On the first day of the new year Enschede lost his best known and most beloved wanderer: Arend Kerkhof (75). About forty years he lived on the streets. Sister Ali and son Marco to tell his story for the first time. Arend just wanted to be free. "
,, If you're afraid of tomorrow and repent yesterday, then you should try to be happy today. "A typical wisdom of Arend Kerkhof. He told it to anyone who wanted to hear it. ,, Repeat after me," commanded He then. ,, Repeat after me ... ''
That street wisdom, Marco (42) to put in the obituary of his father. He may dream that statement. But right now not inside them shot him in trouble.
Chat
Ah, Eagle. Who ever had a chat with him in the city, cherish warm feelings for him. Who looked superficially, saw a vagrant; who looked ahead and saw a man with a heart of gold. He helped people who had difficulty walking with cross, carried the bags of pregnant women and distributed to children fish from the market. Arend gave his last penny to you, at least if he had not drowned.
Arend lived for years in a tent at the university. Everywhere in the city you came to him. Often with a bottle of wine in his hand, joking loudly to passersby. The wanderer with the generous, hard laugh, speaking in what genteel Dutch, with that full beard and his inseparable hat, which had to hide the fact that he was bald. Even bums may be in vain. ,, Did not his hat, '' says Marco. ,, That hat goes along the coffin. ''
Statue
Arend is cremated Wednesday. ,, He once said, "if I die or get a thousand men '' It would sometimes be more ,, I knew he was loved, but so ...." There are even. Enschede, who feel that Arend should get a statue. ,, He would love that. ''
,, I never took money from him, because before you knew you were perhaps to somewhere complicit, '' said his sister Ali Smit-Kerkhof (74). The last 10 years he got his retirement in an account, which Marco managed for him. "Aantje 'became increasingly hug wanderer, where many city dwellers are now talking about. Lately Arend occasionally jailed for unpaid fines for public intoxication and urinating in public. The police in which spared until the end of the year. Dan Arend could recuperate even in the cell.
Drink
Why Arend is go wandering, the family does not know. He had finished the Enschede textile school and found a job as a weaver. But suddenly he was gone, went more and more into the streets and more drinking. He himself once said: ,, You do not choose, I kind of fell into it. ''
AD.nl/© © Eric Brinkhorst.
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