Chapter 3I was 18 years old when I passed the driving test. I was a very proud teenager with a driver’s license. While I was the only female driver in the county, our car was the only privately owned car in the city of Lida. My driving instructor was Adolph. Adolph was the driver for the fire department .He also was our gardener and a handyman as long as we owned the property with an orchard and a vegetable garden Adolph also took care of the horse. I still remember and follow his driving instruction until now.
My parent’s social life had changed. They did not join the circle they were part off, when we had wealth. When we lost almost everything, we also lost so-called friends. No invitations to dinners came. I do not think my that parents missed the parties. They always had a deep pride, and were secure in their value. Ella and I inherited the self-assurance of our parents. They found new social circle, mostly Poles. The dear friend was a senior officer of the Polish Army, Major Wrona. His nephew, an army cadet, was my escort to dances at the Gymnasium. There was also a Colonel Majewski. My mother always suspected that his wife was a convert from Judaism. They visited often and were considered to be good friends. The rise of anti-Semitic politics in Poland did not affect the relationship. We lost each other when the Red Army of Stalin invaded Lida
My parents were party animals. They attended black tie balls given by the officers club as well as by Jewish organization. I loved to watch them getting dressed. My father struggling with his bow tie and mother, with her figure shaped by a corset, getting into a long black fitted gown with a corsage of fresh flowers delivered at the last moment.
In 1938 I graduated from Gymnasium. I applied for admission to the Academy of Stomatology in Warsaw. That was the university attended by my parents, my uncle and two of my aunts. The times changed. After the death of Marshal Pilsudski, and with the rise of Hitler propaganda, there was also the rise of anti-Jewish movements in Poland. It began with a boycott of Jewish stores, and violence in the streets of the cities. The Universities limited the admission of Jewish students. Jews were not permitted to seat on the right side of a classroom. In protest, the Jewish students attended lectures, standing in the back of the classroom. In 1939, in one of the violent demonstrations, a Jewish student was killed at the University of Lvov. More demonstrations followed. At that time I was in France.
When I applied for admission to the University, my parents’Alma Mater, the admission policy has changed and very few Jews were accepted. The secretary of the dean was my mother’s admirer. She tried to use her charms that had been successful for the admission of my father my aunt, and my uncle. The non- Jewish friends of my parents were upset. One of the ladies traveled to Warsaw to use her influence but it did not work .It was the decision of my parents that I should enter a School of Bacteriology while awaiting a possible admission to the University the following year. I moved to Warsaw with my cousin Sophie (Sonya Glazman). We rented a furnished room, and Sophie was my chaperon. It was because of her influence and her help, that I changed from a shy, provincial girl to a sophisticated young lady. Sophie (Sonya) was beautiful. She was a tall, slim blonde with blue-green eyes .Her taste for dresses was exquisite. She had a talent to copy the most expensive design and to direct the seamstress and the tailor to follow her sketches. As a result of her talents and my parents’ money, I was a well-dressed young woman.
I was not happy attending the school. The curriculum did not satisfy my desire to learn. I explained the reasons to my parents and it was decided that I go to Paris to enter a Medical School. There was a lot of paperwork to be done .I had to have my documents certified at the Department of Education. The application to a French medical school had to be approved by the French Embassy. All done, I left Warsaw to Lida, to pack and to tell goodbyes to family and friends. I was not aware of the danger of the unsettled political situation.
The last dinner with the family was tearful. I received a
gift, an amethyst
ring with pearls, made especially for me from my maternal
grandmother’s
earring. This ring I saved throughout all my war adventures and
travels.
I still have it, and I hope my granddaughter Sarah will wear it one
day.