Our 1st Departure To obtain the papers necessary for emigration to America, Dorothy's mother arranged for a substitute father to accompany them on their journey. Dorothy found this stranger difficult to accept.
Dorothy's mother allowed herself to be persuaded to delay their departure until after the Shavuoth holiday. Eventually, then, the family said their goodbyes to a crowd of neighbors and boarded the train, which was filled with Russian soldiers, some of whom abused the Jews they found aboard. The family arrived at Brest Litovsk, an impressive city, where they were to stay in a rooming house until their next train departed -- to Antwerp.
In Antwerp, the family moved into another rooming-house to await the departure of their ship. After a long wait, they discovered the departure had been canceled. Their tickets were worthless. They said goodby to their substitute father, and pondered their next move. As their funds were dwindling, Dorothy's mother made a decision to leave Antwerp, to return home. She bought tickets to Kobryn, the home of her in-laws, and the family departed for a long difficult journey on trains crowded by soldiers, in the process abandoning their possessions. Arriving at Kobryn, the family struggled to make their way to Dorothy's grandparents' home, where they were welcomed. But the modest home was crowded, and Dorothy's mother decided to leave as quickly as they could. After a few days they boarded a wagon for Wysokie Litewskie.
