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Thursday, February 24, 2005
But It Looks Like a Microwave
One odd feature of the neighborhood is a "Babyklappe" in the side of the hospital they named after Hedwig. (Scroll down.) The very civilized idea behind a Babyklappe is that a young mother who really needs to abandon her child should have a full-service alternative to the corner garbage can. It works like this: open Babyklappe, insert child, close door firmly; run like hell. Since the hospital has a problem with curious pedestrians opening the Babyklappe just to see what sort of cupboard might have been devised for a tiny blubbering orphan, there's a note explaining that the door should not be opened unless you have a baby to abandon. (I assume it sets off an alarm.) And then a visual aid: "For your information we provide a photo of the interior of the Babyklappe."
Heat lamp, cotton blanket, steel door with window for nuns to observe the orphan: There are worse places to start a new life, I guess. But if the witch from "Hansel and Gretel" were alive today, she would own something just like it.
posted by Michael Scott Moore |
3:31 PM
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