Rudolf Steiner in the Waldorf School
GA 298
3 May 1923, Stuttgart
Address at a monthly assembly
My dear children, boys and girls! It is always a pleasure for me when it is time to come see you here in school. As I was on my way here today, something strange came to me:
Once upon a time there were two children who went for a walk on Sunday. When they were on their way home, each child had a bouquet of flowers. One child said to the other, “Mybouquet is so pretty!” The other one said, “My bouquet is prettier than yours!” They each liked their own bouquet better, but one of them really did not like the other one’s bouquet. One child had a bouquet with some flowers that were full of sweet nectar, but it also had ordinary grass in it and even some ears of grain and some thistles. The other child’s bouquet had only sweet-smelling flowers in it. So the child with the sweet flowers said to the other one, “You know, I dont like your bouquet with all those kinds of things in it!” But the other child didn't like the bouquet with just sweet flowers in it, either.
Now, dear children, how do you think the story goes on? What happened was this: The child with the bouquet with the grain and the thistles had a story to tell the other one. Listen to what that child had to tell:
Once I went out walking on Sunday, and I fell asleep outside and dreamed a dream. And what did I dream? I was lying in a meadow, and all the big and little animals came and were talking with each other. There was a very strange teeny-tiny animal, and a great big animal. The teeny-tiny animal was a bee, and the big one was a calf. And the calf and the bee were talking together. The bee said, “Calf, you don't understand anything about plants, but I know all about them. I know which plants are sweet, and those are the ones I suck the honey out of. Then I take the honey to the people, and they really love the honey. If I didn't fly to all the flowers that smell nice, there would be no honey for the people.” And then the calf said, “You know, 7 couldn't live on just the flowers that smell sweet, the ones that taste so good to you. All the flowers you just fly over and ignore are the ones I have to eat, and if I didn't eat them, there would be no milk in the world. But without milk, people wouldn't be fed, and then there would be no need for honey because there wouldn't be any people around to enjoy it!”
That was how these two children talked with each other. And then the child with the bouquet of sweet flowers understood that there was something he had to learn. The other child had already learned the right thing from her dream. The child with the sweet flowers now understood that sweet flowers cannot be the only ones, that there have to be all different kinds of flowers that work together, and so now he learned to love the bouquet with all the different plants in it. And the child who had slept and dreamed could say, “Yes, that's what the calf said. There are your kinds of flowers and my kinds of flowers, but we need all of them, and that is why a bouquet that has all different kinds of plants in it is much more valuable and precious than one with only sweet flowers!”
Now, dear children, when you go to school, it is like taking a walk on a beautiful Sunday, and you are meant to get the very best that you can out of school to take with you into life. And if you can take along a bouquet of everything your dear teachers have taught you, this bouquet will give you great pleasure. But all the different flowers must be in it, not just the sweet ones! You must learn that you sometimes have to take in things that are not exactly sweet. If you work hard and learn seriously, you will notice that the bouquet you are able to take with you into your later life has not only sweet flowers in it, but all the things that are full of life, all the things your life depends on. Think about that, my dear children, and obey your teachers lovingly each time they ask you to do something difficult. Then when you leave school you will have the most beautiful bouquet to take with you into life, and you will like it best if it has all of life’s different plants in it. Each memory of your time in school will give you the strength you need in life, because when human beings grow up, they gain the most beautiful forces for their life if they take a bouquet of that sort with them when they leave school. These are life forces that last until death and even beyond.
And now let me turn to the parents. I would like to assure you, as I try to do at every such opportunity, that I am fully aware of the confidence you place in us. We will also truly try to equip your children’s bouquets with all the plants that are suitable and necessary for a healthy, hard-working and satisfying life on earth.
And to you, my dear teachers, I am heartily grateful for trying so hard to put together the bouquets for our children’s later life in the right way.
This is why I expect you, dear children, to come to meet your teachers with everything they deserve for putting in so much effort on your behalf, and for working so zealously for you. By that I mean your gratitude and love.
I would like to say one more thing to you. They have told me that in addition to working hard, you can still make noise. I remember that I myself have sometimes heard you make noise.
And now I want you to make noise; I want you to yell so loudly that this whole room echoes with your words, “We love our teachers!”
[All the children shout enthusiastically, as loudly as they can, “Yes, we love our teachers!”]
Ansprache Bei Einer Monatsfeier
Meine lieben Kinder, Schüler und Schülerinnen! Wenn ich zu euch zu gehen habe in die Schule, ist es mir immer eine Freude. Als ich heute herkam, da fiel mir so etwas Seltsames ein:
Es waren einmal zwei Kinder, die machten am Sonntag einen Spaziergang. Als sie heimgingen, da hatte jedes Kind einen Blumenstrauß. Das eine Kind sagte: Mein Blumenstrauß ist aber schön! Das andere sagte: Mein Blumenstrauß ist schön! — Jedem gefiel nur sein Blumenstrauß. Besonders aber gefiel der Blumenstrauß des einen Kindes dem anderen gar nicht. Das eine Kind hatte nämlich in seinem Blumenstrauß darin schöne Blumen, die voller süßer Säfte sind, aber auch gewöhnliches Gras, sogar etwas Ackerähren und sogar Disteln hatte dieses Kind in seinem Strauß. Das andere Kind hatte nur süße Blumen darinnen, lauter süße Blumen, und so sagte das Kind mit seinen süßen Blumen zu dem anderen: Weißt du, dein Blumenstrauß, wo du alles mögliche darinnen hast, der gefällt mir nicht! Aber ebenso mochte das andere Kind den Strauß mit nur süßen Blumen darinnen nicht leiden.
Was glaubt ihr wohl, liebe Kinder, wie die Geschichte weitergeht? Nun seht einmal, meine lieben Kinder, das Kind mit dem Strauß mit Ähren und Disteln, das hat dem anderen Kinde etwas erzählt. Hört zu, was es ihm erzählt hat: Einmal bin ich auch am Sonntag spazieren gegangen und draußen im Freien bin ich eingeschlafen und habe geträumt. Aber was habe ich geträumt? Höre: ich lag auf einer Wiese so erzählte das Kind -, und da kamen große Tiere und kleine Tiere und die unterhielten sich miteinander. Da war ein ganz seltsames, sehr, sehr kleines, ganz winziges Tierchen und ein großes Tier. Das winzig kleine war eine Biene, das große ein Kalb. Und Kalb und Biene sprachen miteinander. Die Biene sagte nämlich: O du Kalb, du verstehst ja gar nichts von den Pflanzen, aber ich, ich verstehe alles, ich weiß, welche Pflanzen süß sind und aus denen sauge ich den Honig heraus. Den Honig bringe ich dann den Menschen, und die Menschen lieben den Honig so sehr, und wenn ich nicht zu all den schönen Blumen mit dem lieblichen Duft fliegen würde, so gäbe es keinen Honig für die Menschen. - Darauf sagte das Kalb: Weißt du, ich könnte nicht allein von den Blumen mit dem süßen Duft, die dir so gut schmecken, leben. Alle die Blumen, an denen du ganz unbekümmert vorüberfliegst, die muß ich fressen, und wenn ich sie nicht fressen würde, so gäbe es keine Milch auf der Welt. Ohne Milch könnten sich aber die Menschen nicht ernähren, und dann wäre auch kein Honig notwendig, denn dann wären ja keine Menschen da, die ihn genießen könnten!
Auf diese Weise unterhielten sich die zwei Kinder miteinander. Und da verstand das Kind, das den Strauß mit den süßen Blumen hatte, daß es etwas lernen mußte. Das andere Kind hatte ja das Richtige schon durch seinen Traum gelernt. Das Kind mit den süßen Blumen verstand nämlich, daß es nicht nur süße Blumen geben kann; es verstand, daß es lauter verschiedene Arten von Blumen geben muß, die zusammenwirken, und jetzt lernte das Kind den Strauß lieben, der alle möglichen Pflanzen enthielt. Und das Kind, welches geschlafen und geträumt hatte, konnte sagen: Ja, das Kalb hat es gesagt: Es gibt solche Blumen und solche Blumen, aber alle Blumen werden gebraucht, und darum ist ein Strauß, der alle Arten von Pflanzen umfaßt, viel wertvoller und köstlicher als einer, der nur süße Blumen enthält!
Nun, meine lieben Kinder, wenn ihr in die Schule geht, das ist für euch so, wie wenn ihr an einem schönen Sonntag einen Spaziergang macht, und aus der Schule sollt ihr das Allerbeste mit ins Leben hinausnehmen. Und wenn ihr einen Blumenstrauß ins Leben mitnehmen könnt von all dem, was eure lieben Lehrer euch gelehrt haben, so werdet ihr an einem solchen Blumenstrauß die größte Freude haben. Aber alle Blumen müssen drinnen sein, nicht bloß die süßen! Das müßt ihr lernen, daß ihr auch manchmal etwas in euch hineinnehmt, was nicht gerade süß ist. Wenn ihr ernsthaft und fleißig lernt, da werdet ihr merken, daß ihr in euer späteres Leben nicht nur einen Strauß mit süßen Blumen bringen könnt, sondern einen Strauß mit all dem Lebensvollen, von dem euer Leben abhängt. Denkt darüber nach, meine lieben Kinder, daß jedesmal, wenn eure Lehrer etwas Schweres von euch verlangen, ihr ihnen liebevoll gehorcht. Von der Schule bekommt ihr den schönsten Blumenstrauß für das Leben mit, und er wird euch am besten gefallen, wenn er alle verschiedenen Pflanzen des Lebens enthält. Jede Erinnerung an die Schulzeit wird euch eine Kraft fürs Leben geben. Denn die Menschenwesen, wenn sie erwachsen sind, gewinnen die schönsten Kräfte für ihr Leben, wenn sie einen solchen Blumenstrauß aus der Schule mitnehmen können. Das sind Lebenskräfte, die dauern bis zum Tode und noch über den Tod hinaus.
Und nun wende ich mich an die Eltern. Ihnen möchte ich versichern, wie ich es bei jeder solchen Gelegenheit zu tun versuche, daß ich mir Ihres völligen Vertrauens wohl bewußt bin. Wir wollen wirklich versuchen, den Blumenstrauß für Ihre Kinder mit all den Pflanzen auszustatten, die für ein gesundes und fleißiges, aber auch befriedigendes Leben auf Erden geeignet und notwendig sind.
Euch aber, meinen lieben Lehrern, bin ich herzlich dankbar dafür, daß Ihr Euch so viel Mühe gebt, den Strauß für unsere Kinder in der rechten Weise für ihre spätere und späteste Lebenszeit zusammenzusetzen.
Darum erwarte ich von euch, meine lieben Kinder, daß ihr euren Lehrern all das entgegenbringt, was ihnen gebührt dafür, daß sie sich so viel Mühe für euch geben und mit solchem Eifer für euch arbeiten, ich meine: Dankbarkeit und Liebe!
Und noch ein Wort möchte ich zu euch sprechen: man hat mir berichtet, daß ihr, außer daß ihr fleißig seid, auch noch Lärm machen könnt. Ich erinnere mich selbst, daß ich euch manchmal habe Lärm machen hören.
Und jetzt wünsche ich es sogar, daß ihr Lärm macht und so schreit, daß dieser Saal von euren Worten widerhallt: «Wir haben unsere Lehrer lieb.»
[Alle Kinder riefen begeistert, so laut sie konnten: Ja, wir haben unsere Lehrer lieb!]
Speech at a monthly celebration
My dear children, students! It is always a pleasure for me to visit you at school. When I came here today, something strange occurred to me:
Once upon a time, there were two children who went for a walk on Sunday. When they went home, each child had a bouquet of flowers. One child said, “My bouquet is so beautiful!” The other said, “My bouquet is beautiful!” — Each child only liked their own bouquet. But one child didn't like the other child's bouquet at all. The one child had beautiful flowers in their bouquet, full of sweet nectar, but there was also ordinary grass, even some field ears and thistles in this child's bouquet. The other child only had sweet flowers in theirs, nothing but sweet flowers, and so the child with the sweet flowers said to the other: You know, I don't like your bouquet with all kinds of things in it! But the other child didn't like the bouquet with only sweet flowers in it either.
What do you think, dear children, how does the story continue? Well, my dear children, the child with the bouquet of ears of corn and thistles told the other child something. Listen to what it told him: Once I also went for a walk on Sunday and fell asleep outside in the open air and had a dream. But what did I dream? Listen: I was lying in a meadow, the child said, and then large animals and small animals came and talked to each other. There was a very strange, very, very small, tiny little animal and a big animal. The tiny little one was a bee, the big one a calf. And the calf and the bee talked to each other. The bee said: "Oh, you calf, you don't understand anything about plants, but I understand everything. I know which plants are sweet, and I suck the honey out of them. I bring the honey to humans, and humans love honey so much, and if I didn't fly to all the beautiful flowers with their lovely scent, there would be no honey for humans. - Then the calf said: You know, I couldn't live on just the sweet-smelling flowers that you like so much. I have to eat all the flowers that you fly past without a care, and if I didn't eat them, there would be no milk in the world. Without milk, however, people could not feed themselves, and then there would be no need for honey, because there would be no people left to enjoy it!
This is how the two children talked to each other. And then the child who had the bouquet of sweet flowers understood that it had something to learn. The other child had already learned the right thing through its dream. The child with the sweet flowers understood that there cannot only be sweet flowers; it understood that there must be many different kinds of flowers that work together, and now the child learned to love the bouquet that contained all kinds of plants. And the child who had slept and dreamed could say: Yes, the calf said it: There are such flowers and such flowers, but all flowers are needed, and that is why a bouquet that includes all kinds of plants is much more valuable and delicious than one that only contains sweet flowers!
Now, my dear children, when you go to school, it is like going for a walk on a beautiful Sunday, and you should take the very best from school with you into life. And if you can take a bouquet of flowers with you into life from all that your dear teachers have taught you, you will derive the greatest joy from such a bouquet. But all the flowers must be included, not just the sweet ones! You must learn that sometimes you also take in things that are not exactly sweet. If you study seriously and diligently, you will realize that in your later life you can bring not only a bouquet of sweet flowers, but a bouquet of all the things that make life worth living, on which your life depends. Think about it, my dear children, that every time your teachers ask something difficult of you, you obey them lovingly. School gives you the most beautiful bouquet of flowers for life, and you will like it best when it contains all the different plants of life. Every memory of your school days will give you strength for life. For when human beings grow up, they gain the most beautiful strengths for their lives if they can take such a bouquet of flowers with them from school. These are life forces that last until death and even beyond death.
And now I turn to the parents. I would like to assure you, as I try to do on every such occasion, that I am well aware of your complete trust. We really want to try to fill the bouquet for your children with all the plants that are suitable and necessary for a healthy and industrious, but also satisfying life on earth.
But to you, my dear teachers, I am sincerely grateful for putting so much effort into putting together the bouquet for our children in the right way for their later and latest life.
That is why I expect you, my dear children, to give your teachers everything they deserve for putting so much effort into you and working so diligently for you, namely gratitude and love!
And I would like to say one more thing to you: I have been told that, apart from being hard-working, you can also be noisy. I remember hearing you making noise sometimes myself.
And now I even want you to make noise and shout so that this hall echoes with your words: “We love our teachers.”
[All the children shouted enthusiastically, as loud as they could: Yes, we love our teachers!]