Rita Balzarene with her son Gedeon, husband Erenburg and sister Lana

My elder daughter Rita is to the left, holding her son Gedeon. Her first husband Erenburg and my younger daughter Lana are next to her. The picture was taken by my husband during celebration of a holiday at home in Siauliai in 1982.

In 1960 my first daughter Rita was born and in 1963 - Lana. Mother helped me raise my daughters. We had a good living. Husband made pretty good money and I also had an income. Every years daughters went to pioneer camps in Palanga, we went to sanatoriums using trade union vouchers. We also did not forget about cultural life. We read all novelties, went to the theaters, cinemas. later husband was given a garden. Then he bought a car and we started traveling all over Lithuania. We also went to Russia.

Both daughters were good students. They did not bring any problems for us. Elder Rita had dreamt to become an investigator since childhood. Being Jewish it was hard for her to enter the university in Vilnius, but he succeeded. Rita managed to become an investigator and now she is in charge of the special department at strict penal camp. From the very beginning, her private life was not a success. She married Jew Erenburg and gave birth to a son Gedeon. They had a bad living, quarreled often. When they divorced, we took our grandson in Siauliai and raised him. Gedeon finished institute and works for Lithuanian representative office of Pigeot company. Then Rita married Balzaris Alfonsas. Now she is happy. They have two kids- son Egidios, born in 1986 and daughter Samantha, who is studying in the final grade of the secondary school. she wants to become a lawyer.

Our younger daughter Lana followed into my footsteps, she became a teacher having finished Siaulia Teachers' training institute. She could not work as a teacher and started looking for another job right after the first year of her work. Lana is currently working for a private company. She has not private life. She is single, living by herself in her small apartment.

My mother died in 1985. I left job straight after that as I had to raise my grandson Gedeon. My sister Nina also helped me. She also became a teacher. She was a headmaster at school. She remained single. She adores my grandson Gedeon.