Goals
Both of my parents went to the same Christian, primary school. Their school time covered 7 grades. My father left school in 1939 and my mother in 1942. At that time, there were no further opportunities for them to pursue any education. The Second World War was in full swing, there was poverty, money had to be earned. When my parents married in 1951, they both wanted to move forward. They wanted to develop themselves and ensure that my brother Peter and I would have better opportunities.
Obstacles
My father would ride his moped (and later, his motorcycle) to work every morning (including Saturdays) at 5:00 a.m. He worked as a truck driver. The trucks at that time were not as luxurious as they are now. It was drafty in the cab, it was cold, dirty, and heavy work. What I didn’t describe earlier is that my father was wounded twice while he was serving in the military in Indonesia. He had three bullets in his leg that could not be removed. This caused him to always have pain, especially at work. When he came home at night (around 6:00 p.m.), he would sit with his sore leg in front of the fireplace so that the pain was bearable.
How?
And yet, despite the fact that my parents had few study opportunities and money, they looked for ways to develop themselves and create opportunities. They had a plan to buy a truck and start their own business.
My mother developed herself by reading a lot. Later, she studied for the middle-class diploma. This was a required diploma until 2000 if you wanted to start your own business. With a middle-class diploma, a beginning entrepreneur demonstrated that he/she had sufficient knowledge of entrepreneurship, bookkeeping, mathematics, and laws. Thus, the diploma served as a threshold for beginning entrepreneurs. Afterwards, my mother got her typing diploma, driver’s license, and learned English together with my father.
I remember how my father sat at a very small desk in the living room at night and immersed himself in the study of professional goods transport. The study was quite comprehensive because it covered legal and regulatory knowledge, insurance, taxes, budgeting, social laws, and also the rules regarding the transportation of goods on the road. I can still see him making calculations about the load capacity of trucks and then drawing the chassis.
My parents were a team
They loved each other very much and their love made it possible for them to unconditionally support each other in their efforts to move forward in life. And they succeeded! They were a great example for me! Johanna
