The past also exists - somewhere, in another sphere - indestructibly. We take it into the future with us - but not to repeat it, but to remember why what happened to us may have happened, or why we are who we are. Because of this, as a matter of course, I’ve always been curious about my ancestors ’past, I saw a gate in it that might help me get to know myself better.
The clay soil of the village of Körösfő is not good farmland, it was discovered by the people of Körösfő in the old days, so many people mastered all the ins and outs of handicraft and wood carving. Since I also have a better view of this past, I asked my grandmother to tell her story.
My grandma, Nusi Mama, was born in 1954 in Körösfő. At that time, the girls, according to her story, were able to sew as early as 5-7 years of age.
They sat out on the street, on the bench, in large teams (up to 10-15), and there they learned to embroider from each other while gossiping. They competed on who would sew the thread earlier or who would sew the pillow earlier (the pillow was the most typical first). They sat on one side in the morning, and when the sun shone from the other, they sat on the other side. Later, the women started sewing shirts, then covers, and even later, tablecloths. On the one hand, over time, they began to look for and sew more and more fabrics. In conclusion, making stitches is passed down from generation to generation, from mother to daughter, so my mom also learned from my grandmother, and I want to learn that too.
On the other hand, in the 1900s, everyone had a workshop at home, and there the men made carved chessboards, embroidered boxes, and wooden toys (to this day, a good few families still make them). A unique old all-round invention is the secret box, which to this day is made only in this village in the world, its secret is in a mysterious way of unlocking.
Going back to my grandmother’s story, as she began to grow, she also started sewing out more and more pieces of material, as I mentioned, when she was 5-7 years old she learned the "sinyor" and the "keresztszemes" sample, then "vagdalásos", and when she confirmed, the "stafírum", as well (this is a complete set that the girl gets married with, it includes kitchen set, bed sheet, pillow, tablecloth, etc.). Furthermore, when she got married, she started sewing tablecloths for sale, maybe that's when her merchant story began, which she could see for the most part from her parents, as my mom's parents were already selling on the Black Sea coast and even in Brasov.
Later, after my mom's elder child got married, they departed their house on Bedecs Street and they moved to the main road in 1994. Along the main road, heavy tourist traffic set in, my grandparents exchanged maker and trade permissions, and unloaded into the street in front of their house.
Before the revolution, my great-grandmothers went to the seaside to sell, but not only they, but most families in Körösfő saw a future in it at that time. This occupation was very lucrative, as foreign tourists also brought goods into the country that were in short supply during communism, to put it mildly. (With a package of "Kent" in Romania at that time everything could be sorted out, and traders often received similar valuable goods from foreigners.) The lucrative nature of the sale is also supported by the fact that my grandmother’s dad was one of the first in the area to have a car.
After the revolution, tourism started to get better, and tourists flocked. My mother started selling to Hungary in 1990, more precisely to Budapest and Lake Balaton. It is also essential to mention that my grandmother, although she wanted to, could not start selling in Hungary sooner, as before the revolution they could hardly go abroad every two years, even with difficulty, only if the "securitate" allowed them.
At first, they only sold what they made by their own hands, here in the village. My mother claims that 1995-96 was the most prosperous for her, they received up to 4-5 kinds of money on a daily basis, the German, Hungarian, French, Austrian buses kept coming, and the main road became a “bazaar” full of customers. This cloudless business prevailed until 2006-2008, when there was an economic crisis, besides, a lot of currencies disappeared, and the people of all nationalities had to exchange their DEM (German currency) to Euro.
Fortunately, even from this crisis, people from Körösfő were able to stand up, and the business was still going on as a thriving business. All this continued to flourish for a few years, until a lot of articles flowed in from the east, which diluted the inventory, and at the same time, the expectations of the customers began to change, as it was no longer the quality but the price that became more important.
“Today’s young generation can’t appreciate it anymore,” my grandmother sighed, continuing as the price of handicrafts had to go down as time went on. It is no longer worth sewing today, so fewer and fewer village girls can embroider. So, even though my grandma is still sewing, she is forced to buy foreign items in addition, to them to meet needs. She is currently a taxpayer as a retiree and continues to operate her business. Part of my parents’ income comes from similar trading. The majority of the population of Körösfő, like my grandmother, earn their livelihood mainly from the sale of handicrafts made at home, combined with Chinese products. These items (secret boxes, chess, tablecloths, pillows, handkerchiefs, bookmarks, book covers) are taken all over the world, thus preventing the name of Kalotaszeg from fading into the past.
Kovács Nóra XI.R
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