Lamp of Memory – On András Sütő’s Advent in the Hargita Mountains

When I was a child, I used to meet Sütő András bácsi [uncle András Sütő] in Marosvásárhely close to where he lived around the town’s small railway station. Our house was just a couple of streets away from his which meant I would bump into him from time to time. I still remember the very day my father introduced me to András bácsi, who, as my mother said, was a wizard with words. Though we usually greeted each other quite formally, on one lovely spring afternoon I will never forget how he greeted me, calling me by a nickname only my family members knew. “Szervusz kis Réka” [Hello little Réka], he said with a warm intonation and smile, before he continued on his way into town. That was the moment I began to believe in his magic with words, way before I started getting to know his literary works.