I have six letters written from March 1931 to !932 to my grandmother from her cousin, Abram. I don’t have her letters, only what he wrote to her. We found them in a cedar cigar box with some other items that she obviously thought were important treasures.
I have had the first three letters translated by members of Tracing the Tribe and the Jewish Genealogy Portal pages on Facebook. Now I am trying to decide if I should continue in my quest to see what the letters say, because I am realizing that my grandmother had another ‘love’ besides my grandfather.
The letters were written just before and during the six months that my grandmother was in Europe with my mother and uncle while she underwent treatments at the spa/spring waters of Kalsbad. They were written in the town of Boleslawiec, where my grandmother grew up.
In my mind the first letter is a bit obnoxious. Her male cousin, Abram, is amazed that my grandmother can still write so well in Polish. He writes, “I am completely fascinated by your intelligence, I would never have thought you would still be writing in Polish so proficiently.”
My first thought was UGH. But then I remember that my grandmother left Poland when she was 16 in 1922. So perhaps it could happen that nine years later her language skills would fade. But still!
He asks how her husband and children are doing. Whether she is getting letters from them. Hoping she was doing well. Also telling her how happy they are that she is going to visit.
“I miss you. Please tell me everything that is happening with you and let me know when you’re planning to visit because I am waiting impatiently for this happy moment to see you well and with your dear children.
“You have no idea how your beloved father waits for the mailman with unlimited patience every day two hours before his shift starts. And when he receives a letter from you he is so overwhelmed with joy he occasionally loses his ability to read!”
Can you imagine not seeing your daughter for nine years, perhaps thinking when she left that he would never see her again. To a degree, I understand. For over two and a half years, during Covid, I did not see my daughter who lives in Israel. At least we could Facetime. When she finally did come to the USA, she and I hugged and cried for a long time at the airport.
He ends this first letter:
“I am finishing this letter by wishing you all the best, whatever you may desire!
Best regards from your kind-hearted cousin, Abram and the entire family.”
The second letter was written from Boleslawiec pm June 23, 1931. This letter was written after she arrived in Europe, perhaps at the spa. She had had a difficult journey from the USA and in fact almost died. She was ill with kidney disease as a result of eclampsia.
He writes: “That you did not have a pleasant journey did not bring me joy. However, the following bright days should give you the opportunity to enjoy the good and clear air as well as admission for immediate treatment. I wish you a speedy recovery so that you can return to us completely healthy.”
Once again, he mentions how eagerly they are all awaiting her arrival in Boleslawiec. He tells her that he visited with his beloved fiancée and told her how impressed he was with my grandmother because she was so intelligent. That she also wished my grandmother a speedy recovery. (I just have to say that my grandmother was brilliant. Her brain was like a trap.). He ends this letter wishing her warm regards and good luck. Abram.
It is in the third letter, dated July 28, 1931, from Boleslawiec, that the tone begins to change. And I began to wonder if I should have the other letters translated.
He starts by thanking her for this letter, but admonishes her because the last correspondence was just a note card without too much information.
“I expected a more detailed description of your events, and I felt quite offended by your silence and short note. I still admire your intelligence and wisdom, humor and quick
wit which always digs me out of the hole that I entered by writing such a letter to you… Otherwise, I expect a terrible end for myself, but I trust that in the future you will grant me with your words, so precious to me, more generously.”
He is a bit pompous and impressed with himself. But I guess I have to think about the times, 1930s, and the male dominance of the time period, especially among the orthodox. But my grandmother was a bit different. Her Dad was a scholar/cheder teacher. And he had all his children learn to read and write in Hebrew, Yiddish and Polish. My grandmother also knew how to read and write in German before she came to the USA where she learned English. Amazing for someone whose formal education ended when she was still a teen.
He then writes: “I received your funny and humorous letter, and I thank you so much for all the giggles and fun that it provided and for setting a clear timeline for sending a more serious letter to you… I will grant that having received your letter I should have changed the subject of my writing, but you must forgive me because my mom is unwell and under these circumstances I did not have the mood for jokes nor time to write a different letter and I do not want to stall and stop you from sending an answer to my writing.”
But now comes the part that really got my attention and changed the total impression about what might have really be going on. You see she had two cousins named Abram. I am not sure which one this is. Buy I have written about one in earlier blogs. (See below.)
“My dear cousin, I am letting you know that Abram visited us yesterday, we took a long walk in the evening, and he was telling us all about your visit to him and your previous relationship. He was pouring his heart out which, as you know, is quite unlike him, because typically he is reserved and introverted. Still he was confessing to me like a broken record to put some ease to his own suffering. He also knew what was said about him… He really wanted me to share with him what your true opinion about him is. I deflected his questions about you immediately.”
“I am sending this letter with best regards, your sincere cousin, Abram.
Best regards from my parents and sister as well.”
WOW!. I think the Abram who is in love with her is the cousin in Germany. She probably got to see him when she went to take mineral water treatments. I have other items with his name in them. And I assume that they had an unrequited young love before she went to the United States.
This really touched my heart, but also made me think that perhaps future letters spoke more about the second Abram. And did I really want to know more?
But it also made me think that perhaps one reason that she went to the USA when she was 16 was the end of the relationship with the second Abram. Did he break off with her, did she break off with him. Did the family decide that this was not a good match? I know in those days first cousins did marry. So many questions that I might never know the answers to.
I did put the fourth letter up on Tracing the Tribe to see if someone would translate it. But even though it has been up for a month, there has been no translation. In my mind, I have thought pehaps it is for the best. But another part of me wants to know what the other three letters reveal. I am having an internal debate whether to repost the fourth letter.
In any case thank you to Aleksandra Leonczyk and Roman Matz, who did the translations.
zicharonot 