Lowell, MI – From big anniversaries and baptisms to big weddings, we experienced it all. From joy to sadness, we gained new life and lost loved ones.
First in January I celebrated my one year anniversary with WordPress. It was a year of learning and finding my true self. I found out that I am a better employer than an employee. A Swedish friend of mine laughed at that.
I found out that it’s better to give than to receive. So, I also started a blog for my sister-in-law CJ Aunt Jarmilka’s Desserts for her bakery business soon after my own. CJ also celebrated her one year anniversary of blogging.
Sizzlin Summer concerts in Lowell
In March, I went for my annual retreat in Venice, Florida and I swam with the dolphins. While I was swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, Samuel Chavent was born two months prematurely in Dijon, France to my daughter Emma and her husband Adrien.
As I walked from one beach to another, and saw divers, I found inspiration for a new story.
I started my walking routine to the Franciscan Sisters in April for the first time in 15 years without my dog Haryk. He was getting too sick to walk. I also celebrated 100 posts on Earth Day.
Wittenbach/Wege Agriscience nature center
“You’re a prolific writer,” said Alan Blanchard, former publisher of the Ionia Sentinel-Standard in 2000.
We had a baptism in May in Kalamazoo. My husband Ludek is the godfather to Josephine Marie Palova.
I scored a great career success in May. I got my blog into the Gatehouse Media, a 10-million reader market through the Ionia Sentinel-Standard.
We also bought tons of meat at the Jones Meat Market customer appreciation day for the upcoming international wedding party.
Bluegrass band Eazy Idle with Dave Simmonds
Then came the summer we never had. I watered my gardens exactly twice. We had enough liquid precipitation to water the moon.
Lowell, MI- We arrived at the frozen JFK airport on Dec.22, 1989. I had a 20-hour trip behind me and a lifetime of memories. I was traveling with my two-and-a-half year son Jake and my daughter Emma, 10.
Long before Delta sky team, we took the Czechoslovak Airlines (CSA) from Czech capital Prague to Montreal and on to NYC.
My parents Ella & Vaclav Konecny were waiting for us with a gray station wagon. I still have the jean jacket United Colors of Beneton Tipe de Nimes that I arrived in for memorabilia purposes. And I was freezing in it. The first night we stayed in NYC at my parents’ friends, Mr. & Mrs. Herman from Vizovice.
Our hometown Zlin in Czech Republic.
A long way home to Big Rapids, MI awaited us. I had no idea how huge the USA is. Czech Republic is maybe the size of Connecticut. The car was like an ice cave. You couldn’t see outside unless you scraped the windows from inside and outside.
First Jake wanted to sit on my lap, but he had to be glued to his place by a seat belt.
After a long haul and once we could see through the windows, Jake discovered water towers along the Ohio Turnpike.
“I want to go and sit on it,” he kept repeating. “I want to sit on that ball.”
“Alright I will stop and you can climb on the ball,” my dad said angrily. And slowed down.
We arrived exhausted in Big Rapids, Michigan on Christmas Eve at night. We had to pick up my brother Vas at his mobile home in Rogers Heights. I haven’t seen him since 1976, when he left Czechoslovakia with mom Ella to join dad. Since then, after the Velvet Revolution and breaking away of Slovakia in 1993, the country changed names to Czech Republic.
25th anniversary of arrival to the USA
I was surprised at the huge reflector lamp on Vas’ home that almost blinded us given all the snow.
Mom had the Christmas Eve dinner ready in the fridge. In Czech Republic, Christmas Eve is the main holiday. It is also known as the Feast of Adam and Eve. That is when people open their presents, eat fried carp or other fish, mushroom soup and potato salad. On that evening the good ones, who had fasted, may see the golden pig on the wall, according to a legend.
Our Christmas tree 25 years later in Lowell.
I still remember the feeling of that night. I was confused and uncertain about what I was getting myself into. Big Rapids is a small university town compared to where we lived in Czechoslovakia in a 30,000- people apartment complex known as the Southern Slopes. These enormous apartment complexes, spread around the country,are one of the few successes and remnants of socialism.
The fear of the unknown and a new reality kicked in suddenly. I was in a foreign country, even though I spoke English and had relatives by my side. What will the future bring?
My husband Ludek was in Canada because that’s how the visa process worked out. My parents sponsored me to the USA, while Ludek got immigration visa to Quebec.
I am an engineer by trade with a bachelor’s degree from Technical University of Brno.
Since my parents were both working at the Ferris State University, I took classes there in Computer Aided Design (CAD).
I hated engineering. It was the only university I could get into considering my American past. We had already lived in the USA in the 1970s in Texas, when we left communist Czechoslovakia illegally. And we were punished for that in many ways.
Note: This is the last part in the “Three Sundays of Christmas” series.
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
Gold Sunday is the last Sunday before Christmas which this year falls on Dec. 21. By then all good housewives have their baking & cleaning done according to Czech traditions. Before I started writing and blogging, I could make up to 10 different Christmas desserts including vanilla crescents, “nutty baskets,” chocolate “rohlicky” and” Ischel mini-cakes.”
As a student at the prep school Gymnasium Zlin, we would even get time off for baking.
“As long as you’re keeping the tradition going,” Russian language professor Chudarkova used to say.
Christmas nutty baskets
That reminds me of the opening day of the hunting season here in Michigan where some schools get the day off. I always baked long into the night, and I filled the pastries on Christmas Eve. Back in the old Czechoslovakia I had no helpers. Many years later in the USA my son Jake assisted me by rolling out the dough standing on a foot stool.
Gold Sunday is time to get your Christmas fish for the big evening feast known as “Bountiful Eve.” The town squares in Czech Republic are home to merchants with live carp. For years during Christmases of the past I went shopping for the best carp ever sporting a net bag, so the carp can breathe.
The Christmas fish in Czech Republic is carp
Large wooden vats carried carp from ponds in Southern Bohemia. The carp trade dates back to feudalism and to the royals who granted the rights to do this. I regret that I’ve never seen the carp ponds in Bohemia.
The live carp and then the butchering of it on the morning of Dec. 24 have been the subject of stories, legends, photographs and calendars much like the day and the evening itself.
Lighting of the town Christmas trees in Czech Republic Photo by Jan Smejkal
I will remember one carp story forever. One family got so attached to their live carp, they could not bring themselves to butcher it. They took the live carp to a nearby brook and released it into the shallow water. The carp probably didn’t make it, but they felt better and from then on they purchased fish filets from a well-know store in hometown Zlin and that was Rybena.
I think my uncle John butchered ours. The family usually placed the carp in a tub. One year I put the tub outside on the apartment balcony. When I went to check on the fish next day, it almost froze. I had to smash the ice and resuscitate the fish.
So, the Christmas Eve menu in Czech Republic consists of breaded fried filet of carp, potato salad, mushroom or fish soup and the great cookies.
In later years, non-carp lovers substituted the carp for salmon filets. We stick to the tradition and I buy either cod or other white meat fish. I make tons of potato salad with our own pickles.
Stay tuned for the big story ” 25 years in the USA.”
Silver Sunday is the second Sunday before Christmas that literally makes the Christmas holiday fever rise by several degrees even though it is usually cold outside at this time of the year. It is also the third Sunday of the advent in the catholic religious year.
Outdoor Christmas markets in most European cities on major squares, are in full swing by now, and they will be open until Dec. 23rd & some on Dec. 24th. The rush is on for everything from nuts and poppy seeds for baking purposes, wooden toys and other crafts, apples and dried fruits, ornaments and keepsakes.
Christmas markets in Czech Republic. Photo by Adela Kobylikova
It’s also time to get a Christmas tree. Although back in Czech Republic most families decorated their tree on Christmas Eve, here in US our family has adapted to the custom of putting up the tree at least two weeks before the magical day. Christmas Eve is a magical day, but a lot has been lost in the translation of the feast of Adam&Eve that falls on Dec. 24th in the Czech name day calendar.
In Czech language, that magical day is called “Stedry Den” which translates exactly as Bountiful Day. Families open a bounty of presents in the evening. I will write more about the customs of that day next week as we draw closer to Christmas.
And even though, I miss deeply some of the customs in Czech Republic, I have replaced them with new ones here in USA.
We cut our Christmas tree early and decorate it before Christmas Eve. Last year we took Ella with us to carry on the new tradition.
Ludek & Ella cut the Palova family Christmas tree at Horrocks Nursery
I couldn’t remember where the tree farms in the area are, so I looked it up on Google Christmas farms in Ionia County and found Horrocks Nursery Farms just north of the city of Ionia.
This year we don’t have our tree yet and I haven’t baked yet either. But my daughter-in-law Maranda Palova made our traditional nutty baskets with filling. I plan on baking chocolate flutes and chocolate mini Ischel cakes. Some Czech and European recipes come with a history. This one comes from the spa town of Ischel in Austria. The story has it that the Austro-Hungarian emperor Franz Josef used to frequent the bakery that made them in Ischel.
As with many recipes there are many variations of the mini Ischel cakes. My grandma Anna used to love them, so I always made them for her. I like to keep that tradition going.
Christmas nutty baskets
Now is also time to send and get cards even in the era of the web. Over the 20+ years here on the American continent, I’ve received hundreds of them, but kept only a few.
One of the few precious ones, a definite keepsake, is a card from Brno with a nativity scene and a score to a Christmas carol. One of the most precious cards that I had sent out was made from a photo at the Meijer store in Cascade.
Although I can’t find it now, I remember precisely what was on it. We were picking blueberries as a family on a farm near Ludington in the 90-degree heat. We’re all holding blue pales and shielding our heads from the scorching sun with funny hats. My daughter Emma was wearing a t-shirt with a Polar bear on it.
“Happy holidays,” the card with mistletoe clip art and snowflakes said.
Speaking about passing on traits and such; both my daughter and I have the same sense for juxtaposition.
Lowell, MI- I feel like I have a writer’s block after all this festive pomp. I am still finding memorabilia from the Pala Ruegsegger wedding in October. Each thing I find brings back a memory.
I find things like frozen dough in the freezer for the wedding desserts, Pebbles cereal that no one wanted, taquitos, tops, panties and pantyhose. Samuel’s blue onesies “Star Baby” brought a smile to my face, as well the Barbie doll and sister-in-law’s hair color. Then, there are tons of souvenirs and gifts that I have received from my guests.
And of course, the greatest of all are photos.
Now newlyweds Jake Pala and Maranda Palova last year on sleigh ride in Sparta.
I told a friend at the local Meijer store while shopping for Thanksgiving that we survived the wedding.
“And now you’re moving right into the holidays,” he laughed.
Yes, it’s all going by quick. We spent a quiet Thanksgiving at my parents Ella & Vaclav Konecnys in Big Rapids. We had the traditional fare with bonus cream puffs from CJ Aunt Jarmilka’s.
“I am not baking for Christmas this year, mom,” I said with the wedding abundance still in mind.
I did teach my son Jake Pala and his wife Maranda Palova how to make traditional Czech Christmas desserts such as filled baskets covered with chocolate and vanilla crescents.
Ludek & Ella at horrocksnurseryfarm.com
“I’ll let them bake this year,” I said.
“I can’t blame you after all that wedding turmoil,” mom said.
So, I guess in a big way I already had my Christmas in October. I made new friends, strengthen old bonds, gained a new daughter-in-law and a few pounds, but created sweet memories.
Famous vanilla crescents.
Watch for my stories about the “Three Sundays of Christmas,” a traditional Czech shopping custom on the three Sundays before Dec. 24th.
I will also include some recipes for Czech desserts.
International wedding brings huge success, creates memories
By EMMA PALOVA
EW Emma’s Writings
Wabasis Lake Park, MI- On a beautiful last Saturday in October, Jake Pala and Maranda Ruegsegger became husband and wife.
They got married in the historical Saint Patrick Church in Parnell, Michigan. As the sun rays passed through the colored windows, the sun beams spread all over the altar, the floor, on reverend Mark Peacock and the bride and the groom. Peacock in the homily talked about love, relationships and the importance of wholesome families.
“That is a beautiful church, I was married there,” wrote Jeana Schwacha on facebook. “It looks like it hasn’t changed much.”
Mr. Pala and Mrs. Palova at Saint Patrick Church in Parnell
Anthony Amelia, brother of the bride, read the wedding classic reading on love 1 Corinthians 12 : 31.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs,” resonated through the church.
The bride’s colors were purple, beige and lavender which carried over to corsages, ties and sashes. The bride, the matron of honor Jessica Kraima and the groom’s sister Emma Chavent wore the ever-popular bustier strapless dresses. The bride’s wedding gown had a long train that dropped down several steps from the altar. The best man was Pala’s longtime friend Ken Kline. The French flower girl was Ella Chavent, 4.
It was a picture perfect afternoon with degrees in mid to upper 60s Fahrenheit.
Mr. Jakub Pala and Mrs. Maranda Palova enter the Wabasis Lodge
Just a few miles northeast of the church, overlooking Wabasis Lake covered with autumn golden carpet, sits the park lodge which was the place for the reception.
The scenery for the wedding featured blue skies and blue waters of the Wabasis Lake. The lodge has a large fireplace and it was decked out for a grand wedding celebration. French doors and windows span the entire northern and southern walls. It seats approximately 130 to 140 people.
“It will be rustic chic,” said the bride Maranda Ruegsegger in a previous interview for E Brides & Fashion blog.
The first dance belonged to Maranda and Jake
The tables were decorated with stumps that served as bases for large vases with candles floating in them.
“Grandpa Tom made the stumps for me,” Maranda glowed.
As Mr. Pala and Mrs. Palova entered the lodge, they got a standing ovation from the crowd.
The song “When a man loves a woman” settled into everyone’s heart as the husband and wife danced the first dance. Turning and swirling to the catching melody, the couple danced passionately and skillfully.
The buffet dinner included chicken marsala, roast beef, mashed potatoes, salad and more.
Three-tier wedding cake by CJ Aunt Jarmilka
“The food was delicious,” I kept hearing comments.
A separate dessert station was set up by the fireplace. Wedding baker Jarmila Karmaskova of CJ Aunt Jarmilka’s Desserts set up the three-tier wedding cake on a stump. The cake was topped off with pine cones in the spirit of the rustic theme.
“The desserts are very good,” said friend Jean Jeltema. “Bring me some of that cake log.”
CJ spent three days baking the wedding cake, cake logs and traditional Czech kolache. Karmaskova baked well into the wee hours of the wedding day.
“I was kind of scared out there,” she confessed later.
She and her two sons George & Paul flew 6,000 miles to get here for the wedding.
The wines featured Fenn Valley’s sweeter Lakeshore white and red Capriccio, French Vouvray chardonnay, Rodney Strong chardonnay and Spanish Sangre de Toro red and Sangria. The bar also offered plum brandy, pear brandy and Becherovka herbal liqueur.
The wedding wines
“Everybody liked that,” said father of the bride Dan Ruegsegger at the tailgate party on Sunday.
No Czech celebration is complete without beer. Since it is the month of the Octoberfest, the groom ordered Samuel Adams Boston Lager and Ichabad pumpkin ale.
The international selection of wines and brandy reflected the international spirit of the wedding. Mr. Jakub Pala was born in former Czechoslovakia and Mrs. Maranda Palova, born Ruegsegger, is American. The groom’s sister Chavent is Czech, but her husband and children are French.
The difference in the names Pala – Palova lies in the gender and the grammar. All females in Slavic languages after marriage take on the man’s name, but because of the grammar rules, the last name is modified by adding either –ova to the end or –a to the end.
For example the famous Czech tennis player Martina Navratilova, a man would be Martin Navratil or Ivanka Trumpova, the man is Donald Trump.
My parents Ella & Vaclav Konecny stayed the longest on the dance floor celebrating 55 years of marriage.
And my dad Vaclav Konecny fills in the Spanish gap as a big fan of the Spanish language.
During the wedding, my parents Ella & Vaclav Konecny received a blessing for their 55th anniversary and danced the longest on the dance floor. They had the greatest longevity of marriage of all the couples present.
Groom’s sister Emma Chavent made the wedding video accompanied by a great selection of music including Queen. It covered the groom’s childhood all the way to marriage.
The dance floor was busy until the closing. The DJ was accommodating also to requests for slow dancing music.
So Mr. & Mrs. Palova danced the night away under the bright stars.
Hastings, MI- In the spirit of the original Octoberfest that honored the marriage of crown prince Ludwig and princess of Saxony on Oct. 12, 1810, we invite all along to celebrate our upcoming international union.
Jakub Pala, born in former Czechoslovakia, will be marrying Maranda Ruegsegger of Saranac on Oct. 25th in the pioneer Saint Patrick Church in Parnell.
The guests, like birds, started to fly in to Gerald Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids as of yesterday. The first batch came from Dijon, France.
First guests from France
The second batch is arriving tonight from Czech Republic. The house will be full to the rafters with kids tweeting like the birdies on the patio.
To honor the international bond between the countries as well as between the couple, we are putting on a “Welcome dinner” celebration this Sunday. This is preceded by the baptism of Samuel Chavent, also at the Saint Patrick Church.
The dinner, catered by AdelineLeigh, reflects our love for our new homeland. We also wanted to introduce our Czech guests to American cuisine. So, barbeque is the theme: bbq chicken, bbq pork, au gratin potatoes, seven layer salad and baked beans. And of course a keg of Samuel Adams Boston lager.
Hops, Czech liquid gold
Much like in Germany, home to Octoberfest, and Austria, no Czech celebration would be complete without beer. Most beers in these countries are high-quality and long-aged lagers made from Western Bohemian hops in small to mid-size breweries.
Czech immigrants carried this tradition with them to other countries.
“Beer is the Czech liquid gold,” according to an old saying.
However, communication between the Czech, American and French guests may be a challenge. So, many of us will serve as interpreters between the three different languages.
Pala, fully bilingual, hopes that his daughter Josephine Marie Palova will speak Czech as well.
“He speaks and reads to her in Czech,” said Maranda.
Pala is very proud of his Czech heritage. He came to the USA when he was 2.5 years old. During our stint in Montreal, Canada in the 1990s all of us were trilingual.
“You’re as many persons as the languages you speak,” according to an old Czech saying.
Follow us on our journey to the international wedding.
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