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I was born in
Cracow, Poland, the youngest of four children--two sisters and
a brother. Poland was very rough on all minorities, especially
Jews. We lived in a 'ghetto,' where we were restricted to a
very small section from where you wandered to other places at
considerable risk. We were very poor financially. My father
went AWOL from the army and came to New York.
My early childhood was reasonably normal. At the age of three
my mother took me (by force, I must admit) to 'cheder,' a
Hebrew kindergarten. It was useless to object and scream. When
it came to education she was without pity for my
discomfort. It soon became obvious that I could obtain many
favors if my Hebrew school lessons progressed impressively,
and I really excelled in my studies.
This of course made me her favorite and she harbored a belief
that I would become a rabbi. I continued my Hebrew studies in
a Yeshiva and advanced in Hebrew school.
There
were some Jews who lived and worked outside the ghetto. Cracow
was a beautiful city, and for the doctors, lawyers,
scientists and businessmen life was easy and enjoyable. The
city boasted of its many museums, parks, universities and
theatres. |
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They
were, however, restricted to the affluent. The poor Jews
witnessed the pogroms that were frequent and deadly. The
Polish population was always ready to blame the Jews for all
their problems.
The desecration of synagogues was always excused. No
one was ever punished or even questioned. There were many
houses of worship in the ghetto, three on one block. Most of
them were Orthodox, a few Conservative and one Reform. The
Reform temple was where non-Jewish women were part of the
choir (the singing group that assisted the cantor.) Of course,
we were not allowed to visit or even to stop and listen. We
treated that synagogue as we did the Christian churches.
As I understand from later stories, our family (before my
father's exodus) was successful financially. Dad and Mom ran a
tailor shop. My brother was cared for by a young woman who was
learning the trade. Her duties included all the household
chores including the care of the children. Conditions changed
when my father left for the United States. Mother was forced
to close the tailor shop and had to find work at another
shop. The pay was barely enough for minimal existence. On
many days our meals consisted of cereal, potatoes or rice
dishes. It must be said that Jewish women made meals from
nothing. No wonder they make such good cooks. They certainly
learned to improvise.
My father, after living nine years in the United States with
his sister and her family, saved enough money to send for my
oldest sister and brother. There were two reasons for his
choosing my brother and sister. One reason was that he had
little money. Second, they were old enough to work. They both
found work immediately. They all lived in one apartment, about
twelve people.
Approximately three years after my brother and sister came to
the United States, my mother received the good news that the
three of us were finally going to the 'promised land.' We
became instant celebrities. All of our friends and neighbors
envied our good fortune. We were going to America where the
streets were strewn with gold and everybody lived in mansions
with private baths in each room, there was a good job for
every person willing to work, and abundant food for every
table. We knew better, but we were certainly were not going to
set them straight. We were enjoying the attention too much.
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Pictured in photograph
shown above (lt. to rt.): Jacob, Abraham, Rose and Sylvia Messinger,
c. 1920-1.
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