Harry Wohlstein

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Harry Wohlstein Rubinstein nació en San José, Costa Rica el 17 de septiembre de 1946. Es hijo de emigrantes pues su padre era austriaco y su madre polaca. Llegaron a Costa Rica huyendo de los horrores de la Segunda Guerra mundial.
Abogado, editor, escritor, docente y un enamorado del desarrollo ambiental sostenible, ha desempeñado diversos cargos en la administración pública costarricense, como ministro de Gobernación y Seguridad Pública en la administración de Rodrigo Carazo Odio, presidente de la Dirección Nacional de Comunicaciones, del Consejo Nacional de Migración.
Es autor de diversas novelas, cuentos y artículos de opinión para diferentes revistas y periódicos dEste viernes 27 de setiembre a las 7 pm por Zoom nos acompañará en nuestra reunión virtual.
Harry Wohlstein @harrywohlstein
#piedrasobrepiedra #harrywohlstein #lecturaextraordinaria #clubdelecturasc

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Harry Wohlstein Rubinstein was born in San José, Costa Rica, on September 17, 1946. He is the son of immigrants; his father was Austrian and his mother Polish. They arrived in Costa Rica fleeing the horrors of World War II.
A lawyer, editor, writer, teacher, and passionate advocate for sustainable environmental development, he has held various positions in the Costa Rican public administration, including Minister of the Interior and Public Security under Rodrigo Carazo Odio, President of the National Communications Directorate, and President of the National Migration Council.
He is the author of several novels, short stories, and opinion pieces for various magazines and newspapers in his country. @harrywohlstein
#piedrasobrepiedra #harrywohlstein #lecturaextraordinaria #clubdelecturasc

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El arte de la tapa por Ileana Piszk/Cover Art by Ileana Piszk

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Piedra sobre piedra

“Poco a poco” … “el tiempo corre” como le había dicho Josef a Rudolf, todo pasa. Evidentemente, el tiempo se convirtió en la mejor medicina. El establecimiento de la vergonzosa Comisión y su resolución recomendando expulsar a la mayoría de los investigados, no fue ejecutada por la administración del Dr. Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia. Sin mucha alharaca fue desoída por su gobierno, pasada por alto. No fue de su prioridad política, quizá, no necesariamente por simpatía hacia los “polacos”, sino más bien por la alianza de ese gobierno con el de los Estados Unidos y el de los países aliados, en el combate contra la ideología nazi y al régimen de terror impuesto por Alemania en Europa y en otros países. No quiso exponerse innecesariamente abriendo un frente interno que contrariara sus nuevas alianzas.

Cerrado este tenebroso capítulo, valija en mano, Josef se reinició en el mundo de las ventas ambulantes. Para ese entonces había regularizado su situación migratoria -y por ende su tranquilidad en este campo-, gracias a la intervención del nuevo ministro de Relaciones Exteriores, don Fernando Soto Harrison, quien lideró con firmeza el principio de justicia en las relaciones humanas y rescató, especialmente, el espíritu tradicionalmente noble y hospitalario del pueblo costarricense.

Su reinicio “polaquiando” lo ejerció en varios poblados de la periferia capitalina, concentrándose en el cantón de Desamparados, su plaza comercial preferida. Josef viajaba de día de por medio, armado de sombrero, camisa blanca, -a veces se ponía corbata-, las tarjetas y la valija donde llevaba el muestrario y los encargos. En las tarjetas llevaba el control de visitas y el estado de cuenta de cada uno de sus clientes, como un mazo de naipes, ordenadamente dispuestas por zonas y bien prensadas por una liga. Las emitía por duplicado, una copia que él conservaba y la otra idéntica se la entregaba al cliente, -llamada “la tarjeta del polaco”-, exhibida en muchas casas en lugares visibles, como si fuera el recibo de la luz. – Hola niña Rosario, buenos días, … aquí le traigo sus cortes de poplín (popelina) y tafetán… Josef recién iniciaba la jornada, tempranito, en la modesta pero coqueta casita de los Fallas en el caserío de Llano Blanco de Frailes. Ellos se dedicaban, como muchos por allí, al cultivo del café y hortalizas. – Pase adelante don Josef, qué dicha que vino. Lo estaba esperando, … es que me urgen esos cortes para cocerle a mi comadre un vestido con su combinación. – Aquí le tengo los dos pesitos para que se abone… Pero pase, pase y se toma un cafecito… Doña Rosario continuó hablando de seguido agregado con denodado entusiasmo:  Para el mes que entra le encargo unos zapaticos negros número 33 para Juancito. Ya me entra a segundo grado y no quiero que me vaya descalzo a la escuela…

“Little by little”… “time flies,” as Josef had told Rudolf, everything passes. Evidently, time became the best medicine. The establishment of the shameful Commission and its resolution recommending the expulsion of most of those investigated was not implemented by the administration of Dr. Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia. Without much fanfare, it was disregarded by his government, simply ignored. It was not a political priority for him, perhaps not necessarily out of sympathy for the “Poles,” but rather because of his government’s alliance with the United States and the Allied countries in the fight against Nazi ideology and the regime of terror imposed by Germany in Europe and other countries. He did not want to unnecessarily expose himself by opening an internal front that would contradict his new alliances.

With this dark chapter closed, suitcase in hand, Josef resumed his life as a traveling salesman. By then, he had regularized his immigration status—and therefore his peace of mind in this area—thanks to the intervention of the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Don Fernando Soto Harrison, who firmly upheld the principle of justice in human relations and, especially, rescued the traditionally noble and hospitable spirit of the Costa Rican people.

He resumed his “peddling” in several towns on the outskirts of the capital, concentrating on the canton of Desamparados, his preferred commercial area. Josef traveled every other day, armed with a hat, a white shirt—sometimes he wore a tie—the cards, and the suitcase where he carried his samples and orders. On the cards, he kept track of visits and the account status of each of his clients, like a deck of cards, neatly arranged by zone and held together by a rubber band. He issued them in duplicate, one copy for himself and the other identical copy for the client—called “the Pole’s card”—displayed in many homes in visible places, as if it were the electricity bill. “Hello, Miss Rosario, good morning… I’ve brought you your poplin and taffeta fabric pieces.” Josef was just starting his day, bright and early, at the modest but charming little house of the Fallas family in the hamlet of Llano Blanco de Frailes. Like many others in the area, they cultivated coffee and vegetables. “Come in, Don Josef, how wonderful that you came! I was expecting you… I really need those fabric pieces to sew a dress and slip for my friend.” “Here are the two pesos for your payment… But please, come in and have a cup of coffee.” Doña Rosario continued talking non-stop, adding with great enthusiasm: “Next month I’d like to order a pair of black shoes, size 33, for little Juan. He’s starting second grade, and I don’t want him going to school barefoot…”

– ¿Quiere trabajar conmigo?

– ¿Y… qué tengo que hacer?

– Jalarme la valija. Por ahora… vamos poco a poco.  El joven sonrió, abriendo la boca a todo lo amplio, mostrando una dentadura limpia y alineada en perfecto orden. Fue su señal de aceptación. “Antonio Brenes, “Toño”, me siguió toda la vida… Más que un infatigable empleado, fue como un sabio amigo; se convirtió en mi sombra generosa, bondadosa y leal. Una persona de esas que cuando hablan, lo hacen parecer todo sencillo… Y es que lo distinguía precisamente la sencillez, no como demérito, sino todo lo contrario, … como una de las más bellas virtudes de la vida que adornan a un ser humano.” Josef había encontrado a Toño cerca de la esquina noreste del Mercado Central de San José, recostado contra la pared, con su pierna izquierda flexionada y apoyada en esta, descalzo, con pantalón corto y camisa desteñidos, pero limpios -quizá gastados por innumerables lavadas- denotando, sin importar su atuendo, una gran pulcritud, cualidad que siempre, siempre, lo siguió. Cerquita de donde lo halló, justo en la esquina de esa aparición, años más tarde, Josef abrió su primer establecimiento comercial propio, la tienda La Vienesa. Toño llegó a alumbrarle con su luz, el camino hacia el futuro.  “Mi otro hallazgo se originó durante nuestro confinamiento en La Esperanza, … allí donde permanecimos como dos años, disfrutando de una serena… y a veces tensa felicidad.” – Este… este… buenas… va usted a perdonar… Esta vez Josef, titubeando igual, pero seguro de lo que quería, se aprestaba a hacer una propuesta a una joven con quien se detuvo a conversar. Sucedió durante un festejo de Purim54 al que había sido invitado en un salón por la quinta avenida de San José. – La invito a pasear a la montaña… Él había enfilado su curiosidad hacia ella, unos diez años menor, a quien no le quitó su atención durante el festejo; ¿serían sus ojos de mirada pícara y profunda? ¿su cabello de finos bucles, ordenados con soltura y lozanía? o ¿sería su alegre, entusiasta y vital compostura? Lo cierto es que se le acercó para hacerle la propuesta, una simple invitación, sin considerar fuera esta osada o no. Estaba decidido: 54 Purim es una festividad de mucha diversión y alegría en el calendario judío. Celebra la salvación del pueblo judío del exterminio en las manos de los persas bajo el dominio del Rey Ajashverosh (Asuero). La Meguilá o Rollo de Ester, narra la historia de cómo la Reina Ester y su tío Mordejai salvaron las vidas de los judíos durante el Imperio Persa en el siglo IV aC. Sojuzgado por la belleza del entorno mágico de la Finca La Esperanza, de un bosque sobrecogedor e imponente, de un aire puro y translúcido, alegrado por cautivantes aromas y flores silvestres multicolores, todo, pero absolutamente todo en conjunción sublime, invitando a enseñorear el espíritu durante algunos recreos de su oficio, Josef los aprovechaba para recorrer ese hipnótico paisaje, en plácidas cabalgatas, con la compañía de una visita -ya no de los agentes de policía-, sino de una que empezó siendo ocasional, pero cuya espera, con el paso de los días y los meses, se le tornada cada vez más intensa y de frenética ansiedad. Pero, bien está lo que bien acaba… “Mi cuerpo, mi alma, mi corazón se conmovieron en una sensación indescriptible… Sería mi más adorable y exquisito hallazgo… infinito, eterno, universal, sin medida de tiempo y espacio: Lucía -mí querida “Gúchale”-, llegó a mi vida para ser mi antes y mi después, mi nueva razón de existir y la que se convertiría en mi amada esposa… amada desde lo más profundo de mi ser, compañera y guía inseparable por toda la vida”.

Wohlstein, Harry. Piedra sobre piedra. (Kindle, pp. 189-195)

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Stone by Stone

“Little by little”… “time flies,” as Josef had told Rudolf, everything passes. Evidently, time became the best medicine. The establishment of the shameful Commission and its resolution recommending the expulsion of most of those investigated was not implemented by the administration of Dr. Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia. Without much fanfare, it was disregarded by his government, simply ignored. It was not a political priority for him, perhaps not necessarily out of sympathy for the “Poles,” but rather because of his government’s alliance with the United States and the Allied countries in the fight against Nazi ideology and the regime of terror imposed by Germany in Europe and other countries. He did not want to unnecessarily expose himself by opening an internal front that would contradict his new alliances.

With this dark chapter closed, suitcase in hand, Josef resumed his life as a traveling salesman. By then, he had regularized his immigration status—and therefore his peace of mind in this area—thanks to the intervention of the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Don Fernando Soto Harrison, who firmly upheld the principle of justice in human relations and, especially, rescued the traditionally noble and hospitable spirit of the Costa Rican people.

He resumed his “peddling” in several towns on the outskirts of the capital, concentrating on the canton of Desamparados, his preferred commercial area. Josef traveled every other day, armed with a hat, a white shirt—sometimes he wore a tie—the cards, and the suitcase where he carried his samples and orders. On the cards, he kept track of visits and the account status of each of his clients, like a deck of cards, neatly arranged by zone and held together by a rubber band. He issued them in duplicate, one copy for himself and the other identical copy for the client—called “the Pole’s card”—displayed in many homes in visible places, as if it were the electricity bill. “Hello, Miss Rosario, good morning… I’ve brought you your poplin and taffeta fabric pieces.” Josef was just starting his day, bright and early, at the modest but charming little house of the Fallas family in the hamlet of Llano Blanco de Frailes. Like many others in the area, they cultivated coffee and vegetables. “Come in, Don Josef, how wonderful that you came! I was expecting you… I really need those fabric pieces to sew a dress and slip for my friend.” “Here are the two pesos for your payment… But please, come in and have a cup of coffee.” Doña Rosario continued talking non-stop, adding with great enthusiasm: “Next month I’d like to order a pair of black shoes, size 33, for little Juan. He’s starting second grade, and I don’t want him going to school barefoot…”“With pleasure, Miss Rosario, and… thank you very much for inviting me for coffee… it was delicious as always,” Josef replied after chatting for a while. He said goodbye, briefly tipping his hat. Doña Rosario stopped him at the door to say: “Mr. Josef, I almost forgot to tell you: I want to recommend that you go to see my sister Jovita and her husband Inocencio Monge; they live in Patarrá, near the lime kilns. She told me she needed some fabric for a tablecloth and curtains for the rooms…” “Thank you very much… I appreciate it,” Josef replied. “You know, I know them…” He paused thoughtfully before adding: “I can bring them some very nice checkered chenille fabric, double width; I can get it for them so it matches…” Josef paused to catch his breath, put his hand on his chin, shaking his head slowly, and said: “But… but Miss Rosario… can I ask you a favor?…” “Yes, Mr. Josef. Is something wrong?” Doña Rosario interrupted him, raising her hands to her forehead. She looked worried. And he continued: “Tell them I’ll stop by next Tuesday, around midday… but… but I’m a little embarrassed to say this… tell your brother-in-law Inocencio that… please… not to tie that fierce dog 53 at the front gate… Last time it almost bit me, and it accomplished what it wanted: I couldn’t go in to collect the money…” “Polaquiar” and “amarrar el perro” are Costa Ricanisms; the first denotes the act of selling on credit in a door-to-door fashion, originally introduced as a way of doing business by Polish immigrants. “Amarrar el perro” (to tie up the dog) is the act of not paying a debt (by the debtor) or using tricks to scare away the creditor. Both terms are commonly used in Costa Rica. Josef began to glimpse in the sky the bright light of the star that followed him, regardless of whether it was hidden at times among the clouds, eclipsing his hope. In the long run, he said hopefully, that light managed to prevail, emerge victorious, and emanate its radiant and protective glow. “Despite the state of war in Europe and the enormous difficulties in getting ahead—scarcity, lack of basic products, poverty, the adaptation process, and, on top of that, the social and political effervescence that was being experienced locally—I began to understand my surroundings in Costa Rica more clearly: the first thing was to be flooded with peace, and then, to decipher my future, laying a foundation of hope and optimism… Many stones in the road… I collected them—stone upon stone—like trophies that shaped a comforting attitude within me. At times the path seemed—and surprised me—with an openly incongruous, contradictory, ironic panorama… but, deep inside, I savored the sweet feeling of now being safe; physically safe and, above all, confident in my ability to work tirelessly.” And two events and two new people appeared, framing my firmament. This time, however, they were far, very far, from my—until then—customary adversities. The discoveries were arranged in a golden frame… A divine blessing rewarding my “free will.” Josef now confessed that much of what had happened in his life was rooted in a symbiosis of faith and the attitude or disposition to face it. He now affirmed his belief in the causality of life’s circumstances, not in chance, because, as he rightly said, there is an abysmal difference between the two words. That symbiosis and affirmation were working their magic on him, as often happens, emerging from nowhere, unexpectedly, but largely driven by himself, deliberately, inadvertently, or instinctively, with the will and attitude to desire something, to help seize destiny in his hands and take the initiative regarding his aspirations. He was always restless, persistent, and a creator of initiatives, creative and innovative, but often he stopped at the attempt, at the theory. He understood this aspect of his behavior, just as he understood that it shouldn’t become a limitation; he recognized, without pride or vanity, that he needed an echo, someone who understood him, supported him, advised him, and encouraged him with his ideas and, sometimes, helped him execute them. Talking a lot wasn’t his strong suit, but perhaps, in the long run, it was a virtue. “Uh… uh… hello… excuse me…” With caution, a certain shyness, modesty, and without making much noise, he said those words, as he usually spoke, separating them with pauses and hesitations. He had approached a thin, almost translucent young man with caramel-colored skin and dark eyes. This singular character slightly raised his head and looked at Josef suspiciously, perhaps overwhelmed because he hadn’t expected it; he frowned, revealing a timid face, but easily betraying a gentle sweetness. Without further preamble, he stammered out the question.

Do you want to work with me?

And… what do I have to do?

Pull my suitcase. For now… let’s take it one step at a time. The young man smiled, opening his mouth wide, showing clean, perfectly aligned teeth. It was his sign of acceptance. “Antonio Brenes, “Toño,” followed me all my life… More than a tireless employee, he was like a wise friend; he became my generous, kind, and loyal shadow. One of those people who, when they speak, make everything seem simple… And it was precisely simplicity that distinguished him, not as a demerit, but quite the opposite, … as one of the most beautiful virtues of life that adorn a human being.” Josef had found Toño near the northeast corner of the Central Market in San José, leaning against the wall, his left leg bent and resting against it, barefoot, wearing faded but clean shorts and a shirt—perhaps worn out from countless washings—denoting, regardless of his attire, great neatness, a quality that always, always, stayed with him. Very close to where he found him, right on the corner of that encounter, years later, Josef opened his first own business establishment, the La Vienesa store. Toño came to illuminate his path to the future with his light. “My other discovery originated during our confinement in La Esperanza, … where we stayed for about two years, enjoying a serene… and sometimes tense happiness.” – This… this… hello… you’ll have to excuse me… This time Josef, hesitating just as much, but sure of what he wanted, was preparing to make a proposal to a young woman with whom he had stopped to talk. It happened during a Purim celebration54 to which he had been invited in a hall on Fifth Avenue in San José. – I invite you for a walk in the mountains… He had directed his curiosity towards her, about ten years younger, and he didn’t take his eyes off her during the celebration; could it have been her mischievous and deep gaze? Was it her hair of fine curls, neatly and gracefully arranged? Or was it her cheerful, enthusiastic, and vibrant demeanor? The truth is, he approached her to make the proposal, a simple invitation, without considering whether it was bold or not. He was determined: Purim is a very fun and joyful holiday in the Jewish calendar. It celebrates the salvation of the Jewish people from extermination at the hands of the Persians under the rule of King Ahasuerus. The Megillah or Scroll of Esther, recounts the story of how Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai saved the lives of the Jews during the Persian Empire in the 4th century BC. Captivated by the magical beauty of the La Esperanza Estate, by a breathtaking and imposing forest, by the pure and translucent air, enlivened by captivating aromas and multicolored wildflowers, everything, absolutely everything in sublime conjunction, inviting him to let his spirit soar during some breaks from his work, Josef took advantage of these moments to explore that hypnotic landscape on peaceful horseback rides, in the company of a visitor—no longer the police officers—but one whose visits, initially occasional, became, with the passing of days and months, increasingly intense and filled with frantic anticipation. But all’s well that ends well… “My body, my soul, my heart were moved by an indescribable feeling… She would be my most adorable and exquisite discovery… infinite, eternal, universal, without measure of time and space: Lucía—my dear “Gúchale”—came into my life to be my before and my after, my new reason for existing and the one who would become my beloved wife… loved from the depths of my being, inseparable companion and guide for life.”

Wohlstein, Harry. Piedra sobre piedra. (Kindle, pp. 189-195)

Translation by Stephen A. Sadow

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Libro de cuentos/Book of short-stories

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