Happy Birthday Jonas

Erich

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1899 – Somewhere near Algonquin Park, Ontario

The cold wind nipped at his ears as he struggled to keep up with his brother. He was certain he never would be able to. His brother walked so much faster then he did, and was so much bigger too. "My legs hurt...slow down... Erich. stop." he finally was able to wheeze as he stopped walking entirely to sit down on the crisp leaves that littered the path and rest.

His brother Erich was tall and sturdy, with wavy brown hair kept closely cropped. At fourteen years old he was already taking on many of the tasks their father normally did alone. Already Johann had been hearing from their parents about how it wouldn't be long now before Erich would start seriously thinking about finding the right girl to court and eventually marry. The idea of Erich being that old or having any interesting girls was not one that he at four years old could wrap his brain around. For now though it was enough to know that the time he had to spend with Erich was limited. So for now he was determined to follow Erich everywhere the best he could. Their mother was also set to give birth to another child some time soon and it made him feel as though his parents would be too busy with the new baby. Who else was he to spend time with then but his big brother? 'Johann, come on. It's just a bit further, look I'll walk backwards so you can see me better. It's really just a few more steps, left foot then the right, then the left again, just keep walking towards me." Erich's voice came from up ahead coaxing him encouragingly, even though it seemed to him as though no matter how many steps he took he wasn't actually getting any closer to his brother. Surely he thought his brother wasn't lying to him about how much further it was but home did not seem to be getting any closer either. Why couldn't Erich just let him stop to rest for a bit?

It was hard to believe thought Johann but in a few more years, he'd be the older brother, the one getting followed everywhere. "You're doing fine Johann; I can smell dinner cooking from here practically." Erich's encouraging voice came again. Dinner, thought Johann. That meant sitting down to rest and eat. He liked that idea a great deal and could feel himself walking faster than before as a result. Breaking into a run even, barrelling full speed towards his brother, his head down, legs going faster then they had any right to be capable of. .

Dinner might have been ready but there was no sitting down to eat until their father got there, though Erich being home meant their mother could sit down to relax a bit and trust in him to take care of serving the food. Life wasn't exactly difficult, not as Johann understood it. At only four years old he was already aware of the fact his parents had moved here to this near barren area to raise their family, he knew nothing of where they had moved from save for the stories his father told him and Erich once in a while whilst relaxing by the fire. That had a lot to do with the fact Erich hadn't even been born until shortly after their parents had emigrated there. Still he could imagine, thanks to their father's storytelling ability what it must have been like to live over there, in the very heart of Europe, on the lands that were part of the German empire. Someday they would travel there and see all of the things their father had told him about. Meantime, though he was here with his older brother Erich and their parents. It was there that they looked after a small farm in a place that seemed to never really get warm and with very few neighbours. Someday he and his brother would see the world. In that he knew they were both determined.

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Present Day – The Home of David and Cecily

Jonas' mind was racing as he digested the tale David had just told him. So Erich was Johann's brother and given he was David's cousin and Johann was his father, that'd mean Erich likely the father of David. Except he was a bit confused as to how that could work because David had said this story took place at the end of the nineteenth century so it could not be the same Johann. Looking at David questioningly he wondered what he could possibly ask him that'd help clarify things and give the relevance this story he had just been told as to his search for his once thought dead father. "Does Erich end up having a kid that starts the family line that links the two of us?" Jonas asked finally trying to formulate his thoughts still. The tale David had unveiled to him had been told while the two of them and Cecily had relaxed after a wholly filling dinner. One of the truly rare times Jonas had been full without having to actually ask for a second helping. Of course the fact that it was set up buffet style had a lot do with that fact he was sure.