I met the Great Patriotic War on the Lenin stadium. When World War II started, it was the wonderful summer day (it was June the 22nd of 1941), at eleven we went to the stadium to watch the game of ‘Stalinetz’, which later became the famous ‘Zenith’ [the best football team in whole city, in 1984 won the USSR championship, usually plays in the Premier league]. So we sat and waited, and time was gone, and nothing was going on, the football didn’t begin. Then they announced that it won’t be any football. And when we walked back home, passing Dobrolubov street [one of the central streets of Leningrad, is named after writer and critic of the nineteenth century], we heard Molotov [14] speech. Stalin spoke later, and Molotov had to announce the War on this day.
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Displaying 34351 - 34380 of 50826 results
David Levin
I remember that I bought my first normal shoes in 1939. We didn’t have good clothes, we couldn’t afford buying new clothes, and the choice wasn’t too big too. There was something very usual, not special, we wore what we had. For example I wore old clothes of my father, maybe I’ve got something from my relatives, perhaps, I wore some trousers or shirts of my cousins, I don’t really remember. Of course, we had to buy something, so we did it from time to time, but it happened seldom and occasionally we bought some very ordinary clothes. We bought closes, because mother never sewed.
We had old furniture; maybe, it was even from Vitebsk, because it was made out of red wood. And then they sold this furniture as far as they found some bacteria inside, and bought the new one. We had a bureau, a buffet, I slept behind the curtain, and they had two beds and a sofa in this room. I consider that the furniture was quite normal, but it was no free place at all, I mean that the room was very small.
Parents called Stalin [13] a ‘balbos’, ‘owner’ in Yiddish. We understood what Stalin was, but it was necessary to be very careful. That’s why we stayed alive. In the end of 1930s it was a hard time, when people shouldn’t trust others, everyone was frightened to death, good pals and even the relatives could go and inform on you. So less you talked, more chances you had to stay alive. I always knew what and to whom I could talk about and what I should not.
I don’t remember, what was going on in 1933, at home we didn’t discuss Hitler and how he got the power. We seldom discussed politics at home. Father wasn’t a communist, and we talked sincerely. I wouldn’t say that he had active anti-Soviet position, but he understood everything about soviet authorities. He didn’t join the party for his own reasons, and even he didn’t talk about it, but with all his view (gests and mimics) he showed what he thought about political events. Of course, he could demonstrate his feelings only when around he observed people, whom he could trust.
We didn’t get any packages or food support. We ate very usual things, nothing special. We didn’t have a possibility to ask shochet to cut our chicken; we just wanted to eat something, not looking at the way it was killed. It is shame to tell how poor we’ve been. Thanks to God, we stayed alive.
We didn’t receive any help from Jewish organizations (I think, there were some Jewish organizations helping for poors) in those times.
Where we usually went with my father on Saturday evenings. We went to banya [the place of common washing, in the URSS in most of the houses they didn’t have hot water and bathrooms]. We went to banya on Fonarny pereulok [way], which was our synagogue. Of course, I’m kidding. I mean only that those visits were the only tradition we observed.
Even though my parents were not Orthodox Jews, they had some ideas of traditional Jewry about what Jews should do and what shouldn’t. Mother never talked about my marriage, never said: ‘You shouldn’t marry non-Jewish girl’, but I heard that her relatives discussed this topic. All they didn’t liked mixed, multi-national families and my mother wasn’t exclusion. And after all, friends are one point, and the wife and questions of ‘blood’ were more important.
There was a synagogue in Leningrad, on Lermontov [12] avenue [this synagogue, one of the largest ones in Europe, is still situated on the same place]. I’ve been there couple of times in the childhood. Parents didn’t actually go to the synagogue; they just didn’t have time to do that.
In those times in Leningrad there was not such a Jewish community. We mainly supported relations with our relatives. Perhaps, they observed some traditions and holidays. But Jews were living separately, for example we lived in the very center, and others not, all Jews were spread on the territory of city and its outskirts. I don’t know if there were any kosher stores in Leningrad, I don’t think so. And I don’t remember if people gathered together to celebrate Jewish holidays.
There was a synagogue in Leningrad, on Lermontov [12] avenue [this synagogue, one of the largest ones in Europe, is still situated on the same place]. I’ve been there couple of times in the childhood. Parents didn’t actually go to the synagogue; they just didn’t have time to do that. They worked from the early morning till late evening. Where we usually went with my father on Saturday evenings. We went to banya [the place of common washing, in the URSS in most of the houses they didn’t have hot water and bathrooms]. We went to banya on Fonarny pereulok [way], which was our synagogue. Of course, I’m kidding. I mean only that those visits were the only tradition we observed.
There was a synagogue in Leningrad, on Lermontov [12] avenue [this synagogue, one of the largest ones in Europe, is still situated on the same place]. I’ve been there couple of times in the childhood. Parents didn’t actually go to the synagogue; they just didn’t have time to do that. They worked from the early morning till late evening. Where we usually went with my father on Saturday evenings. We went to banya [the place of common washing, in the URSS in most of the houses they didn’t have hot water and bathrooms]. We went to banya on Fonarny pereulok [way], which was our synagogue. Of course, I’m kidding. I mean only that those visits were the only tradition we observed.
We knew that we were Jewish. But never anyone said: ‘Don’t speak to him because he is Russian, or don’t make Russian friends’ however, I know exactly that if I wanted to marry Russian girl, my mother would never allow, she would stand for the last. Never ever! Even though my parents were not Orthodox Jews, they had some ideas of traditional Jewry about what Jews should do and what shouldn’t. Mother never talked about my marriage, never said: ‘You shouldn’t marry non-Jewish girl’, but I heard that her relatives discussed this topic. All they didn’t liked mixed, multi-national families and my mother wasn’t exclusion. And after all, friends are one point, and the wife and questions of ‘blood’ were more important.
We celebrated some of the Jewish holidays, maybe, Rosh Hashanah and others. Obviously, we celebrated birthdays too. All those holidays were not bright and outstanding events, there was no delicious food, and mother never cooked any special meals, no Jewish specialties either. There was no special holiday program. Only relatives came, ate and drunk, and talked about everyday life, and sang. Even when we celebrated Jewish holidays, nothing unusual happened, otherwise I would pay attention to it and would remember traditions and so on… Mother’s relatives prayed, but I have no idea when, how often and where it happened. I never saw them praying and probably, I just heard something about it, maybe family legends or rumors, which fell deep inside in my memories. Father had Torah, later, when he was retired, he became more religious.
Father was going to teach me Yiddish, we even began to learn alphabet. But it finished very soon, because he didn’t have enough time. I understand some Yiddish, naturally, as far as I learned German at school, and it is very close to Yiddish. I know some easy everyday words, but as a matter of fact I can’t say that I know this language.
I can even say that he was a Jewish nationalist; I mean he thought that Jewish culture was a great culture, and Jews made a lot for humanity. I don’t insist that he was a Zionist, but still he appreciated Jewish influence (I mean entire history of the world). Anyway, he had normal relations with Russians too.
Father worked on Sabbaths, he had to. But apparently he had a silk cloth, called tallit, he knew Hebrew. I mean that he could pray in Hebrew, he had a dictionary Hebrew-Yiddish somewhere (it was academic issue).
Each summer we went to Sestrorezk (Fedosia Yacovlevna preferred to rent dacha close to this town, so we moved from one village to another almost each summer). Chernichnoe, Gorskaya, Alezandrovskaya, Lissy Nos [villages of summerhouses in Leningrad district], I know all those places, because we rented dacha in Sestrorezk region and changed the place from year to year. Anyway, I was able to walk around and to see all neighborhood areas and villages. I walked and swam and collected the berries, and played football with my mates. Not only football, we played different games. And it was great fun. I went there together with our neighbor only for entire summer vacations, and parents came to visit. And even later, when I became an adult, I came there too. I’ve not been to the pioneer’s camp for real. Once they sent me to the camp, and I quickly asked to take me away.
I had very good organization skills, as I can recall. And they always ‘moved’ me in the field of social work. I even was senior of the class. In college I was busy in social work too; I have tens of diplomas left. So I was an active ‘tovaritsch’ [comrade] in all senses.
When I studied in the eights grade, we were friends with guys from the ninth grade. We had normal relations. We didn’t have such things: you are gid [kike], you are a Jew, and we won’t communicate with you. Perhaps, they had some conversations, but mainly among guys one could say: ‘Let’s play in gid-gidovka’. This was lapta [Russian folk team game with a ball and a bat, called ‘lapta’. Players of one team throw the ball with ‘lapta’ as far as possible, and while the ball is flying, run through the field and back. Players of another team try to catch the ball and to throw it to one of the ‘enemies’], so it was called. They said it, and I said the same, I didn’t know exactly what does it mean. I knew the word, but I didn’t understand its real meaning.
Also I remember our literature teacher, Alevtina, and our Math teacher, Evdokia Vasilievna. I had good relationships with them and their subjects. I remember the way Evdokia Vasilievna proved the theorem: a-prim, b-prim, c-prim. When I studied in the second grade, we had an English teacher, she was Jewish. And till today I recall her ‘How do you do, children?’ If those studies continued, I would know English very well. Apparently, I liked many of my teachers, and I have very good memories about our school and studies.
I painted, even began to paint with oil. A boy who studied together with me, became a President of Academy Arts, I forgot his name. We sat together in one class, and met in many years. Thanks to Olga Markovna, they taught me some music, so I’ve been well-educated officer and intelligent.
, Russia
And I must say that even though I could suffer from some anti-Semitism, but I don’t remember any story.
Half of my school friends were Jewish, and half were Russians. Nowadays my best friend Victor Isaev is my childhood friend; we were friends from the very first grade. Also there was Phroya Shlyyak, a Jew, he lives in Germany now, and also we were friends with Admiral Andrey Victorovitch Peterson. I had many friends.
That school, where I studied at, later became the very famous one. That was school number two hundred thirty nine, mixed, both for girls and boys. It was situated on Isaac’s square [one of the central city squares, where Isaac’s cathedral and Mariinsky Palace are situated], on that place, where you can see that building with lions.
Sometimes parents went for holidays. Father, I know, had been to Berdyansk [port town on the bank of Azov Sea], to my opinion, that happened in 1939; they gave him a voucher on the factory (Stalin factory was quite a rich one). Mainly, the parents went for holidays separately, I think. Mother relaxed together with her sisters. And when I’ve been to dacha, father came every week to see me and Fedosya Yacovlevna. I went to the station, met him, he always brought some food. However, I guess that they didn’t have plenty of vacations or holidays.
We had good relations with our neighbors. Everything was all right.
In our shared apartment Fedosia Yacovlevna (she was Jewish either), who, as a matter of fact, actually grew me up, lived in one of the rooms. Her daughter Olga Markovna, music teacher and husband of her Anatoly Yacovlevitch Vol, an artist, lived in another room, they had no children, and the neighbor liked me very much, I was instead of her grandchild. She studied with me a lot, brought tasty things, and when summer period had begun, she came to my parents and said: ‘When we are going to leave for dacha?’ and many years ahead we went to Sestrorezk [town near Leningrad, the spa place]. So neighbor did more for my education than my mother, who was always busy.
, Russia
In our shared apartment Fedosia Yacovlevna (she was Jewish either), who, as a matter of fact, actually grew me up, lived in one of the rooms.
Unfortunately, I can’t tell more about my father’s siblings because first they lived abroad in another country, then some of them died (for example, Udel and his son were murdered by fascists), and finally I met only a few of them. So I don’t have any additional information about my uncles and aunts or their children.
Later, in late 1950s they repatriated for Israel. He had a daughter Esther; we communicated with her in those times and continue to write to her now. Thanks to God, she is still alive. And when we’ve been to Israel, we’ve been to her. She lives in outskirts of Tel-Aviv.