Selected text
We used to play in the temple's yard. My other grandfather, Alfred Aladjem,
was a more-modern person. He used to stand on the stairs in front of the
temple and threw sweets to the children. I was the youngest, and I could
never reach for the sweets. He would watch to see who had taken a sweet and
who hadn't, and the next time he would throw it so high that it would fall
right beside me. And the elder children would scuffle for the sweets, but
he would throw it to me again.
He had a talent for medicine. He was sort of a medicine man - he fixed
broken legs, hands, and he also treated ailments with herbs. Once a cart
arrived with a child, wrapped up in a rag. The child was half-dead. My
grandfather saw that she hadn't eaten for a couple of days. Little by
little, my grandfather fed her with a teaspoon. She fell asleep and,
perhaps, in an hour or two she said she was very hungry, and my mother
prepared a big slice of buttered bread for her. She ate it and it seemed
that her temperature had fallen. That is how the child recovered and her
family returned to their village. After a few days, her father brought two
white chickens. He wanted to feed us in return, showing his gratitude in
this way. My grandfather treated not only broken bones, but used herbs to
treat venereal diseases. He was very popular in the town.
was a more-modern person. He used to stand on the stairs in front of the
temple and threw sweets to the children. I was the youngest, and I could
never reach for the sweets. He would watch to see who had taken a sweet and
who hadn't, and the next time he would throw it so high that it would fall
right beside me. And the elder children would scuffle for the sweets, but
he would throw it to me again.
He had a talent for medicine. He was sort of a medicine man - he fixed
broken legs, hands, and he also treated ailments with herbs. Once a cart
arrived with a child, wrapped up in a rag. The child was half-dead. My
grandfather saw that she hadn't eaten for a couple of days. Little by
little, my grandfather fed her with a teaspoon. She fell asleep and,
perhaps, in an hour or two she said she was very hungry, and my mother
prepared a big slice of buttered bread for her. She ate it and it seemed
that her temperature had fallen. That is how the child recovered and her
family returned to their village. After a few days, her father brought two
white chickens. He wanted to feed us in return, showing his gratitude in
this way. My grandfather treated not only broken bones, but used herbs to
treat venereal diseases. He was very popular in the town.
Location
Bulgaria
Interview
elza rizova