Little Red Riding Hood in 1965 [1]
Anneliese Meinert [2]
Translated by xia23
“Little Red Riding Hood”, the mother said, “I’ve prepared a small basket for your grandma. Cake and whisky. I have an urgent appointment. Be kind and bring it to her”.
Little Red Riding Hood was not happy at all. She had a date. But since she was a nice girl, she grumbled: “I’ll take it to her.”
Little Red Riding Hood jumped into her sport car. She sped through the forest. It was not a highway, but the traffic was so light that people could race their cars. Passed the trees. Passed the warning signs with the animal silhouettes. A gray shadow stood and waved at the curb of the street. Passed!
The grandma seemed not to be exactly happy about the visit. “You are not coming in a good time, my kid. I have a bridge game. And what occurred to your mother, to send me cake and whisky? I am on my uncooked vegetarian diet. I have to lose weight. Take the stuff away, before it tempts me”.
“Yes, grandma.” Little Red Riding Hood grabbed the small basket, which she had placed on the table. Then she asked: “Grandma, why do you have glittering eyes?”
“So I can see you better.” The grandma laughed. “Contact lens! Much more pleasant than glasses.”
“Why do you wear such big earrings?”
“So I can hear you better. That is the latest invention. People built the device in the ear clips.”
Little Red Riding Hood laughed. “Grandma, your mouth is different than usual.”
“So I can eat you better? No. I have a new set of dentures. The dentist designed it in this way, so that the corners of my mouth no longer droop. But I don’t keep you longer, kid …” Little Red Riding Hood jumped into her car and drove off.
At the street clock [3] her friend, Jäg, was waiting.
“Unpunctual”, he grumbled, as he got in the car. “Where have you been gadding about again?”
“Not at all. I was at my grandma’s. And if you don’t believe me: here is the small basket she gave me.
Hans Jäg opened the whisky bottle. Didn’t you meet anyone else yet?” he asked, then he took a big sip.
“Oh shit! The old Mr. Wolf want to hitchhike. I almost run him over.”
“Mmmm”, Hans murmured, because he had a mouth full of cake.
They drove on the highway and through the forest. They did not notice that the flowers growing on the side of the roads and further in, under the trees, were even more beautiful, just as little Little Red Riding Hood always had noticed when she was alone in the car. How could you! At 180 kilometer per hour!
[1]. p. 35. Rotkäppchen ’65. Mitlesen – Mitteilen. 4th Ed. Rosmarie Thee Morewedge. Heinle Cengage Learning. Australia…United States. 2008
Rotkäppchen (German). Little Red Riding Hood (English) is a fairy tale by Grimm brothers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Red_Riding_Hood?
Book cover from
Little Red Riding Hood
[2]. Anneliese Meinert (Alice Penkala) was born on 2/8/1902 in Vienna. She worked first as an attorney, then a freelance journalist and writer. After Hitler’s annexation of Austria, she and her family left the country. After the WWII she live in France died on 3/19/1988. Ibid.
Wikipedia in German: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Penkala
[3]. Street clock. Clocks found in squares and on street corners.
The following picture is from: https://www.clocks.org/
