The memories documented here were gathered from interviews from 1989 (in russian) and in 2009 (in hebrew) with Mrs. Rivka Porat (Goldenberg) of house Amolskey. All rights reserved to Rivka Porat.
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Riva, 4 months old, December 1929, Radvillishkis, Lithuania |
Interviews by Konstantin Mirushnik (1989) and Shulamit Karabelnik (2009). Translation from Russian: Yakov and Shulamit Karabelnik. Editing: Yakov, Clara, Shulamit, Einat and Zohar Karabelnik. Graphic design and English translation: Zohar Karabelnik.
18 July, 2009, Raanana Israel.
Preface
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| Riva Amolskey 1933 / 1934 |
Love you and proud of you, Clara, Yakov, Shulamit, Einat and Zohar Karabelnik.
Childhood
I was born on July 18'th 1929 to an avarage family, Father was an accountant and mother was studying in the 'Cheder' and finished the Russian gymnastia. Our familiy was not orthodox but we kept the Shabat, we went to the synagogue, kept cosher like all the jewish families and celebrated the holidays. a holiday used to be special.
We lived in a town called Radviliskis, a jewish town 18 Kilometers from Siauliai. most jews were traders and shop owners. the local population lived peacefully with the jews and we didn't feel antisemitism. they were several anti-semi cases after 1939, that included window breaking, but they were mostly huligans. we were 3 children. I was the oldest, my sister Tsipora was born in 1935 and my brother Ben-Zion Eliezer was born in 1938. we had a shop and 2 houses, we lived in one of them and my grandfather and grandmother lived in the other until they died. My grandmother died in 1941. My mother's father was an impressive respected man. he was religious and went to the synagogue 3 times a day. once there was an outbreak of Cholera in a small town called Lozovaia that was near Radviliskis, one family had lost their mother and because there was need to take care of the orphans, My grandmother, Hana-Rivka, went to assist the care of the children. Grunia was only 2 years of age then. Tsipora was about 10, she went with her mother to help the family.My grandmother died from the disease at age 36, Little Tsipora died 3 days after her. Mother had 5 sisters, 3 of them finished the Russian gimnasia: Berta, Liuba (my mother) and Fania and 3 of them finished the Hebrew gimnasia: Grunia, Shulamit and Ida. Mother also had a brother, Joshua Ben-Zion, that died in 1929 of heart attack in age 19 (3 months before I was born). Mother, her 5 sisters and the brother lived orphans from their mother and they all studied. the family was very united. Before the 2'nd world war, 3 of my sisters immigrated to Africa.Berta and Ida immigrated first and Shulamit joined them in 1938. Ida and Shulamit worked in Johannesburg as Hebrew teachers and Berta had a shop. My dad had 2 sisters and a brother: aunt Pes'l lived with us in the same house in Radviliskis, aunt Ethel is alive in the United States and I don't know what become of her, uncle Michael resides in Plunge. aunt Pes'l died in Israel and she has 2 daughters in israel. uncle Michael died in the war from hunger, he had 3 children. His son died and his 2 daughters, Fruma and Batia, reside today in Israel.
Memories before the war
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| מימין: ריבה, ליאה, האנה. ליטא 1935. |
Since I was a child my aunts talked and taught me Hebrew. I was the first neice and a first grand-daughter in the family. I wend to a kindergarten where everyone spoke Hebrew and later I studied 4 years in a Hebrew speaking school. when the Russians came, they closed all the Hebrew schools and they started teaching Iidish, the fifth year I started learning in Siauliai, then the war started. when I was in third year in that school I went after the rain to pick strawberries in the forest and caught a cold, I developed rheumatics in all joints and couln't walk. I was brought to school in a carriage (and a sled in winter), in school I sat until someone took me back home. I suffered pain for 3 months. In spring I went with one aunt to Pashventine to grandmother Chaia (my grandmother's sister) she had an old helper that brought a bag that she filled with a large ant farm, she put the bag in the bathtub, poured boiling water on it and I had to submerge in it. the room was small, they closed the doors and let the water cool and then I entered. 3 times we repeated it. the first time I fainted from the smell and woke up in bed. after additional 2 sessions the disease has passed. afterwards they put some of the ants in alcohol, with this 'spirt' i was instructed to apply on the hands and feet. years after, my mother still said I was pulling one leg but I don't notice.
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| דודה פס'ל |
When i went to school I didn't like to eat. first mom joined and sat with me and feed me, the kids laughed but they know I was like this. after that i was given sandwiches and i used to throw them to the garbage. the Jewish guard told mother. my mother told me that God sees this and we shouldn't throw food away, so instead of throwing it away I gave it to my friend that was an orphan and lived at her grandmothers. they were very poor and had nothing to eat. her grandmother would bring a piece of bread and a cucumber and they would eat that. Today this friends brother lives in Israel, in a Kibbutz. the Jewish guard in school was named Trotsky.he had a white mustache, I can clearly see him before my eyes like I've met him yesterday. in school, not all children had erasers, one time I found 5 Rubles in a drawer (the amount equivalent to a 2.5 work days or 2.5 Kg of butter!) I went and bought all the kids erasers. the purchase risen the suspicion of Yehuda, the seller that asked my mother why do we need so many erasers...
When I was 10, I wentone friday after school to pick flowers with friends without notifying my parents and returned late just as we were lighting Shabat candles. my mother was looking for me and she punished me and didn't let me meet my friends. when my grandfather tried to convince my mother to let me go out and play, my mother refused and insisted I deserve punishment. I remember telling my mother "You expect me to listen to you but you yourself don't listen to your own father"...
My mother didn't know Hebrew, usually Shulamit would help me with my homework. one day Shulamit went and Grunia, that was very tought took her place. at the time we used a notebook with borders and in Yehuda's store there were none. since I knew he barely provides, instead of shopping elsewhere I let him add the border line in each of the pages. afterwards I reprimanded by Grunia for taking so long and not buying the notebook in a different shop.
When I was 10, I wentone friday after school to pick flowers with friends without notifying my parents and returned late just as we were lighting Shabat candles. my mother was looking for me and she punished me and didn't let me meet my friends. when my grandfather tried to convince my mother to let me go out and play, my mother refused and insisted I deserve punishment. I remember telling my mother "You expect me to listen to you but you yourself don't listen to your own father"...
My mother didn't know Hebrew, usually Shulamit would help me with my homework. one day Shulamit went and Grunia, that was very tought took her place. at the time we used a notebook with borders and in Yehuda's store there were none. since I knew he barely provides, instead of shopping elsewhere I let him add the border line in each of the pages. afterwards I reprimanded by Grunia for taking so long and not buying the notebook in a different shop.
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| חמשת האחיות לבית קגן |
One day I wanted to walk with my cousin Katia (Chasia, daughter of Pes'l and Chetzkel) to a dancing party in school. I had only one dress so Tzipal'e, a friend of mother, gave me her dress. Tzipal'e was fat so I took a string and tighted the weist, then with the dress I went to the Prude (artificial pond) to wash the dress, I stood on a tree stumb to avoid getting wet but I lost balance and fell in the water. Katia held me by the hair, I almost drowned and the dress was wet, I didn't give up, I wore it, had curls and put "Sh'mate" on my head and went dancing. after the war Tzipal'e survived and lived with us.
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| ליובה אמולסקי,טרם מלחמת העולם השנייה |
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| שמואל אמולסקי, טרם מלחמת העולם השנייה |
In our home, several Lithuanian women were employed for house keeping and caring for the children. father had 6 Lithuanian employees in the Miod and sausage shop (Miod is honey made of sugar instead of bees). We felt no hostility from the employees, they were part of the family. their parents worked for our grandfather and it went from generation to generation. one of them saved my life.
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| מימין: האנה, שלמה חיים וליאה. ליטא 1934 . |
In the beginning of the war (June 22'nd 1941) when the bombing started we ran about 5 Km until we reached a farm that belonged to a Jew. all the family including Fania that had small children, Grunia that was pregnant and us with my sister and 2 year old brother. Grandfather didn't want to travel to Russia because the population there was not religious and he said we better die than abandon our soul. in the third day of our stay in the farm we've noticed a red flag over Radviliskis but we didn't notice the fascistic symbol (the swastika) on it. later it turned out that the town was captured by Germans and we were afraid to return home. we stayed in the farm about 5 or more days until the Germans came and evicted us back to Radviliskis. two days afterwards they claimed shots were fired from our house towards a German and in compensasion a Jew must be killed. they took my father and our Neighbor, Gevelivitch to the local police station. when dad returned he said he was held with the neighbor and heard the cops saying they need to kill one of them but father didn't understand which. only after a shot was fired father realized Gevelivitch dead beside him. father returned beaten and bruised.
The next day there was a 'show' next to the Lithuanian Gimnasia in town. the Rabbi was forced to ride a pig while holding two buckets and step over a fence. I was not there to witness it but I was told it was horrible. everyone gathered to see, my father was also there. he said to my mother: "Liuba, You are stronger than me, we need to take something and 'end' it because I can't last like this". Every day father was forced to work and we had to stay home with mother. I don't recall how many days it continued. later we were ordered to take what we can carry and we were evicted to the Kzarma, the soldier residence. this was our first camp.
We were three children, I was 13, My sister was 8 and my infant brother.Mother took as much sugar and bread as she could carry and my brother in a carriage and we went to the camp ("Lager"). we walked on the main road, where all the Jews from all the streets and were driven out of the city about 2-3 Km to the soldier quarters where we spent 3 nights, after then came Lithuanians and said all men from age 16-100 must step up. father has yet returned from work, grandfather and all our uncles came to the street but suddenly they told everyone to return to their homes. after about 15 minutes they told everyone to gather outside and they were taken. that was the last time we've seen them. at that time father was at work, they were searching a glass cutter, since father was not a glass cutter he was taken and haven't returned. after the war it came clear they were murdered in the forest near Radviliskis.
After a few days the Lithuanians requested all the equipment and property of the men and bribes as a condition to return the men (that were already murdered). we've handed all we had but the men were not returned. we were abused in the camp, physically searched, everything was turned over. we were stood on our knees while everything was taken. after 2-3 days, the Lithuanians said they were willing to take to the village people that volunteer to work, there were some young men that volunteered, they were all murdered.
Mother went to forced labor and my little brother was very sick. mother asked her Lituhanian employer to take care of stay at home and care for the child, the Lithuanian employer said "why bother? let him die". fate wanted and the next day the Lithuanian's child was found dead in his crib.
After a while we were evicted from the camp. we were being told it is for work but some people were taken to the town of Zagare and murdered there. we heard that a week after the massacre the streets were still being washed from the blood. we had a lawyer acquaintance that lived in our aunts appartment, he advised us not to go to Zagare but to Siauliai.
To Siauliai we arrived in a horse driven carriage, there was terrible rain and we had no where to stay so we stood all day in the street. at the evening, the ones that didn't find shelter were moved to the synagogue. Mother had a serious breakout of kidney stones and she had a lot of pain, a family named Brint let mother and the baby in their home, they lay her in the room and the breakout passed. mother stayed there for two weeks. the Brint family were a woman and three boys, they reside today in Israel.
My sister and I stayd in the attic of someone in the ghetto, one aunt stayed at friends and the other somewhere else, we were all scattered, Fania and Grunia and Liuba's aunt Haia, Grunia's mother in law Zleta (Zleta lost her husband and her three children, one of them was Grunia's husband). we were 10 people scattered until finally we found a room and a kitchen for all of us.
then the passports began.
the passports began in fall 1941, I don't remember the colors right but I think that the first one was yellow. we needed to stand in line to receive one. whoever the Germans liked received a passport and whoever the Germans not was taken into the synagogue and was executed. mother got in line a couple of times and got out, fearing the Germans didn't like her, but eventually she somehow got the passports.
Not all Radviliskis Jews could find a shelter in the ghetto. those that didn't find shelter were gathered in the house in Ezero 14 Street. one day they were all taken, moved to the synagogue and slaughtered. from the synagogue people were moved by vehicle to the town of Siauliai and killed. most of our Radviliskis neighbours didn't survive. then they changed the yellow passports to blue ones and they kept thinning the population. we had to risk each time. with the help of an acquaintance and distant relatives we got passports time after time.
Mother wanted to repay the Brint family, for their hospitality and kindness during her kidney attack, she made them laundry. mother was pretty good at laundry so people around the ghetto started bartering bread for laundry jobs.
One of my aunts worked in a small air field and the other worked in 'Elevator' flower warehouses. our aunt begged for change, potatoes, wood for fire. since she got very thin her clothes were loose so she smuggled on her body bags of flower. once she was caught smuggling potatoes and was forced to stand on her knees for 5 hours. In september aunt Grunia gave birth to her eldest daughter Faige (Francis, feigal'e). at that time Grunia has lost her father and her husband. we all lived together in a small room. the baby slept in my little brother's carriage. at night she started crying, mother woke up and noticed a large rat springing from the baby's carriage. we tryied to stay awake to protect her from the rat but we were all exhausted from labor and fell asleep. the rat bit her and she got blood poisoning. without medication we brought a Doctor that examined her and said "People die all the time, let her die, why should she suffer?", in spite his words we managed to get some Brontazin (antibiotics) and she recovered. in the time of the interview (1989) Francis is alive and well with her husband and 4 children in Jerusalem. today she resides in Modiin, Israel.
we kept together, my mother that was nicknamed 'koveset' (the laundry woman) worked at one of the families. the laundry work took all week. once while hanging the laundry she noticed diamonds in one of the shirts. she called the land lady and told her "I'm just a laundry woman, but I understand this is precious" the land lady took the diamonds and said they were cheep imitations but her sun wondered that in spite the hard times people that find valuables chose to return them.
I had 2 jobs, one was to stand in line for bread. the whole family had 890 gram bread budget. the budget was calculated like this: 2 family members got 130gr each. 2 children got 50gr each, small children got 40gr each and each adult 90gr. I was standing all night in line for 10 people each day. additionally sometimes the aunt would smuggle a frozen potato found in the ground, we would soak it in a bucket of water for a day and make latkes. My second job was to cook, clean the floors and wash the house. we had one room but it was clean. I would also knit for people. in the room there was a small lamp. Haia, mother's aunt and I would sit and knit socks and gloves in the light of the lamp and we would provide from it. we also had all the small children to watch over. one other thing we would do as children was to greet the parents when they came back from work. if they would bring something with them they would get arrested, beaten and stood on their knees. we waited impatiently for our aunt one day and we gathered next to the ghetto gates. although the ghetto police and the Lithuanian police would disperse us over and over, children stay children.
We waited by the gates to see if they return or not. there were vast cases of abuse, especially by the Lithuanians. Jews caught smuggling food were abused, beaten and jailed, but we had no choice, aunt Grunia had a little baby and we needed milk for her. our aunt would walk with a hot water bottle tied to her body to smuggle milk and she also had a secret pocket inside her jacket.
still, children remain children, I remember playing 'class', I had a friend my age (that resides today in Haifa, Israel), her father and brother were murdered and her mother was in jail because she tried to smuggle something into the ghetto. the prison was near the ghetto and we would walk to see her mother from the barred window. once her mother signed us that tomorrow she'll be down on the street but we misunderstood and thought she will be buried down in the ground. my friend became hysterical. the next day her mother was freed from jail.
People constantly tried to create ways to emancipate. my cousin and my brother escaped right before the child-action through a barbwire fence but were caught by the Lithuanians and were returned to the ghetto. the ghetto was guarded by Lithuanian guards around the ghetto and in the main gate. there were additional Jew cops and local governor. people didn't always accept going to work so the Jewish cops forced them angrily. not everyone was evil, there were also kind people, one of them even volunteered to join the child-action and died with them. labor was hard and everyone were hungry. local Jews had it easier because they still held some kind of property but for people like us it was very hard. we lived in a corner house. in the cellar resided a young beautiful woman, her nails were done very well and she had lots of beautiful things. she had no mother and after they killed her father and three brothers she lost her sanity and would walk very dirty, she would walk with a rope and try to hang herself or drown herself in a river. we, the children would follow her and saved her life a couple of times. she slept with us in the house under a basement window and there she also died.
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| מרשם אוכלוסין מהגטו היהודי המאשר את נוכחות ריבה, ציפה ולייזר אמולסקי (תאריכי הלידה אינם מדויקים במסמך זה) |
I was home with the rest of the children and Zleta, Grunia's mother in law, that lost her sanity after her husband and three sons were taken from her. Zleta would go by nights to steal onions from the garden beds, she had problems controlling her feces, coping with her was not an easy task. mother and the aunts went to work. mother was no longer a laundry woman. someone helped her get a job at a skin plant. my aunts Fania and Haia worked at the air field and aunt Grunia worked at a labor camp 'Linkaichai', we were taken there with her new born baby, it was exceptional because most of the people there were young and had no children. we stayed in the ghetto: my mothers sister with her baby, mother, me, my sister and brother, mother's aunt Haia the 'old mother in-law' that was lied rested most of the time.
One day while mother was at work we were told that all children younger than 16 years old must get out to the street. I was panicked, I've understood that there were killings and I didn't know where to run. I was with 3 little children, I ran all over and didn't find a shelter to hide in. In the house we lived there was a basement where the woman who lost her mind resided and I didn't even think of taking the children there. I went into one of the homes and they told me they have hidden all the children in their attic, I hid my little brother and my aunt's child. there were about 20-30 children there. I ran with my little sister but no one accepted us. we entered Jewish shoe-maker's house that worked for the Germans, I begged to hide there but he said "Go away, I don't know how to save my own children I sure can't help you" and he drove us out. I went with my sister to the gate, the Nazis took her from me and threw her into a van. I ran after her, I wanted to be with her but I was struck in the head with a rifle and fell to the ground. I think because I was tall they thought I was over 16, otherwise I would be taken as well. I don't know how much time I laid there but women came and picked me up and put me in a line for grown-ups. and we stood there.
There were horrible cryings all around the ghetto. the kids that were hidden in the attic were being removed from the ghetto in the last van. one child started crying and they were all discovered. they also took the 'old mother-in-law', they put a coat of one of the uncles and took her, It was horrible.
Mother and aunt returned and the children were all gone. Just me. until this very day I don't forgive myself that I didn't find a way to hide them and they were taken from me. this will stay with me for the rest of my life. but I was only a child myself after all.
The children-action was done by the Ukrainians. they were Russian speaking, I remember them tall, healthy with good 'Shinel' coats, they abused, hit and threw people. It was an Ukrainian that hit me on the head with a rifle. even today I have a mark on my head. I don't remember how I was picked up afterwards, I just remember how they took my sister from me and I was hit and fell, later I was told that someone had picked me and made me stand so they don't take me too. I wanted to leave with the children, later came mother.
All night there were terrible screams in the ghetto, some said if there was a god in the heavens the skies should burst from the screams. the children were so good, they said "mother I want to eat but buy me food when father returnes", they would chop wood for heating and keep it tidy, gather branches and went to flower beds to search for frozen potatoes in the ground. we ate about everything.
I remember the first passover 'Seder' we had in the ghetto, it was very hard. aunt washed a Plitka (a stove made of meta) and on it we made potato 'Latkes', imagine that the potato was all winter in the ground and passover is in spring so clearly the potatoes were all black. we made Matzas with flower we found in an abandoned house and made them with the same stove. I sat with a rolling pin and made the doe and then made holes with a sewing machine wheel. later we put it on the fire. we gathered some families together and we avoid eating bread all passover. it became easier after the first year, we worked and exchanged property for food, but the first year was horrible. all the time people were evicted from the ghetto, everyone was afraid to exit their homes to the street. we had yellow stars patches that were obligatory to wear in certain areas but inside the ghetto it wasn't at the time.
We had a neighbor with a large dog, he was deaf and was always walking his dog. the dog on the sidewalk and him on the road, since Jews were not allowed to walk on the sidewalk. he used to say "Now people walk on the road and dogs on the sidewalk".
after the child-action I stayed with mother, aunts Haia and Fania. Grunia eventually took us to the labor cam at Linkaićiai. the child-action was at November 5, 1943. we left about 2 months after it. Grunia worked there in the kitchen and we had a bit more to eat. mother worked at a vegetable garden and aunt Haia worked in the forest. one Lithuanian that used to work in our shop was in the area and used to throw us some food through the barb wire fence and we would collect it at night. she would find our property at other's people belonging and exchange it for food and send us. I remember that I said when we release I'll eat as much fried onions as I like.
Linkaićiai was about 5 Km from Radviliskis, there was a weapons plant there and all the area had barb wire fences. within there were broken sheds and the area was our labor camp. around it another fence layer was created. there were about 180 people there, all young, mostly Jews from Poland that escaped the Nazis in 1939. we lived in a Barak (a large shed with bunk beds) that was full of flees. I would sit all night on the table not to get bitten. we would take the bunk beds outside, soak them with some oil and light them for a few seconds, extinguish them and return them back to the shed to kill the flees. in the mornings before 8:00 we had to fill a bath for the Germans with fresh water from a well. me and a younger friend carried the water in buckets. I wasn't tall enough to reach the handle of the well to turn the leaver and reach the bucket so I would put a stone near the well to stand on. we had to bring about 15-16 buckets of water in freezing cold and light fire to warm the tub. I would go to the forest to get some wood about a meter long and use a hammer and a blade to cut them in 2-3 smaller parts an create smaller parts with an axe. I would dry them and with that we heated the tub. this was done each morning. there were of German officers from Poland that sometimes gave us a lump of bread or an egg. This was my first job, the other was in construction to find copper wired in one of the destroyed buildings for re purpose. the structure was made of clay and we had to break it with a hammer and collect the wires. also we built a roof for it so I was in charge of carrying the tar up the stairs so our friends could build the roof. we've done numerous kinds of jobs like this until 1944.
Our work camp was considered a good camp, not too demanding if you consider the alternatives. one manager that mother worked for was horrible, if one of the women that worked for him would by accident drop a piece of paper he would make her pick it up with her mouth and if she would spit it out he made her lick it. he carried a whip and hit them. most of us worked at his vegetable garden and kitchen. the kitchen belonged to the Germans. they also had a plantation and Jews processed it. the camp was guarded by the Germans. around the camp were 2 lines for barb wired fences.
We were allowed to leave the first fence and stay in the border of the second. there were places where there were even 3 fences, next to the weapon plant. inside the camp we had to wear our yellow star. we would gather and make shows, everyone were young, recited poetry and made concerts. the toilet was shared and was like a pigpen. it was next to the fence so we were escorted so we not escape.
There was a Latvian in charge that was not a 'Lager fuhrer', he fell in love with a Jewish girl and helped her a lot. he would bring an egg each day to Francis (daughter of Grunia). after the child-action in Siauliai he helped smuggle the baby from the ghetto to a Lithuanian family that worked at our shop before the war. the Lithuanian family lived in the center of town and they feared that someone would find out so they turned the baby over to their previous land lord. because the baby was crying a lot, even there it was hard to keep here. eventually they gave her to a Lithuanian woman that would associate with Germans and Russians. she demanded pay but we had nothing. our former maid found blankets and gold rings that were once ours and gave them to that Lithuanian woman. she treated the baby very nasty. Francis was always dirty and hungry and she would collect crumbs off the floor. our former maid couldn't take it and she contacted orthodox Russians and told them that in that house there's an orphan Russian baby that her father was a Russian officer and her mother died. she asked them "how can you stand that a baby with your blood is rolling at strangers and being abused?" they took the baby and she stayed there until Lithuania was release by the Russians.
Escaping the ghetto:
in Linkaići we were divided into groups. we agreed that in the first possibility of escape we escape by the group. one Sunday I didn't go to work and I wasn't at aunt Grunia in the kitchen, someone arrived and said that someone was cut or wounded in the forest and they need a doctor quickly. the doctor and the Lager Fuhrer were missing. Grundia said it's strange if the doctor didn't go to care for the wounded person and this is the time to escape.
Chaos started. I urged Grunia to escape. we agreed with my mother that if we split up we meet at the house of the Lithuanian woman that once worked for us. I couldn't escape. Grunia gave me the clock father bought me once when I found the Afikoman, before the war. one aunt gave me a dress and her husband's boots, I wore everything I had although it was warm and I went to search mother. I wasn't allowed to exit the camp so I took a kettle and said I was sent to bring water, that's how I escaped. I ran to the kitchen and the vegetable garden where mother used to work but there was chaos there. they said all the Jews have escaped. I imagined that mother wouldn't have escaped without me and decided to return to the camp but in the way there I've noticed vehicles and panicked, I remember thinking that if I'm to be shot let them shoot me in the back, so I wouldn't see. near the camp were ditches, I didn't know what they were used for but people were sure that they were to bury us. I hid in the ditch and the vehicles passed and no one had seen me. I hid in the ditch for about half an hour. I thought I heard gunfire and screaming and I was too afraid to return to the camp. I got closer to the outer fence, there was a pool there and the Germans bathed in it, I decided since they are undressed and their rifles are not beside them I can jump the fence that was 3 meters high. near the fence was a concrete bench, I wanted to jump the fence but the bench wasn't tall enough, I found some rocks, jumped and hung on the fence. my hand and dress were caught, I was bleeding. in the end I fell into a hole on the other side of the fence and I ran, I'm not sure where.
The camp was located not far from a Lithuanian village named Karčemos, People from the village were returning from church and I mingled with them, I heard gunfire, it was directed at us, I hid between horses and wagons until I've reached a forest and then a potato farm and got home to a house of an aquaintance of us.
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| Google Map of the area, click to enlarge |
I escaped the ghetto about 11:00, about 17:00 I realised the commotion was over so I started looking for Ramanauskiene's home. I entered one home and was immediately drove off. the next house was hers. Ramanauskiene wasn't there, there was a young girl and an old woman, Ramanauskiene's mother in law. her son died with the Partizans for being a communist. she screamed at me: "Not enough that they killed my son you want to bring more trouble?", I cried. I told her that we have 2 homes in Radviliskis and I'll give them to her, also my watch, I was desperate and afraid of the Germans. she didn't agree. the young girl was very pretty, she told me to follow her and she walked with me. I told her I'll give here everything I own just to help me out. the village was full of Germans. 20 people have escaped from the camp, 12 were captured and some were killed on the fence. The girl got me out, we went around the camp that was filled with Germans but made it through. we reached a drain pipe and she told me to hide there until the evening. she laid me in the water filled pipe, covered it in grass, sticks and weeds and told me to stay there. I staid there until she returned late in the evening and she brought me bread and milk, in return I gave her the watch my father bought me. she said she'll return later but didn't return. I lost track of time, I didn't know if it was day or night. people were passing by and I was afraid.
one morning our former Lithuanian former maid reached the camp to bring us some food and she was informed I had escaped. she went to Ramanauskiene to search me and the young woman told her that the mother in law didn't accept me and I was moved but I can't be reached because I'm surrounded by German forces. our Lithuanian maid said that in the eyes of god she's responsible for me and she must find me. eventually she did. I was filled with leaehes and wounds. I needed to shave my head to get rid of the leeches. the maid brought us to her brother in the village and there I stayed a couple of days. I stayed in their attic along with a girl that was epileptic. I was so afraid of her I said I rather die than sleep with her. they let me go down during the night time to the lower floor. one night when I went to the outhouse their dog started barking on me. a bandit came and asked where is the stranger that made the dog bark. I had to leave but there was nowhere safe. they hid me in a forest nearby. they had a Russian child that was a herder and I was afraid that he'll notice me. I lied all day motionless and in the evening our maid came to the forest to "milk the cows" and went to sleep with me. I don't remember how many days passed but eventually the maid took me to her nephew, a Partisan.
The Partisans traveled from place to place and the nephew was sent on a mission and I was returned to the same village. the same time, aunt Haia also escaped the camp. she hid in a house in the same village and by change reached us. they couldn't take care of both of us so we went and found the Lithuanian woman that transferred Francis. after a barter she took us to someone in Radviliskis. the same time the front was in Panevėžys that was about 70Km from Radviliskis.
Everything happened so fast, we were taken by unfamiliar people to their attic, from there we heard the bombing of Siauliai (about 10 Km from Radviliskis) and seen how the bombs fall from the sky. then we heard that the poeple that hid us are arguing and someone was shouting that she'll tell people that they are hiding Jews. aunt Haia said we have to escape. there was little food in the attic, we took bread and eggs, we didn't take the pork. we wore old dresses we found there, put handkerchiefs on our heads and escaped.
where? we didn't know. aunt Haia was from the town Pashventine (Pashvinitinia) and she sais we should go there, we walked a whole day. in one of the places we passed we entered a Lithuanian's house to drink. my aunt was fluent in Lithuanian but I couldn't open my mouth because in the 3 year in the labor camp I forgot the language. the Lithuanians we met there said they are very afraid from the Jews because they have heard that the Jews walk around with knives and revenge. The man there said his son was a Politzai (a Nazi collaborator) in Kovna (Kaunas) and he's afraid the Jews will abuse him. aunt Haia said my father was a Politzai also and we're on the run and very afraid. she told them I know only Polish. they let us drink but aunt Haia was afraid to stay there so we kept going, we passed about 30-40 Km that day and 2-3 several homes like this.
it started to get dark, we got wet and dried, dried and again wet, there was no where to go to. we've notice by the roadside an old small house. aunt Haia said we would end in the forest or we should stay in that house. we entered. very old people resided there, the oldest was over 80 years old and she had a son and daughter about 60 years of age. the house was very neglected, it had no floor. aunt Haia told them the same story as before, that my father was a Politzai and we're on the run from the Russians afraid of being caught and that we have family in Linkovo and we wish to spend the night there. when they heard we want to stay for the night they let us in and fed us. aunt Haia washed one of their pots and they screamed at her "Why are you washing the pots? you washed away all the fat! we only wash with cold water and keep cooking". aunt Haia helped them with with their vegetable garden and I knitted. they let us stay there a while. one day they let me milk the cow but I had no experience and the cow kicked the bucket. since the people there were so cheap I was afraid they will evict us so I milked someone else's cow and brought it to the house. it was harvest time so we helped them with it and aunt kept caring for the vegetable garden. we stayed there for three days, we slept on straw covered with a blanket. it was awful, all over the blanket flees were jumping. aunt Haia woke up in the middle of the night and speak Iidish and I pushed her not to talk. 2-3 times a day I would act as if praying as Christian and I forgot which way to cross, when the locals said why I'm doing it backwards aunt Haia said that's the way they do it in Poland. lucky for us they were very simple uneducated people and they accepted her explanations.
one day I've seen an officer riding a motorbike and I panicked, aunt Haia said he's here to arrest us. us, a 14 year old girl and an old lady, we were confused with fear, we coulnd't know if this was a German officer. aunt Haia said that we should leave in the morning. when we left we've seen the army march on the road and there were bombings. aunt Haia said this whole army came to take us away. turned out that these were the Russians. we were too afraid to tell them we were Jews, after the stories we've heard about Jews running around with knives revenging. we thought the Russians might kill us. we stayed at that Lithuanian house for a couple of more days and another bombing started. we didn't know if it was Russians or Germans. we ran to the woods with the Lithuanians. I had to carry the blankets and pillows of the home owner. on the way to the forest I fell on the blankets and dropped them. I kept running but the home owner screamed "My blankets! my blankets!" and made me run through the bombing to pick them up. one bomb fell about 1.5 meters from me and entered the ground without blowing up (later the Russians neutralized it). 3 days after, Lithuanians gathered there and talked about going to the forest and revenge the Russians and remaining Jews (if there were Jews left). we panicked and ran, early in the morning we left to Radviliskis. on the way we stumbled on a corpse of a horse. aunt Haia said this was a bad sign and that we will not find anyone back home. I kept my hope that I'll be together with my mother and father. when we reached Radviliskis there was no one there. we met some Jews that escaped with us from the labor camp and with them was Nechama Kessel and her mother. (that resides today in Haifa, Israel) we stayed at a deserted home, abandoned by the Germans. the Lithuanian division of the soviet army has just passed by and they were informed of us. they gave us some provisions. we stayed there a few days. it's there we found out that my friend Lusik (Arie Bekin) managed to escape the labor camp the same day we have. the war front was held near Siauliai and we've had to escape twards Penevezis. after that we were transferred in a military van up to Svenchionelis and in a train (where we slept on the corridor floor) until we reached Vilnius, almost naked and barefoot with nothing on us.
It was 1944. we were given a shelter in a home for the old, there were several families from labor camps like us. we would ask the soldiers there for bread. I would wait that one elder would leave behind some bread or porridge. I sewed hats out of old 'Shinel' coats and sold them for money and provisions. it wasn't easy there but we stayed there for 3-4 months until it became freezing cold, after that we returned to Radviliskis.
After the war
I went to our Lithuanian maid that worked at our place before the war. she resided with her 2 sisters in a small room and she let me stay. I located my grandfather's wool machine and dye at one of our Lithuanian neighbors. for the equipment the Lithuanian gave me a lump of bread and some potatoes. he lived 3-4 Km from us and I would go there each day to take them. I managed to receive our homes that were confiscated by the Lithuanians during the war. I still don't know how they gave them back to me and my uncles apartment, that during the war a police officer resided in. the police officer escaped and we got the apartment back. another police officer still lived there and we had to wait for him to evict. we were informed that during the war that police officer was NGB (Soviet police). at that time people used to steal eveything, I've noticed a man stealing my potatoes, I ran to close the door and suddenly I've realized it was my uncle Chezk'el that escaped to Russia during the war. he returned with his wife Pes'el (my father's sister) and their 2 children. they were transported in coal train wagons and were all covered in black coal. it took a while for uncle Chezk'el to convince me that he was indeed who he claimed. all they had was a knife and a piece of bread. I let them in, they stayed there for a couple of days and then joined us at our home.
I went to Lithuanian night school, after that I went to a school in Siauliai where I graduated high-school. I was 17 or 18 and pretty, I had a suitor and we wanted to go dancing. I remember dressing and coming my hair, waiting for my suitor then suddenly I've heared a voice "Riva'le!". I've been told that my mother has died but that was her voice. again I've heard "Riva'le, Riva'le!". we lived in the second flood together with uncle Chezk'el and aunt Pes'el, I started screaming "Mother! Mother!", I was hysterical, instead of running and opening the door I ran from room to room and screamed "Mother!", uncle Chezk'el lit up a candle and went down to open the door.
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| ליובה אמולסקי, לאחר המלחמה |
my mother was in a German concentration camp and returned after losing both her legs. she had 2 pillows where once she had legs and a cane. before the war ended, right after her legs were cut, she sat on a porch in Poland when a bombing started. there was a lot of panic and she forgot that she had no legs and fell of a balcony, she was bruised from glass fragments and her teeth were all broken. she was scarred everywhere and her hair was short. I remembered my mother as a beautiful woman and this woman didn't resemble her at all. instead of the long hair with braids she had short thorny hairs. she used to be 1.72-1.73 meters high and suddenly she was small without legs. I remember screaming and couldn't stop. aunt Haia that used to live with us and the others also didn't recognize her, she said "This isn't Liuba, it's an impostor, probably was with her in some hospital and she gathered information about us and now she's trying to persuade us she's Liuba" and mother said "Don't you recognize me? here, the picture in the living room, that's me, I had the same couch in the living room like you had, that little table was given to me as a present by grandfather" and Haia insisted it wasn't Liuba. I was so shocked I wasn't able to talk, only scream.
Mother eexplained: "When I lied in the concentration camp I didn't want to live anymore without my legs. a woman beside me passed away, her daughter came and said she wished she would be alive, even if she had no legs, then I decided I would live no matter how hard was my condition".
uncle Chezk'el opened a meat shop and mother used to work there on her knees, she would walk on her knees, sit down and work all day in the cashier. it was freezing cold and she was working there with no heat.
after Chezk'el started earning it was a bit easier.
Mother eexplained: "When I lied in the concentration camp I didn't want to live anymore without my legs. a woman beside me passed away, her daughter came and said she wished she would be alive, even if she had no legs, then I decided I would live no matter how hard was my condition".
uncle Chezk'el opened a meat shop and mother used to work there on her knees, she would walk on her knees, sit down and work all day in the cashier. it was freezing cold and she was working there with no heat.
after Chezk'el started earning it was a bit easier.
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| ליובה וריבה אמולסקי |
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| ריבה וזכרי |
in 1948 I've met Zachari, an Ukranian officer in the soviet army. except his father, his whole family was murdered during the holocaust. his unit traveled next to our town and he wanted to stay with a Jewish family and that's how we've met. he started visiting us. after a while we found out that during the war our men family members were murdered next to the Paligon (a rifle range that was used by the army) that was currently used by Zachari's unit. Zachari got a permit to dig there but nothing was found, only a layer of limestone, metal buttons and spoons, nothing was found. one day my aunt invited the remaining Jews for lunch, Zachari was dissapointed that our recipe didn't include his family traditional potatoes that weren't pealed with hering (salty fish), afterwards Zachari started visiting me and we went dancing. he was an air force navigator. one time we went dancing and there were navi soldiers and they started fighting. Zachari caused the fight, I left angry and alone. after I left Zachari thought we wouldn't be a couple anymore and volunteered to relocate to Germany. before he left we reconciled but then I couldn't get a government permission to leave to Germany because my mother was in contact with Africa (my aunts resided in south Africa)
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| תעודת הנישואין של ריבה וזכרי גולדנברג |
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right: Zachari, Riva and an unknown officer |
Zachari relocated to Germany, returned and we got married. he was 21 and I was 19 years old. I was very thin, I wore 2 dresses so I wouldn't look so thin. mother said we can store water in the dent I have in the bottom of the neck...
my birth certificate was lost, and since I looked younger than my age a committee of doctors decided I was born in 1931. when we wanted to get married we weren't allowed because they thought I was 17. my mother went to Radviliskis to locate my birth certificate and she eventually found it in the archives. Zachari had to return to Germany to his unit and I stayed in Radviliskis. the third time he returned our daughter Clara was a year and a half years old. Clara was the last Jew that was born in Radviliskis (the remaining Jews after the holocaust all left town). Clara was so beautiful, her skin was pretty and she had such a healthy tone, she wasn't pale and she had pretty curls. I put a pillow on her wagon and she sit on it outside. in those days diapers were washed. we boiled them in a pot with two pieces of soap and my mother said at least once a week to put them outside to freeze. it was also important to iron them but if i would iron only one side my mother used to tell me I wasn't serious.
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| Riva and Clara |
Zachari served 2 years in east Germany and after 2 years we moved to Simferopol and from there to Chita in Sibira. Chita is located next to a lake and they had extremely large mosquitos there (Mashkara) that sting real hard. we had to walk with capes. we used to pick pine nuts in the forest. we lived for 2 years and then my son Shmuel (Sasha) was born. after that we moved to Bada that was also in Sibiria. In Bada we shared an apartment with another family that had a daughter. we lived there in -50 degrees Celsius. Clara would walk with Zachari to bring water from the well but until they returned the bucket was empty, it was so dry and frozen that the water evaporated and iced. in the times of Stalin everyone that had relations abroad was suspected of espionage. in 1952 Zachari was released from the army, it may have been related to a large release of Jews from the soviet army and the doctor's plot. I remember when Stalin we cried together and viewed it in the television. Jews were accused of his death. we returned to Radviliskis and Zachari completed his studies of electronics engineering and went to Vilnius to work in a secret government plant.
In Vilnius Zachari had no where to live, he went to the synagogue and met the Abramovitch family, they fed him and gave him a place to stay until a year later he got an apartment from the army and some compensations. the compensation didn't include the war years and we got much less than we deserved, so I joined him with the children and we all lived together. we lived together with 2 additional families. we had one kitchen, one bathroom and one tub but we handled it fine. I cleaned the kitchen and the wash rooms twice a week because we received 2 rooms, the other family members cleaned once a week. Clara used to do homework wth three of her neighbors in the kitchen, Sasha use to study in the other room, the noise didn't bother anyone. Clara learned to play the accordion and Zachari used to carry it on Sundays to concerts. Clara also went dancing and gymnastics and when she finished school she went to study medicine in Kaunas (Kovna). One day I went there and asked girls where she was and I waited for her, when she met me she said the girls told her "some friend is looking for you", perhaps I looked very young.
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| Riva and Clara |
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| מימין: חברה ללימודים, ריבה וקלרה. |
we were dressed the same, Clara in size 38 and I was 42. I remember that in the second year of her studies Clara failed a test and she was crying. for her it was the end and the sky fell. I took her back and made her test in exams again. in the train she vomited and was very anxious. Clara resided with an opera singer and learned how to knit from his wife, what I couldn't teach her so she learned from her. I remember once Zachari and I came to visit her a day before a test she had, we discovered the singer was a drunk, he returned home drink, threw his tie and start yelling and asking where's his wife, he frightened us, we took Clara away from there and went home. the next day she took her exam. Clara finished successfully her Medical exams, with her young husband Yakov Karabelnik and her new 2 month hold baby girl Shulamit they went to Israel in 1974. My mother joined them in 1976. she said she wanted to be buried there and she cant wait until we all come to Israel. at that time Zachari worked at a secret government factory and the soviets didn't let him exit the soviet union without a "cooling period" of at least 6 months after resigning. we feared to ask for immigration permits because we know we wouldn't be approved and we risk the job position, being "bald from both sides"
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| מלפנים (מימין): קלרה, ריבה, שולי (בתוך שמיכה) ויעקב קרבלניק מאחור (מימין): בנימין וליובה קרבלניק מאחור משמאל: רעיה זלקינוביץ' |
my husband died after a series of heart attacks in 1977, I resided in Vilnius until I joined my family in Israel in 1979. My son Sasha and his wife Jana stayed in Vilnius until they were approved for immigration in September 1989, they arrived there with their 2 daughters. It was very hard to leave Sasha and it was very hard to spend all the money and pack property to travel (It was illegal to transfer money and papers outside the soviet union so we had to buy equipment and barter items).
It was difficult in Israel because I forgot my Hebrew. I could understand but not speak it. I went to Ulpan in Raanana and after that I learned advanced Hebrew in Ramat Gan and Abu-Kabir, there we had a teacher we nicknamed 'Antisemitic' because he used to throw us out of class because we didn't understand what he was saying. eventually we managed to kick him out of school. after that I've studied accounting and applied for Bank Hapoalim in Raanana. I remember at that time I didn't realize what do we need checks and why do we need to sign them on both sides, why a vehicle has depreciation etc'. I met a man that always bragged about having apartments in Israel and Germany and cars, but to Tel Aviv we took the bus. the drive back home I insisted to pay for myself.
Moshe Porat, my second husband I met by an acquaintance of us from Radviliskis. we met Saturday and he invited me to go out to the movies on Monday, but on Monday my mother passed away. Moshe came and helped and brought things, I remember that people told me that a man that keeps everything so tidy shouldn't be left alone. we waited a year and then we married in the Rabbinate of Raanana.
Riva and Moshe reside together in Raanana, close to their children, their fife grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren, Ariel and Yuval.
Family blessings (limited translation):
ברכות מהמשפחה
ריבצ'קה, 80 שנים.... את מאמינה?
רוצה להגיד כל כך הרבה דברים אבל קשה לי ואיני יודעת למה ואיך. אני חושבת עלייך ומה את בשבילי ומה את בשביל הילדים ולכל מי שמכיר אותך ועיני מתמלאות דמעות. אם חושבים על אם או על סבתא – את היא הדמות שמחממת את הלב ואת פנייך אנו רואים לפנינו. אני חושבת על ימים רחוקים כשהייתי תינוקת וילדה. זה לא היה פשוט להיות שובבה לידך או לא מחונכת, אם הייתי נוגעת בידי בשולחן.... פעם אחת נגעתי בו בידיים לא נקיות, מיד כששבתי מן הרחוב.... אוחחחח איזה פאץ' אני קיבלתי. לא נגעתי יותר. הלכתי לידו בידיים אסופות ושמורות. ידעת להנחות אותי לשאוף שהדברים יהיו מושלמים, בכל הקשור ללימודים ומטלות. לא מתעצלים, לימדת אותי. פורמים ותופרים מחדש, מוחקים וכותבים שוב, מפרקים ומרכיבים, זורקים ובונים אחרת. עד שייצא מושלם ככל האפשר. דרשת זאת מעצמך ובודאי מאיתנו. אני חושבת עלייך שבעצם יכולת להיות אחותי..... אם צעירה כל כך היית. בת עשרים. מהיכן ידעת כל מה שהיית צריכה לדעת? איך הצלחת לנדוד עם ילדה קטנה לים השחור, לסיביר..... ללא מכונת כביסה.... ללא מייבש... עברת מלחמה... למדת לשרוד... חייך היו כה קשים ואיבדת כל כך הרבה אנשים יקרים לך. באת לכאן אל הארץ שלנו וכאן את מוקפת באוהבייך ובנכדייך ובשתי נינותייך ובנית חיים חדשים וטובים כשמשה לצידך. אנו אוהבים אותך ונהנים איתך ומאחלים לך עוד הרבה שנים טובות ומלאות אהבה ונחת איתנו כולנו. קלרה
Ривочке,
моему близкому другу, от которой я получаю всегда помощь, котороя поддержала меня в очень тяжёлое время, которая дарит мне тепло, заботу и внимание, я от всего сердца желаю здоровья, покоя и долгих лет жизни. Очень люблю Вас и всегда рядом.
Жанна
לריבוצ'קה, חברת האמת שלי, שממנה אני תמיד מקבלת עזרה, שתמכה בי בתקופה מאוד קשה, שמעניקה לי חום, דאגה ותשומת לב, אני מאחלת מכל הלב – בריאות, שלווה ואריכות ימים. אוהבת אותך מאוד ותמיד לצידך,ז'נה גולדנברג
מודיעין, יולי 2009
ריבה היקרה מזל טוב ליום הולדתך השמונים. הברכות והאיחולים כה רבים אז ננסה לקצר ולא להאריך במילים. ומהן המילים שיוצאות מתוך השמונים? שלווה - שתמיד תהייה שלווה בליבך, מנגינה – שתמיד תהייה מנגינה בראשך, ובריאות – שתמיד תהייה בריאות בגופך, נחת – שתמיד תהייה נחת בביתך, ידידות – שתמיד תהייה ידידות סביבך, משה– כי מָשָׁה אלוהים את משה מהים וחיבר ביניכם בשבועת עולם, אושר, שמחה, צחוק והנאה. מאחלים מכל הלב ובאהבה רבה משפחת פרי המורחבת
רעננה, יולי 2009
ריבה היקרה מזל טוב, דבר ראשון אנו מאחלים לך בריאות ונחת מהמשפחה שלך, שמגיע לך באמת, ועוד שנים רבות עם משה ביחד. עכשיו קצת הסטוריה: אנחנו מכירות וחברות יותר מחמישים שנה, עוד בליטא משנת 1956 ועד 1976 נפגשנו הרבה, חגגנו את החגים היהודיים והחגים הסובייטים ביחד עם חברים רבים, היינו חבורה יהודית. בכל קיץ בילינו עם המשפחות שלנו חופשה ב'פאלאנגה' והילדים שלנו גדלו ביחד. עוד מעט 30 שנה שאנחנו חברות גם במדינת ישראל (אנחנו אומרות גם שאנחנו אחיות). אני רוצה להגיד שחברה כמו ריבה זה חלום של כל אחד: נאמנה, חמה, היא העזרה הראשונה בכל מקרה ולספר לה סוד זה כמו לקיר. היא אף פעם לא מקנאה וזה מאוד חשוב בחברות. ריבה את היית בת מעולה, 'יידישע מאמה' אמיתית, סבתא וסבתא-רבה למופת. ריבינק'ה אנו אוהבים אותך, מכבדים אותך ואני גאה להיות חברה שלך וכמו אחותך. תהיי בריאה, מאושרת, שתהיה לנו נחת ממך.אוהבים רעיה ואריה זלקינוביץ
תל מונד, 2009
Наверное, ты неспроста кулинарка, Какую еще поискать! Как видно, судьба научила готовить - Всех блюд и не пересчитать: Соленые блюда, И горькие блюда, И острые блюда Готовила жизнь, И нежные блюда, И сладкие блюда, И блюда такие, что просто держись! Нам стала примером Не только готовки, Учились мы сильными, щедрыми быть. Желаем и дальше Быть точно такою, А ы будем рядом ! Ценить и любить
תרגום: (לא סתם) את קולינרית (מבשלת) מוצלחת, עוד צריך לחפש כמותך, אין הרבה כמותך, כנראה הגורל לימד אותך להכין מגוון עצום של מאכלים, מאכלים מלוחים ,מרים, חריפים,הכינו החיים. מנות עדינות, ומתוקות ומנות יוצאות דופן, מצאת להכין. את נהיית דוגמה בשבילנו לא רק במאכלים שאת מכינה לנו אבל למדנו ממך להיות חזקים ואדיבים. מאחלים בהמשך להישאר כמו שאת ואנחנו נהייה על ידך בשביל להעריך ולאהוב. משפחת ברייטמייר.
רמת השרון, יולי 2009
רבקה היקרה, עברו הרבה שנים ואינני חושב שכרגע כדאי להכנס לעבר, על זה אפשר לכתוב ספר. עכשיו אנחנו רוצים לדבר על ההווה. כמה חשוב שחידשנו את הקשר אחרי כל כך הרבה שנים. כאשר הגעת ארצה וקיבלתי אותך בשדה התעופה לא זכרת אותי אבל אני מיד הכרתי אותך מרחוק ואז חזרה אלי כל תמונת העבר שלנו. גם בזמן כתיבת שורות אלו עומדת לפניי התמונה. רבקה, הקמת משפחה לתפארת, מסורה ומלוכדת. גם יוכבד מדברת עלייך כאילו אתן חברות מאז ומתמיד. אחרי המלחמה החיים לא היטיבו איתך אבל נשארת זקופה וחזקה. במיוחד אחרי האסון האחרון שפקד אותך, שהוא בין הקשים- לא נשברת. לפעמים אנו שואלים מאיפה את שואבת את כל הכוחות האלה. הנה הגעת לגיל 80 יחד עם משה ומשפחה תומכת. נשאר לנו רק לאחל לך בריאות טובה, נחת מהמשפחה ושיהיו לכם יחד עוד הרבה שנים טובות. תמשיכו לתמוך אחד בשני ויהיה לכם רק טוב. באהבה, יוכבד ולוסיק (אריה), בקין.
"אמא קטנה" חזרה. הכרתי את ריבה, חברתה של רעייתי בתיה, בנופש יוצא ליטה במלון אסיאנדה במעלות. המלון טובל בירוק העצים. האוייר שם כמעט כמו בשווייץ. בשעות אחרי הצהריים נהגנו לשבת על כסאות נוח מתחת לעצים בדשא. האווירה התאימה למספרי סיפורים. בפעמים אחדות נהנינו מהרצאות מעניינות ומאלפות של בן דודנו האהוב דוד גולן על הלגיונות הרומאיים, על מבנה שלהם ופעילותם באנגלייה בעת כיבושה על ידי הרומאים. ערב אחד ישבנו במקומנו הקבוע כהרגלנו ולמרות שאיפתנו לא לעסוק בפוליטיקה ולא להזכיר את המלחמה הגדולה ההיא, לאט לאט נסובו הסיפורים לזיכרונות אישיים טראומטיים מעברם הכאוב של המסובים. תוך כדי הסיפורים התחילה ריבה לספר את סיפורה המרגש. היא סיפרה על בריחתה מהגטו ביחד עם חברנו לוסיק, בן עיירתה, ריבה נפרדה מאין ברירה מלובה, האימא שלה, אשר נשארה בגטו. האימא נלקחה מהגטו למחנה ריכוז ומשם למחנה עבודה. ריבה לא ידעה מה גורלה. ריבה סיפרה על הצלתה והישרדותה. עם סיום המלחמה היא חזרה לעיירת הולדתה. אחרי זמן מסוים חזרה גם אימהּ לביתן בעיירה. האימא שלימה מחיר כבד על הישרדותה בסבל מתמשך כל חייה. בצעדת המוות ממחנה העבודה לאי שם קפאו רגליה של האימא לובה. עם השחרור על ידי הצבא האדום נלקחו כל החולים, וביניהם גם לובה, לבית חולים. בתיה רעייתי, שהייתה באותו מחנה עבודה, פגשה את לובה בבית החולים. לבתיה נודע אז שהרופאים נאלצו לקטוע את שתי רגליה הקפואות של לובה, כדי להציל את חייה. ריבה סיפרה לנו בדמעות עצורות, איך חזרה לליטא האימא שלה, האישה הגבוהה היפה, כ"אמא קטנה", ללא רגלים מהברכיים ומטה. השמחה של הפגישה בין האם והבת, ששרדו את התופת, מהולה הייתה במנה גדושה של צער ועצב. העיניים של כול השומעים את דברי ריבה המרגשים נצצו מדמעות. רק חלק מאתנו הצליח להסתיר קצת את התרגשותו. אני ניסיתי לחנוק בכי עצור בחזי. בסיפורה המרגש והמיוחד חשפה ריבה את עומק הווייתה, אז נוצרה ההכרות הראשונית עם נשמתה. מאז הכרנו את ריבה מקרוב. מצאנו מתחת למעטה החיצוני שלה אישה נאה, גם בת, אם, רעייה וסבתא טובה. היא גם חברה מסורה ללא גבולות. היא תמיד עסוקה בלעשות טוב למישהו. למרות המכות הקשות, שנחתו עליה במשך חייה, היא הצליחה לשמור על צלם בת האדם ערכית. ריבה יודעת לתת מעצמה למען אהוביה וחבריה. כולנו מאחלים לה, שתזכה באריכות ימים בבריאות טובה! אמן ! מבתיה ואלי פרגר.
רעננה, יולי 2009
לסבתא האלופה, איך כותבים ברכה לסבתא אלופה? לסבתא שיום יום שוחה – כל השנה, שיודעת מה אוהב כל אחד מנכדיה (וניניה) ולכל אחד אורזת קופסה עם מטעמיה. שפותחת תמיד את דלת ביתה, יודעת לייעץ – אך גם מקשיבה, שהיא פשוט סבתא – במלוא מובן המילה. ריבוצ'קה היקרה, בהתחלה הכרנו אותך רק דרך הטלפון, החבילות עם המתנות (מי בליטא ידע מה זה זיפ?), מהסיפורים של אבא ואמא ותמונות. דיאנה פגשה אותך בטיול לרומניה, ממנו היא חזרה עם המון חוויות וסיפורים על הסבתא שלנו ועל המשפחה שיש לנו בישראל. ואז, כשעלינו ארצה, סוף סוף נפגשנו ויצא לנו להכיר אותך באמת, אישה מדהימה, חזקה ותמיד תמיד רוצה לעזור ולתמוך. אף פעם לא מתעייפת, תמיד על הרגליים ותמיד מכינה/מבשלת/אופה/תופרת/עושה משהו למישהו – ממש סבתא על בטריות! אז עכשיו יש לסבתא שלנו יום הולדת, אנחנו רוצות להגיד לך פשוט תודה - על כל התמיכה והעזרה, העצות והאוזן הקשבת. למדנו ממך דברים על החיים, על התמודדויות, ואת תמיד תהיי בשבילנו דוגמא לאישה עצמאית ועוצמתית, שהולכת בעקבות מה שהיא רוצה. למדנו להיות חזקות בזכותך. אוהבות ומעריכות, דיאנה וסימונה.
נ.ב.: סימונה מודה על השניצל והצ'יפס (או לפעמים הצ'יפס והשניצל), ותודה שזה עוד לא נמאס לך. ואריאל מבקשת עוד גרבר תפוחים... לה וליובלי...
תל אביב, יולי 2009
ריבצ'קה. כשגדלתי כמעט לכל חברותיי היתה סבתא שקראו לה בפשטות "סבתא", רק לי היתה "ריבצ'קה". לאורך השנים, למדתי את הדמיון והשוני בין סבתא לבין ריבצ'קה: סבתא מבשלת, לפעמים תופרת, לפעמים סורגת – ריבצ'קה גם. סבתא מפנקת, מנשקת ומחבקת – וריבצ'קה גם. אבל ריבצ'קה – את עוד כל כך הרבה דברים: את תמיד תומכת בי ומעודדת אותי, את חברה ואשת סוד, את מכניסה אותי לפרופורציות כשצריך, וגורמת לי לשאוף ליותר כשאפשר. והכל תמיד בהומור, מתובל בסיפורים ומשלים. ריבצ'קה למרות כל התלאות שהחיים זימנו לך, תמיד עטפת אותנו בהבנה וקבלה, לימדת אותנו לא לשפוט אחרים, והנחלת בנו ערכים של "ואהבת לרעך כמוך". על כל אלו ועוד, אני גאה להיות נכדתך ומודה לך יום יום על אהבתך.
ולכבוד יום הולדתך אאחל לכולנו עוד הרבה שנים טובות וקלות ביחד. שלך,עינת
בגיל צעיר הסברת לי ש"סבתא" קוראים לזקנה, זאת ריבצ'קה, לא "סבתא". קשה לי מאד לקרוא ולערוך את העדות הזו. כשאת מספרת זה נשמע קצת אחרת. ממש עצוב לי שהיו לך זמנים כל כך נוראים בחייך, אפילו בגיל שלושים אני לא מסוגל לתפוס או לעכל את המשמעויות. את נוהגת להזכיר לי שהייתי זעטוט שכבתי במיטה ואת הגעת והתיישבת על המיטה לדבר איתי (כפי שאני זוכר הבאת לי גזר מגורד עם סוכר בקערה) ואמרתי לך משהו כמו: "ריבצ'קה, את גדולה ושמנה, את תשברי את המיטה, אבל לא נורא, בנאדם יותר חשוב ממיטה". לפעמים אני חושב שאולי הייתי נכד לא קל ולפעמים קצת נודניק, למשל ערב אחד שהיית עם חברות שלך ובערב הייתי שואל אם גם היום תביאי לי אוכל למיטה, חייכת אלי ופינקת אותי, עטפת אותי בכמות בלתי נדלית של פינוקים ואהבה והיית מספרת לי סיפורי לילה טוב אפילו שהיית עייפה לפעמים. היה לך סיפור על בית שחור שחור שחור, באמצע יער שחור שחור שחור, עם דלת שחורה שחורה שחורה... זה אף פעם לא הרדים אותי אבל לא הפריע לי בכלל שתספרי לי אותו שוב ושוב ושוב. גם משה, למרות שהצטרף מאוחר יותר למשפחה, קיבל אותי בזרועות פתוחות תמיד, תמיד עזר והסביר לי דברים, עשה להטוטים ועודד אותי להיות יותר סקרן וידידותי. אני חושב שהרבה מאד מהאופי והערכים שלי הושפעו מאד לטובה על ידיך ומשה, ריבה ומשה, "סבא וסבתא" (לא בגלל הזיקנה, אלא הקרבה ללב).
אוהב אתכם. זהר, הנכד.
רעננה, 18 ליולי 2009
ריבצ'קה, אני זוכרת את היום בו עלית ארצה, אשה גבוהה שכל מה שהצלחתי לראות בהיותי בת חמש בלבד הוא את רגליך היפות עטופות גרבי ניילון. את אמא שלך (שהיתה מוכרת לי כ"בבושקה") אשר נפטרה כשהייתי בת עשר אני מכירה בעיקר מעדויות וזכרונות של אחרים, מסיפורייך עולים אומץ ליבה והחוזק הנפשי והפיסי שלה, ונראה לפעמים שצניעותך לא מאפשרת לך לראות עד כמה את דומה לה. את "בבושקה" הכרתי כילדה בלבד ולכן מערכת היחסים שביני לבינך גורמת לי להרגיש ברת מזל, מערכת יחסים שהתפתחה מיחסי סבתא-נכדה ליחסים של שתי נשים בוגרות שמכירות אחת את השנייה וסומכות אחת על השנייה. אני ברת-מזל כיוון שמעבר לזכות שנפלה בחיקי לגדול במחיצתך, לכשבגרתי נפלה בחיקי הזכות לקרוא לך גם חברה שלי ולא "רק" סבתא שלי. אני נוצרת את הזמן שאנו מבלות יחד ואוהבת לשמוע את הסיפורים והזכרונות. עובדות היסטוריות קשות מתערבבות עם אנקדוטות והומור, פנים ומקומות קורמים עור וגידים בזמן שאת מערבבת רוסית ויידיש ומחפשת את המילה המדויקת בעברית כדי לתאר לי את מה שרצית. "תהיי את בסדר, תני לאחר להיות החזיר" "מלאכים יש רק בשמיים, מי שנמצא כאן על האדמה לא יכול להיות מלאך" "הוא לא חכם גדול ולא טיפש קטן" "לא צריך להיות כמו כלב על קש" "צריך רק להמתין, גם ברחוב שלנו תהיה חגיגה" "מיט אה פדר אין הינטן" משפטים כאלו ועוד רבים אחרים מהדהדים בקולך בתוך ראשי ומלווים אותי. הפרגמאטיות שלך, ההתייחסות ההומוריסטית, האמירות השנונות והציניות משתקפים בהווייתי ובכל מעשיי. עוד לא נוצר המעשה שתסרבי לבצע עבורי ועוד לא הומצאה השעה שבה לא תהיי פנויה בשבילי, בין אם לטייל בין אתרי הבניה, לשמוע מה מטריד אותי באמצע הלילה, להכין לי אנטיביוטיקה יהודית (מרק עוף) או לתור את כל חנויות הרהיטים בדרום תל-אביב בשיא הקיץ כדי למצוא את השולחן שרציתי.. תמיד ידעתי שאני קרויה על שם דודה רחוקה, אבל בשיחותינו לאחרונה גיליתי שדודתך שולמית, שאת שמה אני נושאת, היתה האהובה עלייך מכל הדודות ומאוד מרגש אותי לחשוב שהקשר החזק שהיה בין שולמקָה וריבקֶ'ה מהדהד אולי בקשר שבין ריבצ'קה לשולי ועל כך אני גאה. אוהבת
חברתך ונכדתך שולמית.
רוצה להגיד כל כך הרבה דברים אבל קשה לי ואיני יודעת למה ואיך. אני חושבת עלייך ומה את בשבילי ומה את בשביל הילדים ולכל מי שמכיר אותך ועיני מתמלאות דמעות. אם חושבים על אם או על סבתא – את היא הדמות שמחממת את הלב ואת פנייך אנו רואים לפנינו. אני חושבת על ימים רחוקים כשהייתי תינוקת וילדה. זה לא היה פשוט להיות שובבה לידך או לא מחונכת, אם הייתי נוגעת בידי בשולחן.... פעם אחת נגעתי בו בידיים לא נקיות, מיד כששבתי מן הרחוב.... אוחחחח איזה פאץ' אני קיבלתי. לא נגעתי יותר. הלכתי לידו בידיים אסופות ושמורות. ידעת להנחות אותי לשאוף שהדברים יהיו מושלמים, בכל הקשור ללימודים ומטלות. לא מתעצלים, לימדת אותי. פורמים ותופרים מחדש, מוחקים וכותבים שוב, מפרקים ומרכיבים, זורקים ובונים אחרת. עד שייצא מושלם ככל האפשר. דרשת זאת מעצמך ובודאי מאיתנו. אני חושבת עלייך שבעצם יכולת להיות אחותי..... אם צעירה כל כך היית. בת עשרים. מהיכן ידעת כל מה שהיית צריכה לדעת? איך הצלחת לנדוד עם ילדה קטנה לים השחור, לסיביר..... ללא מכונת כביסה.... ללא מייבש... עברת מלחמה... למדת לשרוד... חייך היו כה קשים ואיבדת כל כך הרבה אנשים יקרים לך. באת לכאן אל הארץ שלנו וכאן את מוקפת באוהבייך ובנכדייך ובשתי נינותייך ובנית חיים חדשים וטובים כשמשה לצידך. אנו אוהבים אותך ונהנים איתך ומאחלים לך עוד הרבה שנים טובות ומלאות אהבה ונחת איתנו כולנו. קלרה
моему близкому другу, от которой я получаю всегда помощь, котороя поддержала меня в очень тяжёлое время, которая дарит мне тепло, заботу и внимание, я от всего сердца желаю здоровья, покоя и долгих лет жизни. Очень люблю Вас и всегда рядом.
Жанна
לריבוצ'קה, חברת האמת שלי, שממנה אני תמיד מקבלת עזרה, שתמכה בי בתקופה מאוד קשה, שמעניקה לי חום, דאגה ותשומת לב, אני מאחלת מכל הלב – בריאות, שלווה ואריכות ימים. אוהבת אותך מאוד ותמיד לצידך,ז'נה גולדנברג
ריבה היקרה מזל טוב ליום הולדתך השמונים. הברכות והאיחולים כה רבים אז ננסה לקצר ולא להאריך במילים. ומהן המילים שיוצאות מתוך השמונים? שלווה - שתמיד תהייה שלווה בליבך, מנגינה – שתמיד תהייה מנגינה בראשך, ובריאות – שתמיד תהייה בריאות בגופך, נחת – שתמיד תהייה נחת בביתך, ידידות – שתמיד תהייה ידידות סביבך, משה– כי מָשָׁה אלוהים את משה מהים וחיבר ביניכם בשבועת עולם, אושר, שמחה, צחוק והנאה. מאחלים מכל הלב ובאהבה רבה משפחת פרי המורחבת
ריבה היקרה מזל טוב, דבר ראשון אנו מאחלים לך בריאות ונחת מהמשפחה שלך, שמגיע לך באמת, ועוד שנים רבות עם משה ביחד. עכשיו קצת הסטוריה: אנחנו מכירות וחברות יותר מחמישים שנה, עוד בליטא משנת 1956 ועד 1976 נפגשנו הרבה, חגגנו את החגים היהודיים והחגים הסובייטים ביחד עם חברים רבים, היינו חבורה יהודית. בכל קיץ בילינו עם המשפחות שלנו חופשה ב'פאלאנגה' והילדים שלנו גדלו ביחד. עוד מעט 30 שנה שאנחנו חברות גם במדינת ישראל (אנחנו אומרות גם שאנחנו אחיות). אני רוצה להגיד שחברה כמו ריבה זה חלום של כל אחד: נאמנה, חמה, היא העזרה הראשונה בכל מקרה ולספר לה סוד זה כמו לקיר. היא אף פעם לא מקנאה וזה מאוד חשוב בחברות. ריבה את היית בת מעולה, 'יידישע מאמה' אמיתית, סבתא וסבתא-רבה למופת. ריבינק'ה אנו אוהבים אותך, מכבדים אותך ואני גאה להיות חברה שלך וכמו אחותך. תהיי בריאה, מאושרת, שתהיה לנו נחת ממך.אוהבים רעיה ואריה זלקינוביץ
Наверное, ты неспроста кулинарка, Какую еще поискать! Как видно, судьба научила готовить - Всех блюд и не пересчитать: Соленые блюда, И горькие блюда, И острые блюда Готовила жизнь, И нежные блюда, И сладкие блюда, И блюда такие, что просто держись! Нам стала примером Не только готовки, Учились мы сильными, щедрыми быть. Желаем и дальше Быть точно такою, А ы будем рядом ! Ценить и любить
תרגום: (לא סתם) את קולינרית (מבשלת) מוצלחת, עוד צריך לחפש כמותך, אין הרבה כמותך, כנראה הגורל לימד אותך להכין מגוון עצום של מאכלים, מאכלים מלוחים ,מרים, חריפים,הכינו החיים. מנות עדינות, ומתוקות ומנות יוצאות דופן, מצאת להכין. את נהיית דוגמה בשבילנו לא רק במאכלים שאת מכינה לנו אבל למדנו ממך להיות חזקים ואדיבים. מאחלים בהמשך להישאר כמו שאת ואנחנו נהייה על ידך בשביל להעריך ולאהוב. משפחת ברייטמייר.
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| לוסיק (אריה) בקין ורבקה |
רבקה היקרה, עברו הרבה שנים ואינני חושב שכרגע כדאי להכנס לעבר, על זה אפשר לכתוב ספר. עכשיו אנחנו רוצים לדבר על ההווה. כמה חשוב שחידשנו את הקשר אחרי כל כך הרבה שנים. כאשר הגעת ארצה וקיבלתי אותך בשדה התעופה לא זכרת אותי אבל אני מיד הכרתי אותך מרחוק ואז חזרה אלי כל תמונת העבר שלנו. גם בזמן כתיבת שורות אלו עומדת לפניי התמונה. רבקה, הקמת משפחה לתפארת, מסורה ומלוכדת. גם יוכבד מדברת עלייך כאילו אתן חברות מאז ומתמיד. אחרי המלחמה החיים לא היטיבו איתך אבל נשארת זקופה וחזקה. במיוחד אחרי האסון האחרון שפקד אותך, שהוא בין הקשים- לא נשברת. לפעמים אנו שואלים מאיפה את שואבת את כל הכוחות האלה. הנה הגעת לגיל 80 יחד עם משה ומשפחה תומכת. נשאר לנו רק לאחל לך בריאות טובה, נחת מהמשפחה ושיהיו לכם יחד עוד הרבה שנים טובות. תמשיכו לתמוך אחד בשני ויהיה לכם רק טוב. באהבה, יוכבד ולוסיק (אריה), בקין.
"אמא קטנה" חזרה. הכרתי את ריבה, חברתה של רעייתי בתיה, בנופש יוצא ליטה במלון אסיאנדה במעלות. המלון טובל בירוק העצים. האוייר שם כמעט כמו בשווייץ. בשעות אחרי הצהריים נהגנו לשבת על כסאות נוח מתחת לעצים בדשא. האווירה התאימה למספרי סיפורים. בפעמים אחדות נהנינו מהרצאות מעניינות ומאלפות של בן דודנו האהוב דוד גולן על הלגיונות הרומאיים, על מבנה שלהם ופעילותם באנגלייה בעת כיבושה על ידי הרומאים. ערב אחד ישבנו במקומנו הקבוע כהרגלנו ולמרות שאיפתנו לא לעסוק בפוליטיקה ולא להזכיר את המלחמה הגדולה ההיא, לאט לאט נסובו הסיפורים לזיכרונות אישיים טראומטיים מעברם הכאוב של המסובים. תוך כדי הסיפורים התחילה ריבה לספר את סיפורה המרגש. היא סיפרה על בריחתה מהגטו ביחד עם חברנו לוסיק, בן עיירתה, ריבה נפרדה מאין ברירה מלובה, האימא שלה, אשר נשארה בגטו. האימא נלקחה מהגטו למחנה ריכוז ומשם למחנה עבודה. ריבה לא ידעה מה גורלה. ריבה סיפרה על הצלתה והישרדותה. עם סיום המלחמה היא חזרה לעיירת הולדתה. אחרי זמן מסוים חזרה גם אימהּ לביתן בעיירה. האימא שלימה מחיר כבד על הישרדותה בסבל מתמשך כל חייה. בצעדת המוות ממחנה העבודה לאי שם קפאו רגליה של האימא לובה. עם השחרור על ידי הצבא האדום נלקחו כל החולים, וביניהם גם לובה, לבית חולים. בתיה רעייתי, שהייתה באותו מחנה עבודה, פגשה את לובה בבית החולים. לבתיה נודע אז שהרופאים נאלצו לקטוע את שתי רגליה הקפואות של לובה, כדי להציל את חייה. ריבה סיפרה לנו בדמעות עצורות, איך חזרה לליטא האימא שלה, האישה הגבוהה היפה, כ"אמא קטנה", ללא רגלים מהברכיים ומטה. השמחה של הפגישה בין האם והבת, ששרדו את התופת, מהולה הייתה במנה גדושה של צער ועצב. העיניים של כול השומעים את דברי ריבה המרגשים נצצו מדמעות. רק חלק מאתנו הצליח להסתיר קצת את התרגשותו. אני ניסיתי לחנוק בכי עצור בחזי. בסיפורה המרגש והמיוחד חשפה ריבה את עומק הווייתה, אז נוצרה ההכרות הראשונית עם נשמתה. מאז הכרנו את ריבה מקרוב. מצאנו מתחת למעטה החיצוני שלה אישה נאה, גם בת, אם, רעייה וסבתא טובה. היא גם חברה מסורה ללא גבולות. היא תמיד עסוקה בלעשות טוב למישהו. למרות המכות הקשות, שנחתו עליה במשך חייה, היא הצליחה לשמור על צלם בת האדם ערכית. ריבה יודעת לתת מעצמה למען אהוביה וחבריה. כולנו מאחלים לה, שתזכה באריכות ימים בבריאות טובה! אמן ! מבתיה ואלי פרגר.
לסבתא האלופה, איך כותבים ברכה לסבתא אלופה? לסבתא שיום יום שוחה – כל השנה, שיודעת מה אוהב כל אחד מנכדיה (וניניה) ולכל אחד אורזת קופסה עם מטעמיה. שפותחת תמיד את דלת ביתה, יודעת לייעץ – אך גם מקשיבה, שהיא פשוט סבתא – במלוא מובן המילה. ריבוצ'קה היקרה, בהתחלה הכרנו אותך רק דרך הטלפון, החבילות עם המתנות (מי בליטא ידע מה זה זיפ?), מהסיפורים של אבא ואמא ותמונות. דיאנה פגשה אותך בטיול לרומניה, ממנו היא חזרה עם המון חוויות וסיפורים על הסבתא שלנו ועל המשפחה שיש לנו בישראל. ואז, כשעלינו ארצה, סוף סוף נפגשנו ויצא לנו להכיר אותך באמת, אישה מדהימה, חזקה ותמיד תמיד רוצה לעזור ולתמוך. אף פעם לא מתעייפת, תמיד על הרגליים ותמיד מכינה/מבשלת/אופה/תופרת/עושה משהו למישהו – ממש סבתא על בטריות! אז עכשיו יש לסבתא שלנו יום הולדת, אנחנו רוצות להגיד לך פשוט תודה - על כל התמיכה והעזרה, העצות והאוזן הקשבת. למדנו ממך דברים על החיים, על התמודדויות, ואת תמיד תהיי בשבילנו דוגמא לאישה עצמאית ועוצמתית, שהולכת בעקבות מה שהיא רוצה. למדנו להיות חזקות בזכותך. אוהבות ומעריכות, דיאנה וסימונה.
נ.ב.: סימונה מודה על השניצל והצ'יפס (או לפעמים הצ'יפס והשניצל), ותודה שזה עוד לא נמאס לך. ואריאל מבקשת עוד גרבר תפוחים... לה וליובלי...
תל אביב, יולי 2009ריבצ'קה. כשגדלתי כמעט לכל חברותיי היתה סבתא שקראו לה בפשטות "סבתא", רק לי היתה "ריבצ'קה". לאורך השנים, למדתי את הדמיון והשוני בין סבתא לבין ריבצ'קה: סבתא מבשלת, לפעמים תופרת, לפעמים סורגת – ריבצ'קה גם. סבתא מפנקת, מנשקת ומחבקת – וריבצ'קה גם. אבל ריבצ'קה – את עוד כל כך הרבה דברים: את תמיד תומכת בי ומעודדת אותי, את חברה ואשת סוד, את מכניסה אותי לפרופורציות כשצריך, וגורמת לי לשאוף ליותר כשאפשר. והכל תמיד בהומור, מתובל בסיפורים ומשלים. ריבצ'קה למרות כל התלאות שהחיים זימנו לך, תמיד עטפת אותנו בהבנה וקבלה, לימדת אותנו לא לשפוט אחרים, והנחלת בנו ערכים של "ואהבת לרעך כמוך". על כל אלו ועוד, אני גאה להיות נכדתך ומודה לך יום יום על אהבתך.
ולכבוד יום הולדתך אאחל לכולנו עוד הרבה שנים טובות וקלות ביחד. שלך,עינת
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| ריבה ונכדהּ, זהר קרבלניק |
אוהב אתכם. זהר, הנכד.
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| ארבע דורות של בכורות: (מימין) ריבה, קלרה (מחזיקה את שולי) וליובה |
ריבצ'קה, אני זוכרת את היום בו עלית ארצה, אשה גבוהה שכל מה שהצלחתי לראות בהיותי בת חמש בלבד הוא את רגליך היפות עטופות גרבי ניילון. את אמא שלך (שהיתה מוכרת לי כ"בבושקה") אשר נפטרה כשהייתי בת עשר אני מכירה בעיקר מעדויות וזכרונות של אחרים, מסיפורייך עולים אומץ ליבה והחוזק הנפשי והפיסי שלה, ונראה לפעמים שצניעותך לא מאפשרת לך לראות עד כמה את דומה לה. את "בבושקה" הכרתי כילדה בלבד ולכן מערכת היחסים שביני לבינך גורמת לי להרגיש ברת מזל, מערכת יחסים שהתפתחה מיחסי סבתא-נכדה ליחסים של שתי נשים בוגרות שמכירות אחת את השנייה וסומכות אחת על השנייה. אני ברת-מזל כיוון שמעבר לזכות שנפלה בחיקי לגדול במחיצתך, לכשבגרתי נפלה בחיקי הזכות לקרוא לך גם חברה שלי ולא "רק" סבתא שלי. אני נוצרת את הזמן שאנו מבלות יחד ואוהבת לשמוע את הסיפורים והזכרונות. עובדות היסטוריות קשות מתערבבות עם אנקדוטות והומור, פנים ומקומות קורמים עור וגידים בזמן שאת מערבבת רוסית ויידיש ומחפשת את המילה המדויקת בעברית כדי לתאר לי את מה שרצית. "תהיי את בסדר, תני לאחר להיות החזיר" "מלאכים יש רק בשמיים, מי שנמצא כאן על האדמה לא יכול להיות מלאך" "הוא לא חכם גדול ולא טיפש קטן" "לא צריך להיות כמו כלב על קש" "צריך רק להמתין, גם ברחוב שלנו תהיה חגיגה" "מיט אה פדר אין הינטן" משפטים כאלו ועוד רבים אחרים מהדהדים בקולך בתוך ראשי ומלווים אותי. הפרגמאטיות שלך, ההתייחסות ההומוריסטית, האמירות השנונות והציניות משתקפים בהווייתי ובכל מעשיי. עוד לא נוצר המעשה שתסרבי לבצע עבורי ועוד לא הומצאה השעה שבה לא תהיי פנויה בשבילי, בין אם לטייל בין אתרי הבניה, לשמוע מה מטריד אותי באמצע הלילה, להכין לי אנטיביוטיקה יהודית (מרק עוף) או לתור את כל חנויות הרהיטים בדרום תל-אביב בשיא הקיץ כדי למצוא את השולחן שרציתי.. תמיד ידעתי שאני קרויה על שם דודה רחוקה, אבל בשיחותינו לאחרונה גיליתי שדודתך שולמית, שאת שמה אני נושאת, היתה האהובה עלייך מכל הדודות ומאוד מרגש אותי לחשוב שהקשר החזק שהיה בין שולמקָה וריבקֶ'ה מהדהד אולי בקשר שבין ריבצ'קה לשולי ועל כך אני גאה. אוהבת
חברתך ונכדתך שולמית.
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