War Torn Love (48 page)

             
“Oh, I am sorry I do not mean to cry! I better get going, they’re expecting me back. I will be in trouble if I am any longer. I cannot afford to lose this job.”

             
I tried to run after her, I did not want to leave it like that. “Wait up miss!” but she was not having any of it, I
could hear the clank of the soles of her shoes as she ran down the stairs. I could hear her still crying - I glazed over the rail, and looked down…she was already two flights ahead of me. I did not want to, but I had to let her go.

             
When I came back, Marym walked over and shut the door - I gave my sister a hug, I would imagine we both needed it. This whole experience seemed all so surreal.  Poppa came over, and joined us. We had a group hug. Poppa was another I was awfully concerned about. He did not talk much after Momma died, he was still desperately morning Momma in the worst way, I just wished I could do something for him, to make him feel better, but he simply refused to talk to Marym or me about anything much, let alone his feelings.

             
Marym commented, “You know that young lady, she looked so heartbroken, and troubled.”

             
I knew what Marym had been thinking, I knew that look of Marym's all too well, because Momma had the same sort of look - but all the same, I knew my big sister had tried to put an optimistic spin on things, like she always did. I was grateful for that.  Marym was just like Momma that way - I considered it quite a gift. Especially after what we all just found out about this horrible place - I was terrified - now suddenly getting this apartment was not such a big deal.

             
She said, as her eyes lit up, "Can you guys believe for the first time in several long months we were actually going to be sleeping somewhere, where we could stay warm through the night. It’s not so bad is it?
Come
on, once we clean the apartment up from top to bottom, it will be quite pleasant - you’ll see.” Trying to be convincing, to my Poppa me, and my cousins. “Look we have three windows to look at; we’ll get both morning and afternoon sunlight, which will be pleasant. Oh and look, the windows open. Hey you can see a couple of trees.”

             
Since we did not have anything to really unpack, the women of my family decided that they would begin cleaning the apartment, before anyone got comfortable. We cleaned up for several hours. Even the littlest had joined in, we tried making a game of it - Etka my cousin broke out in song. We sent the men to get our rations, as instructed.

             
After concentrated effort of some pretty
solid cleaning up the apartment, as a reward to ourselves, we were going to take advantage of the men being gone attending to other more pressing matters. Now that the tub was, clean. We began filling the tub with water. We found washrags and towels. Marym started boiling water for the tub, with the two pots that were left behind. 

             
The females in our little family were all going to have an opportunity to bathes, the first time in all so long. The men will have a turn when they get back, but that first day, let’s see it was Marym, Me, Abeila my niece, and cousin, Etka  and then her two little boys Zelika, Aron, and two girls Sura, Sora, my other cousins wife, Gitla - they just were married a couple of weeks before the invasion. I know they wanted kids, but I think the war had put pay to that – Gitla was stois, but it broke her heart – she was so good with the children.

             
The kids all received their baths first – the youngest four all in one tub. There was an awful lot of dirt to remove, I hardly recognized them afterwards, they looked so much better. We were all so dirty that we had to change the water out every two people. We also began washing the dirty clothing. Then once the kids all had a bath, we put them all down for a nap - they were exhausted.

             
The men were gone.  There were ten of us, which were going to need bathe, one at a time. One the children were done, I took some of the cooling water for Abelis and gave her a separate cool bath - I wanted to try to break her fever. I could not get the memory of that poor woman’s son getting sick – her warning that she was not able to obtain the needed medicine to take care of him. So, I thought of my own daughter, I was trying to break her fever. I was deathly worried. I hope I was just overreacting, and it was nothing more than a cold, that she would get over it in a
couple of days. Abiela just needed rest. We had all had a couple of stressful days. 

             
I prayed as I bathed her and glanced down at her precious little face. I did not want anyone else knowing how worried I was - all this was just too much, especially after Marym lost her youngest, a little over a month ago. She has been extremely down in the dumps ever since, she cries herself to sleep every night. She will not talk to me about it; she is like Poppa and shutting her emotions down. So, I kept my worries to myself - I did not want to burden her even more.

             
The men decided that they were going to go get a firsthand look around the Ghetto, see the lay of the land. They wanted to know what was really going on around here.
Ultimately,
their goal was to get their hands on some much needed food rations. For the survival of our family, and see if they could get their hands on an additional clothing, food and blankets - anything that we could use. The men were quite worried, but they were doing their best to keep it from us, the women. They would not come flat out and say it but you could see it in their faces.

             
While out Poppa and the rest of the men wanted to make sure they got a job if obtainable. There is one thing you need to know about my Poppa, and Abram and the
other men in the family - they were proud, they did not like handouts – and they liked working for what they received.

             
Then finally, in the bathing order, it was at last my turn to get in the bath. I have to say this much, it was heavenly to finally take a bath, in warm water, and clean up. I had done the best I could in the last months with cold water. But, I had not been able to take a bath in so many months I probably stank something dreadfully. It was the longest I had ever gone without bathing, in my entire life. Marym came over and washed my hair, just like she used to do for me, before she got married. I could enjoy my bath - Abeila the dear was sound asleep safely tucked away under the covers, with two of her youngest cousins by this time, so I could just have the benefit of enjoying the bath to its fullest, other than my vastly empty stomach. Being able to take a bath – it made me feel sort of human once more. I was glad to get out of the wretched clothing. Gitla found some tea up in the cupboard, and boiled a pot for all of us.

Chapter Seventeen

                       
     
“Life in the Ghetto”

             
When Poppa and the other men in the family had left us women all behind in the apartment, the men went convene with the Jewish council. That is what we heard here, how it was done. If you do not assemble with them then you will be given nothing. The Jewish council ran each Ghetto the Nazis had set up across Poland. The reasons for this, the Germans are strained to had to apportion fewer soldiers to accomplish the same job. Still not nearly, free, under the vigilant eyes of the Nazis hierarchy. Their own puppet council ran by mainly Rabbi’s, and prominent leaders from the Jewish community - a delicate balancing act, they had to mollify the Nazis, and well as look after the well-being of their own people, unable to make either completely happy.

             
Our council ran the whole thing that happened in our Ghetto, including impossible undertaking of trying to appease the volatile Nazis - to keep them from melting out even harsher treatment to the citizens of our Ghetto home. The community was always doing its utmost to stave them off. The community oversaw the allocation and percentage of allotment of food, housing, jobs, and the policing of each person confined in the Ghetto. They were charged with
some pretty difficult undertakings – though this was far from the normal circumstances to run a whole society.

             
Poppa, and Abram and my cousins were utterly horror-struck with what they found out. They were surprised to see so much torment and suffering all around them – and told us later that they could not believe what they witnessed with their own eyes.

             
My husband, Poppa and the other men got themselves and us signed up for work - of course put on a waiting list before coming back to the apartment, after standing in one line for hours. After which they were then given a voucher for food. Then once again, for a second time, extremely tired, they braved it out, standing in another lengthy line before they secure us a few provisions that we were entitled to.

             
When the men returned, they showed us that they had acquired some necessities we needed. We all understood that we had still to face hard times. And we knew what they had gotten, would have to be stretched out. Coming home with a ten-pound bag of potatoes, some flour, and a few other staples, but the pickings was quite
slim;
the food they were handing out ran out rather quickly. They also managed to secure a couple arm full’s of firewood for the tiny stove. To us, the firewood virtually as valuable of food.

             
It was not long after walking in through the front door that Abram - saw that I had taken a bath while he was gone; his eyes lit up when he spotted my wet hair. He excitedly strolled over to me desiring to presence me a kiss,
but one whiff of him as he drew close to my nose. I put both my hands out to halt his advancement, realizing now I must have stunk as bad as him before my own bath, but I was clean now, and he was not. He smelt led horrible - I politely smiled then said,

             
“Sweetie you know I normally love your kisses, normally I would adore
hugging
you, but you and I, well we will not be hugging, or kissing until you bathe
Mr.
!” He stared towards me once more, “Don’t you dare Mr
. -
you hear me, please stop do not tease me. Honey you stink!”

             
He smiled back, “ok cutie, one look at you, you look so delicious.   It will be hard but I think all worth waiting for I am sure!”