The rainbow never sets

"That's what they call Opa, it means 'the Mighty One'." "That must have given you all a bit of a fright?"

"It sure had. We all panicked. Stefan must have felt the most guilty, for when he had jumped off the fence, he ran way ahead of us. We could hardly keep up with him. Out of the corner of my eye I could see him emptying his loot by beating his jumper from the belt upwards, first with his left hand, then with his right, like the blades of a paddle boat, whilst running as fast as he could. The pears came toppling out one by one, until all were scattered over the ground in the park."

"What a waste! And where did you run to?" "Straight home, of course, everyone to their own home. These kids were really terrified of Opa."

"What about you? You ran too, didn't you?" "Yes, I guess I had a bad conscience too. But Opa never said a thing to me about this. Maybe he had not caught up with the pranks of his grandson. But in general, he was very stingy about the fruit in his garden."

"What, to you and Günter too?" "Yes, every time we sneaked into the strawberry patch or into the raspberries, we had a guilty conscience. But Mutter would never say anything. If you ask me, she didn't mind us eating the fruit here, provided we did not damage anything, and of course we did not bring in all our friends from the village."

"What about now? Is Opa still the same? Could he chase us out here now?"

"I don't think so. He has mellowed a great deal. Mutter is slowly taking control of the garden, but of course, she always consults with him."

"So, how about those pears then?" "Okay. Can you climb up there?" "No thanks, I'll leave that to you. I'd rather you fall through those glass panels, than I."

I had no trouble climbing the side wall of the greenhouse. "There are just a couple of ripe ones here, Hans. I can't reach the others. That'll have to do."

"Sure. Just make sure you don't fall, when you come down." "No worries," I replied, and jumped the last bit to the ground. "This is better than seven years ago. At least we can enjoy a nice, juicy pear."

"Hm, they are really sweet and juicy. Thanks a lot." "How about going to the rabbits? I'll take some cabbage leaves from here to feed them."

"Yes, let's go there. I like rabbits." "You haven't seen our latest batch of babies yet, have you?" "No, when were they born?"

"Only two days ago. The mother is a good one, she lets us take the babies out of the nest and have a close look at them. Not like the other. She bites and scratches, every time you put your hand inside the hatch."

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