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My sister Anna got married in 1946. Her husband Yakov Nudrin, a Jew, had returned from the front where he was an officer. He was an invalid of the war. He was 13 years older than my sister. He was born and lived in Vinnitsa. He went to the front on the first days of the war and his family perished during occupation. My sister and her husband registered their marriage in the registry office, and in the evening my mother arranged a wedding dinner. Only our close relatives came to the wedding. After the wedding my sister moved to live with her husband in Vinnitsa. Their first baby Mikhail named after our brother was born in 1952. Their daughter Vera named after Yakov’s mother was born in 1958.
1947 was the year of hardships and hunger. There were food cards, but it was not always possible to get food products by them. Later the cards were cancelled and salaries increased. Life was improving, well, at least compared to the period of the occupation everything else seemed to be paradise for us.
In 1948 I met my future husband Aron Pizman. Aron was born in Mogilyov-Podolskiy in 1930. His father Isaac Pizman was a shoemaker and his mother Nehama Pizman was a housewife. They had two children: Aron and David, born in 1939. Aron’s father went to the army on the first days of the war. He perished near Semenovskaya village, Rzhev district, Kalinin region, in 1942. Aron, his mother and his younger brother were in the ghetto in Mogilyov-Podolskiy. After liberation he studied at school and after finishing the 6th form he went to work as a clock repair man at the clock shop. He had to support his mother. We met at a party on 1 May 1948. I liked Aron and so did my mother. She believed him to be a nice and reliable person. Aron met me after my classes in the evening school to accompany me home. He carried my briefcase since I didn’t have mittens and my hands froze. Soon he proposed to me and I gave my consent. Aron’s mother Nehama became very religious in the ghetto and insisted that we had a traditional Jewish wedding. Of course, I didn’t want to argue with my future mother-in-law, and Aron and I decided to obey her. We had a civil ceremony in the registry office on 5 December 1949. It was a frosty day and there was some snow on the ground – the day was lovely. Mama bought a white silk coat underlining at the market and made me a wedding gown. She even made a little rose from leftovers of the fabric. I borrowed a little white crocheted from my friend. Aron didn’t even have a white shirt. Aron made me a wedding ring from a silver spoon. In the evening my mother arranged a wedding dinner for us. My sister and her husband, my cousin Riva, Aron and my friends came to our wedding. There were 18 of us at the party. We had lots of fun, sang and danced to the record player. Then I stayed at home and Aron went to where he lived. So we lived one month till we had a Jewish wedding. There was a chuppah installed in the yard of Aron’s house, and his mother invited a rabbi from a prayer house – he lived nearby. In the evening my mother-in-law made a wedding dinner for the closest relatives. Only after the wedding I moved to live with my husband. I had to adjust to my mother-in-law way of living. She only cooked Jewish meals, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays and followed kashrut. She often made stuffed fish, chicken broth, very delicious tsimes 28, baked different puddings and strudels with nuts, jam, raisins and apples. It was new to me and I tried to learn from her. At first it was difficult for me to tell apart a knife for meat products from one for dairy products and it took me some time to get adjusted and learn to cook following the kosher rules. I observed these traditions though while we lived with my mother-in-law. Of course, I had to go to work on Saturday and didn’t go to the prayer house with her. Aron was also an atheist. My mother-in-law was a very smart and tolerant woman. She admitted our ways and said that our generation was never going to be real Jews. She just accepted this as it was. Nehama liked me and even had my photograph over her bed. We got along well and tried to avoid conflicts. And we managed well.
1947 was the year of hardships and hunger. There were food cards, but it was not always possible to get food products by them. Later the cards were cancelled and salaries increased. Life was improving, well, at least compared to the period of the occupation everything else seemed to be paradise for us.
In 1948 I met my future husband Aron Pizman. Aron was born in Mogilyov-Podolskiy in 1930. His father Isaac Pizman was a shoemaker and his mother Nehama Pizman was a housewife. They had two children: Aron and David, born in 1939. Aron’s father went to the army on the first days of the war. He perished near Semenovskaya village, Rzhev district, Kalinin region, in 1942. Aron, his mother and his younger brother were in the ghetto in Mogilyov-Podolskiy. After liberation he studied at school and after finishing the 6th form he went to work as a clock repair man at the clock shop. He had to support his mother. We met at a party on 1 May 1948. I liked Aron and so did my mother. She believed him to be a nice and reliable person. Aron met me after my classes in the evening school to accompany me home. He carried my briefcase since I didn’t have mittens and my hands froze. Soon he proposed to me and I gave my consent. Aron’s mother Nehama became very religious in the ghetto and insisted that we had a traditional Jewish wedding. Of course, I didn’t want to argue with my future mother-in-law, and Aron and I decided to obey her. We had a civil ceremony in the registry office on 5 December 1949. It was a frosty day and there was some snow on the ground – the day was lovely. Mama bought a white silk coat underlining at the market and made me a wedding gown. She even made a little rose from leftovers of the fabric. I borrowed a little white crocheted from my friend. Aron didn’t even have a white shirt. Aron made me a wedding ring from a silver spoon. In the evening my mother arranged a wedding dinner for us. My sister and her husband, my cousin Riva, Aron and my friends came to our wedding. There were 18 of us at the party. We had lots of fun, sang and danced to the record player. Then I stayed at home and Aron went to where he lived. So we lived one month till we had a Jewish wedding. There was a chuppah installed in the yard of Aron’s house, and his mother invited a rabbi from a prayer house – he lived nearby. In the evening my mother-in-law made a wedding dinner for the closest relatives. Only after the wedding I moved to live with my husband. I had to adjust to my mother-in-law way of living. She only cooked Jewish meals, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays and followed kashrut. She often made stuffed fish, chicken broth, very delicious tsimes 28, baked different puddings and strudels with nuts, jam, raisins and apples. It was new to me and I tried to learn from her. At first it was difficult for me to tell apart a knife for meat products from one for dairy products and it took me some time to get adjusted and learn to cook following the kosher rules. I observed these traditions though while we lived with my mother-in-law. Of course, I had to go to work on Saturday and didn’t go to the prayer house with her. Aron was also an atheist. My mother-in-law was a very smart and tolerant woman. She admitted our ways and said that our generation was never going to be real Jews. She just accepted this as it was. Nehama liked me and even had my photograph over her bed. We got along well and tried to avoid conflicts. And we managed well.
Location
Ukraine
Interview
Riva Pizman Biography
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