Sometimes life seems to be making fun of you. That events unfold in such a way that you easily think that you are just a puppet in the show of life, managed by someone else. I remember that precisely at the time when I was forced to save the most, to see that the euros were not used for foolish purchases, I did not know that my vignette had expired. Because I bought it in physical form and didn’t write down in my phone with three exclamation points that I should buy a new one in a year, I got a fine. I was worried, who’s laughing when I try to save a few euros, but then, nothing to me, nothing to you, I end up with a fine of more than 300 euros. I wouldn’t have dared without the vignette to drive nor from Dramelje to Celje. Let alone to Ljubljana!
The fact that we have one forester in the family and another one who is studying in this direction is important for the entertaining context of the following story, which is connected with the blown possibility of earning. Like many people in Slovenia, my family uses wood for heating. They do the hard work of felling, cutting wood and stacking to keep warm in winter. Mostly beech wood is listed, but lastly there was also some mountain maple. Among the latter, the rare and prized rib maple also appeared. Some call it “Slovenian ebony”, as it is considered one of the most expensive types of wood at European auctions. It is used to make yachts, furniture, musical instruments… The fact that it is a rib that requires special conditions for growth is usually only apparent when you peel or saw it.
When his father had already sawed it into meters, he saw its wavy structure, and with the help of his brothers, he realized that it was indeed maple ribs. But it was already too late. Just one day after that, the younger brother was learning in lectures what this maple is like and how many strangers, like our father, had already sawed it for firewood. It is clear that the father was furious. Perhaps, in the end, he will still save on heating – the crackling of firewood will warm him even more, and instead of a violin, the melody of weeping wood will be heard from the stove.
