Dorothy Kraus Memoir - Visiting Aunt Esther in Pruzhany

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Dorothy Kraus Memoir

Visiting Aunt Esther in Pruzhany
It was about then that I was invited to visit my aunt Esther, who lived in Pruzhany, which was about thirty miles from Wysokie Litewskie.

Actually, it was mother's idea that I should go and live with Esther and her husband, Tolle, because she knew they had enough food to spare and that I would be well-treated there. I hated to go away from mother. We had always been so close. But she persisted and finally persuaded me. So one day I got on a wagon with my little pack of clothing and arrived at Pruzhany.

Esther was the second beauty in the family, mother being the first! Esther was dark, tall, upright, almost regal, and had long black hair. She was always gentle and seldom lost her temper. Everybody said that Esther had a good life. Tolle, her husband, was somewhat older than she. He fell in love with her at first sight and kept pestering her until she gave in and married him.

Tolle was a big macher (doer). He had several kinds of geshefts (businesses), some legal and some questionable. Tolle was a good-looking man, blond though getting on the baldish side. He had a pot belly which gave further proof of a man of the world. He liked flattery, was a real show-off, in fact. He had a good siging voice and often substituted for the chasen (cantor) in the synagogue for the high holidays. His reputation included that of a bluffer, an exaggerator and a gad-about. But he was nice to people. He dressed well, had long fingernails and went to the barber to be shaved. He spoke Polish most of the time and impressed everyone as one of the elite, almost a goy.

They lived in a big house which was left them by his parents though part of the house was occupied by his two spinster sisters. There was little contact between them and Tolle's family. They considered Esther beneath them, convinced that their brother had married out of his class.

The younger sister was quite handsome. She had blond hair, blue eyes and dressed very well. But she wasn't friendly. She never spoke to anyone while passing through the long corridor to their part of the house.

Seated: My uncle Tolle with my cousin Henoch on his knee and my grandmother, at the right.
Standing: My aunts Miriam and Esther, my uncle Nathan, and myself at the age of five, wearing my new dress with the butterfly collar.
The picture was taken when my grandmother came to Pruzhany to say goodbye to Esther and Tolle before her departure for America.

The older sister was very strange. She seldom left the house and her major occupation was house-cleaning. Everything had to be spotless. She liked me and whenever she would see me in the hallway would call me and ask that I come closer. Then she would talk of things which I did not understand. She wore and apron and a kerchief on her head. When talking to me, she leaned on the broom-handle while the map and pail of water were close by. She would scrub the floors almost daily and they looked bright and shiny even at a distance. But she never invited me into her part of the house, always giving me the excuse that the floors were not dry yet. I asked Esther what was the matter with her and she said simply: “She is crazy!”

One day, Tolle's aunt, a handsome youngish lady, and her young son came for a visit. They lived in Warsaw and she spoke only Polish. They stayed for lunch and Tolle ate with them. The rest of us made ourselves scarce. When she was asked what she wanted to drink, her reply was “milk”. Tolle accepted her request but Esther and I looked askance. How could you do that, eat “fleishedik mit michedik?” (meat with dairy foods) in a Jewish house!

Editor's Notes: This article demonstrates that travel was possible in the region, despite the war.

This material is from Original Page 41, Original Page 42, and Original Page 42a.

Page Last Updated: 23-Oct-2012