on a cruise near Tahiti a number of years ago. It was not the usual cruise ship, but a tramp steamer with quite a few staterooms. There was no menu and entertainment. The entertainment was provided by the different islands they stopped on each day and by the companionship of the people they met on shipboard. One of these was a man from Germany named Dieter Blauensteiner. They struck up a friendship with him and sent emails to each other.

Years later, Roz and Arnold went to Germany and spent some time with Dieter and his family. They communicated over Skype. When Roz became ill again she didn't spend as much time on the computer and Dieter called me very concerned. It fell to me to inform him of her death. He sent me the most wonderful letter and I wanted to share it with you. Perhaps in the future you will have the sad duty to write a condolance letter to someone. This is a beautiful model to use.


Already for a while we knew that there would not be too much time for Roz on earth. But nevertheless anyhow we have edged it out, haven't noted that her time could run out so quickly. Now we are offended. What we guessed for quite a while now has become a certainty. The whole day, since we know it now, our thoughts are filled with her, the eyes with hot tears over and over again. She was such a marvelous person. We knew her only for four years, you the brothers and sisters and the family have known her almost a whole life long, her strengths and weaknesses. But the small chapter of her life of only four years had been enough to recognise and to feel what a special person she was. We would have wished so much to meet her once more. We have always hoped it, however, it should not have been. This makes us even sadder. During the last months before her death the contact became a little less, partly because she didn't feel well, partly because the everyday life had eaten up the time too quickly.

We haven't understood the email from Arnold. The attachment was missing and we thought Roz wanted to inform us of something. We thought it could wait-but unfortunately there was no more time left to her!

Timon had contact with her by Skype a few months ago. Possibly it was his voice which she heard last from us. Thsi pleases us because she liked him very much.

Our thoughts will still be with her and we wish that she can still feel this. We are so far away and regret very much that we could not embrace her once more. Thus we think back to the time three years ago when she and Arnold were with us. The memory and the pictures will yet get more value. We are greatful that we got to know her and that we got a place in her heart. She has a place in our hearts, in any case.