Anonymous (Part III)

(Continued from Part II…)

How did you decide that you wanted to be a nurse?

I like science. My older sister wanted to be an engineer; she liked math and became a math professor. My other sister likes books—law books. She memorized a speech from beginning to end.

I’ve always liked science, even when I was little. I liked to look at science pictures and science books. My dad always said, “Why are you looking at all those science books about how your heart works?” I just always liked to do that. That’s how it is, though; you find what you like to do, and then you study it. You go into it, and the deeper you go, the better you like it. The human body is a wonderful machine. Treat it well. That’s good advice. Treat your body well, yes.

Did you and your husband travel around the world?

Oh, yes. He traveled to Japan for work. I was supposed to go with him, but I couldn’t go because when I didn’t work anymore, I volunteered a lot in the library and was the school nurse. I was busy all the time, sometimes doing home care for elderly friends. See, I learned how to use my time; you have to be efficient because there’s a lot of work. You don’t get much time for yourself, but you don’t need time for yourself! (We all laugh…) You can always go to sleep.

What is one of your main accomplishments that you’re most proud of?

Everything. Sometimes, when I was young and working in surgery, we would get patients from France, Libya, and Algeria. There was a princess, a very nice lady, who needed surgery at our university hospital. I was asked to fly home with her after the surgeries. So I did. I could just stay a couple of days and then go back to work.

I’ve always liked adventure. That’s great that you jumped at any opportunity. As long as I was available… I just used all of my days off because in France, we didn’t have many days off, but that has changed a lot in the last fifty years. In France at that time, we worked six days a week, but I tried to introduce them to the five-day work system, which was hard to do (with new laws for the workplace and muck more). Now, it is done.

I also tried to install the new intensive care for big surgeries and to train specialized nurses. That’s why my surgeons sent me there [to the United States]. So you could bring back these ideas and concepts. Right, to work more efficiently.

You said that reading was one of your hobbies. Do you have any other hobbies that you do right now?

Well, I swim everyday here, and in the wintertime, since the pool is not heated, I go to our gym and enjoy the spa. I always have much writing and reading to do.

This is just a funny question: if you could support one genre of fine arts, what would it be?

I love the symphony and Opera, operetta. We love pretty music in my family. My sister was a pianist, and her husband was an organist; I think he played every church organ in Europe. He’s a great person. I like music—concert music, and when we were young, we all played the piano.

Have you had any pets during your life?

Who has time? If I lived in the country, I would like a Great Dane. I love the Danes. Some French have Danes; they’re just adorable dogs. I don’t like the little Chihuahuas. (We laugh…)

What are some of your philosophical beliefs about life?

You have to enjoy life. You have to be happy with what you do. Don’t look down at what you could’ve done; do it! Do something nice. Have life in you. Be energetic. Help someone who needs it; there is plenty of need for it.

Yesterday, looking down from my balcony, I did a lifesaving act—poor guy. I went down to the pool fast. He couldn’t get out of the pool. He’s a very nice person; he lost his balance. He couldn’t get back on his feet, so he was hanging on the handrail and just lying on the steps. He couldn’t figure out how to put his feet down. He kept on lying there with his head in the water off and on and called for help. He thanked me profusely afterward.

How would you define a successful life, and what do you think has made your life successful?

Just having a positive outlook on your life, and listen. There’s so much to learn from other people, and I’ve learned from everybody. I learned from you. You’re pretty young to do all that [interviewing]. Are many young girls interested in that nowadays? Would you like to become a journalist or a writer? You are on the right track, already a Girl Scout. Congratulations. Thank you so much!

I know my granddaughter’s boyfriend is a nice guy; he is an Eagle Scout. He is very outgoing, plays the saxophone well, and is always helping someone. You have to prove a good attitude and respect and stay dedicated to your work, your faith, and your actions. I think you’re right; I think it’s the way you grow up, too. Yes, you have to be taught when you are young. Yes, and seeing the way things are when you don’t have food and learning to survive. It was tough… even now, see, because you still have that barrier. I can still remember when my parents were mistreated. You know, you don’t forget that in your life, but you will try to forgive. It affects you in some ways, and I know some people who do not know what war is, only when you are in the middle of it. But science is interesting; science is so wonderful. Now, they have come up with this nanotechnology, though; I haven’t gotten that yet. (We laugh…)

It really is amazing how technology has opened the doors to knowledge and everything. I know; it’s amazing. It’s unbelievable, but my husband had, at that time, a lot of knowledge about that. When he started with his company in programming—when I met my husband (husband-to-be, at that time)—his company in the 60’s had computers that were big drums. The computers had to sit on a solid big block of cement with a certain cool temperature in the room. And the printouts… they were little strips of paper with holes in them. I would say, “How do you read that?” He would say, “Oh, I can read that. It’s easy.” (We all laugh…) It’s totally different, now.

It’s mindboggling how technology came from those big drums. It was very expensive to have those machines in the office like that. They got smarter and smarter—and now those computers are getting smaller and smaller. I have to learn how it works. Well, we will never know enough; the children will learn and know much more in the coming years of their use.

You can find all kinds of information and much, much more. Now, I have a cell phone. My son would say, “Keep your phone hanging around your neck, so you find it fast when I call; it might be my last call.” When he learned to fly helicopters, he was in Kuwait and Korea.

Were you really scared for [your son when he was overseas]?

Yes, I was always worried for him. He’s doing a very good job, like his dad. Now, I get after him because he’s too strict. He says, “Mom, you taught me that.” Yeah, right… (We laugh…) Blaming it on you… He’s so efficient, too, and with a good memory. I guess I had a good memory, too, when I was younger.

When I was working, I used to go climbing in the mountains—high mountains, on a rope. That’s amazing. What kind of mountains have you climbed? In the Alps. You have to go to the Alps if you go to Europe. You haven’t seen Europe if you haven’t seen the Alps. I remember one named L’aiguille du Midi, which is part of the High Alps, which is about 15,000 to 16,000 feet high. If you climb up that mountain, you’re going to see the world.

Did you climb it? No. On the ropes you did, wow. We went down by skiing. That’s a major accomplishment. That’s amazing! That’s one thing I learned when I went to college. In high school, we didn’t have time, and it was a very expensive sport. You need a lot of training before you climb high. We didn’t have time because we had so much to learn. So, in college, you learned how to ski, and you skied down that mountain. Yes, but slowly. It was fresh air; I’ve always liked fresh air. Fresh air is important, not air conditioning.

What advice do you have for young people, like me?

Learn, learn, learn as much as you can, and I add, you never stop learning; it is an ongoing process. There’s so much to learn, to see, to hear. Help others. Stay mobile, stay active, stay in good physical shape. Eat the right foods, but do not forget to pray.

Anonymous (Part II)

(Continued from Part I…)

What were high school and college like for you?

High school was wonderful, and we lived in Strasbourg, which was a very big city. So, you went back to Strasbourg to your house? Yes, after the war, we went back to our house; that was a relief. With what little we had, we were happy. Dad never complained; he was happy, and so were we. Of course, it was hard when the Nazis were looking for him, especially for my mother. I remember, one time, I was crying. Then, a soldier hit me in the face to be quiet, and I fell against the wall and got a bloody nose.

So, in high school, it was wonderful. I went to school in Notre Dame Catholic high schools. It was bombed during the war; my sister was there at that time. Then, the school closed, and we attended public school. My mother had the perception that it was daylight again. We could talk; we could breathe; we could pray.

During high school and college, we always excelled. My older sister is a brain; she’s a walking encyclopedia—both of them! Me—I’m more sporty and outdoorsy. I knew I had to learn it, though, so I had to study hard during my spare time.

College was a wonderful time in my life, and that town had several big colleges. As our home was only a few miles away, we never had to be in a dorm. We could always go home. That was wonderful… so we never really experienced the dorm life.

When I was a student nurse at the hospital, we had to spend sometimes months where we had night duty. That was very difficult at the beginning, as you had to be up all night. While you were studying to be a nurse? Yes, in training. Did you work in a hospital? You had to do practice time. You had classes in the morning, and then in the afternoon, you had to be with the patients on the floor—or patients in the morning and classes in the afternoon. You had several years to get your degree to become a R.N. (three or four years), but there’s always more to learn. Anyway, that’s college, and both of my sisters went to college for many years.

What kind of things did you do for fun as a teenager?

You know, we didn’t have much time. We had fun going to school; that’s fun, you know. To me, that’s enough. We had to get to school on bicycle or by the Rail Tramway—the electrically connected thing. After the change to the bus system, people liked it; the bus was so much more accurate time-wise. We started the hospital training for my classes at seven o’clock in the morning, and for some classes you had to come back in the afternoon. In some areas, we still used the Tramway. It was running until late evening. Buses were sometimes caught in a jam; I remember that, but all went well.

You could not be late because nursing in the fifties was a very strict life. Do you know the name Florence Nightingale? Mm-hmm… Who was she? Well, I know she was a nurse. Wasn’t it during the war? Yes, she was rigid and our director! She was British, and her first name was Florence, too. (We all laugh…) It was very good, though, to learn how to do nursing.

Anyway, later, I started to learn to play tennis… and swimming, too. Swimming was mandatory during the German time. You had to be fit, so we had swimming once or twice a week—45 minutes in the swimming pool. There was a big bathhouse because Germans are crazy with fitness. You had to be fit; you had to know how to march, you know. And this was when you were little, too? Yes. The bathhouse was a big building with a huge pool, and it was three meters deep (that’s about ten feet). And, we would jump. Oh, I love to jump! (We all laugh…) My sisters didn’t like it, but I was more daring. They were more daring with the books, and I was more daring with traveling and exploring, but I enjoyed learning about geography a lot.

When you were in high school or college, did you do any dating or go on any fun dates?

High school… we didn’t have time—no dating. We were three girls and enjoyed it. It was always possible to bicycle, to swim, to knit, and we did a lot of hiking on the weekends. It was not part of our life. I only learned about big “graduation” when I came her in the US. We were having a reward but not a class “cap and gown” celebration.

With our parents, we had lots of games and quizzes about our lessons. That was very challenging. My wonderful mother used to be a teacher. My sisters were brilliant, so I had to keep up with them… like it or not. (We all laugh…) But I sincerely have to compliment them.

Well, I remember that during the winter season, on Sundays, we did family games (memorization games), and everybody played. Oh, and we played the piano; we all played the piano. We played six hands on the piano when we were young. My mother also played the violin. We played piano a lot and had to practice, as we had lessons, rehearsals, and recitals. We always played by heart. That’s the only way to retain it. Memorization is good, but my mother always said, “Repetition is the mother of learning.” Tell that to your children.

When did you meet your husband?

One of the surgeons (a brilliant guy) with whom I had worked for about 15 years had just come back from a big surgical convention in St. Louis, Mississippi. He came by and said, “I want you to go to the states for an exchange program.” That’s how I got here! My mother said, “Why do you want to go there? Okay, learn more and learn well.” (We all laugh…) “Make sure you take advantage of what you learn.”

It was a magnificent three-year experience from New York to the west coast! American nurses went to France, and French nurses came to the US. At the time, you had to pay your own way, but in return, you received your salary. Every hospital required paperwork. They had you tested in the English language, your knowledge of R.N., and the specialty you requested. You had to be working about ten or fifteen years in your field before you could inquire about an exchange program.

For example, one of my girlfriends wanted also to apply; her specialty was kidney dialysis. We graduated at the same time with high grades. We never knew how high up we had graduated, though; we never tried to find out until then, as we had great jobs. We were at the top. We were both happy that we had graduated high in the class.

Where did you stay in the United States?

First, you had to look for a hospital offering exchange programs. The first hospital I went to was in Seattle, Washington because my girlfriend said, “We better start on the other side and work our way back.” (We all laugh…) She said, “If we start in New York, we’re never going to make it to the other side.”

It was smart because the hospital in Washington State was a wonderful university hospital. (We tried to be at the same hospital.) In France, at that time, she was in the medical ward, which was a different building than where I was; I was in the surgical building. Anyway, we had to choose a good hospital, and we got lucky. You could not stay more than one year in one place, but you had to stay at least six months. It was perfect because we had a whole state to explore… even the American continent.

When we finally made it to the hospital, we had different tests and all routine for work. It’s funny because there were other nurses in the same classes who wanted to get a job at that hospital. We did better than the American kids. It made us think, “What are they learning?” (We laugh…) “Cream of the crop,” they called us.

Washington was a nice state. We had patients from Alaska because in 1963, there was a big earthquake. Do you know anybody who was in that earthquake? It was an 8.2 earthquake, a very big earthquake. Half of Anchorage fell in the water. It was very bad, and some patients still had surgeries a year after that.

We went to see a patient’s home in Fairbanks, as it was a “log-house.” It was beautiful, and they kept it warm by hanging big “bear furs” all along the walls—great insulation. It’s very interesting; we saw many eagles. I had never been in a log-house before. It was wonderful, so we did quite a bit of exploring. One time, we went there in June on one of the longest days where there was daylight past midnight. We were up all night flying back to Seattle, and before seven o’clock, we were at our job. Did you get any sleep? Oh, I do not believe so, and we worked hard and well that day.

After that, we went to Arizona. Oh, and that’s totally different! Yes, and a great state with a beautiful desert. We wanted that because they had a good program, and we wanted to go out there to see the Grand Canyon and the famous cacti.

Then, we went to New York at our nursing job. That was only available at that time. It was the big Bronx hospital with many patients; we worked on double shift.

Which was your favorite place? Do you have a favorite?

New York, I loved New York at that time.

So, through this program, you were able to travel?

Oh, yes. Because we could work in general schedule well and organize our days off (we usually had an eight-hour workday), it was paradise. In France, we had longer hours in a workday, up to 10 or more per day and 6 days a week. We worked from seven o’clock in the morning to ten o’clock at night six days a week in Europe! But here, we worked double shifts often to midnight (from seven to three and three to midnight), and I was back the next morning at seven. You have to be determined and motivated to work. I don’t regret anything; New York was a great place to work and to learn.

When you came to America, I bet you discovered a lot of cultural differences. Did you like the cultural differences?

I expected that because I was told about it. You have to be informed, especially if you want to get a paying job. Also, you have to have an assigned doctor as a sponsor before your arrival, who checks on your work and gives you important information about work ethics, etc. I returned to him or her my reports.

I met my husband in Arizona.

The sponsor, a surgeon, had three sons, and one of the sons had an office next to my husband-to-be (all in the same building); he had a computer business there. The son invited my husband-to-be to the farewell party for the nurses. His Dad said, “Why don’t you come; we have some French, Australian, and Swiss nurses.” Even some young Swiss and British interns were part of it. It was wonderful.

So that’s how you met your husband? Yes, that’s how I met him. It was in Arizona. It’s nice and sunny and warm with palm trees, which are a delight to see. It was gorgeous. My husband-to-be said, “It was nice meeting you. I think I might come to see you in France.” I thought, “Yeah, you will…” (Laughs…) He did! He came over there to see me… he wanted to meet my family and tried to talk me into coming back over here.

So, you actually went back to France after… Oh, yeah, after the three-year program, you had to return and bring back to your country what you had learned.

When he came to France, he arrived about four months later. He came right away to the hospital where I was working, went to a waiting room, and with the Big Boss passing by, asked him (in French!) whom he wanted to see. That was a big new story that day.

Before I left from the US, I had planned another last class there about the BIRD breathing machines, adaptable for babies or adults. I don’t know if you know what a Bird machine is. It’s a breathing machine used during surgery or for other things. That was back in the United States? Yes, that was in Palm Springs, and he said, “Okay, I’ll come see you.” So he was persistent! Yes…

When did you both get married?

We got married in 1968. In France or the United States? Here [in the United States], and one year later, we had one son. He went to West Point. He’s now past forty. He was tiny when he was born, really tiny—five pounds, but he made it. He’s a big boy, now, in the Army and is also a pilot. (We laugh…) Yep, he flies helicopters. Later, he married, and he has a lovely family with four beautiful children.

Do you remember what your wedding day was like?

Wonderful. We were married just past 40 years. We had a great life together. He was a very caring, generous person. He has a lovely family, still living in Texas, and we all spend so many interesting celebrations together. I am so happy about that. I will keep alive those special memories.

My husband died too fast, after only a few weeks. Was that recently? Just four years ago. That’s why my son moved me here (talking about the retirement community). He didn’t want me to stay in California. I had a beautiful house—a big house, big garden with peach trees, grapes, fig trees, apple trees. I miss that, but my son wouldn’t have time to go back there; it takes a whole day to fly there. He’s so organized and meticulous just like I used to be. Everything has to be just right; he has zero tolerance with it. (We all laugh…) He’s fantastic.

Did you and your husband keep French traditions in the family?

French traditions? I wouldn’t say so. Did he already know French when you got married? Some, we went there about every year when my son was growing up, so he could learn languages. He spoke French and learned Alsatian—it’s a dialect. He was very good at learning dialects.

 

(To be continued in Part III…)

Anonymous (Part I)

 (Born 1933)

 

I was born in France. My family lived in France, and we were three little girls. My dad built a house in 1938 outside of Strasbourg, which is outside of Paris toward the German border. I was five years old, and my sisters were seven and nine years old. In 1939, World War II broke out, so then we had to leave our lovely house. We had to get away, so we were evacuated from Strasbourg. Can you imagine a dad who just built his house debt free and then had to leave it?

My father was raised in a nice, little town in Alsace. His father was the mayor of the little town. His grandfather and back to several generations, relatives were also mayor of the town. They were very hardworking, nice people and a very interesting, motivated family. They had a big farm with lots of grapevines, wheat, and hops and also chickens, cows, horses, and greyhound dogs.

What town did you grow up in?

It was a suburb of Strasbourg. My father built his house so that we could see the majestic and beautiful cathedral, built over 1,000 years ago, just about three miles away, and to admire it from our balcony. I remember well, after the war, the cathedral bells were always ringing every evening at ten o’clock for fifteen minutes. It was and still is so beautiful and added many lights.

Did you all go to the cathedral in Strasbourg every Sunday?

Well, we were three miles away. My dad had a car, but we also had bus transportation or Tramway. Do you know what the Tramway is? It goes on rails, the connection is electric wires, and it doesn’t make any pollution. It’s nice, and it’s quiet.

Nevertheless, we were evacuated in 1939 for two years, and my dad sometimes tried to go back to Strasbourg, but the Gestapo were closing roads in our old neighborhood. It was an organized place; they wanted to live in our house. We had a telephone in there. My dad was so worried, and we were young.

He was an engineer. He graduated from engineering school in Strasbourg when he was 21 years old. He was a very smart person and liked mathematics. He was very worried about what would happen to the house—the beautiful house, the beautiful cathedral. Sometimes he didn’t come home fast; my mother worried because you could not drive many kilometers. Whenever he didn’t come home, she worried that he got caught by the Gestapo, which happened. It happened? Oh yeah, it happened… Then, they searched what could be in his car.

Was it really scary? Did you and your sisters realize what was going on?

Well, my mother was a teacher, teaching history and French. She was also born in Alsace, and her parents had a bakery store. She loved history. (I didn’t like history because it’s just what you saw around you at that time.) We were often scared, very scared. Next to the house we were in, the neighbor was a butcher. Actually, he was not a butcher; he just had a big farm. I know that sometimes, the Nazis came and wanted a pig, so he had to kill a poor, little pig. You would hear the pig squealing; it’s unpleasant to hear when you are young. I always felt sorry for that little pig. The Nazis were the only ones who got the meat. Normally, we didn’t get anything. It was a very poor living—not poor living, but there was nothing available.

What town did you all evacuate to? Was it still in France?

At the first house, I don’t remember the name. I was trying to look for it in my old school papers to find the name, but I did not. It was still in France, further inland, away from the border.

The second town was a bit larger. It was a nice, big house and used to be the City Hall. Two staircases brought you to the ornate door. We lived there in two rooms, looking down at a garden where there were lots of tall weeds. It seemed also dilapidated and half destroyed on one side, and there were lots of holes on the neighbors’ wall. There were five of us there. I also remember a beautiful roof with colored tiles; a lot were broken or missing.

Was it in the countryside or further south?

The second one was closer to Strasbourg. The first one was more in the countryside, and it was a hilly area.

Our mother was protecting us very much from the things that could happen… if the Nazis snatched us, you know. It was hard, but we survived. We could go back after two years to our big home. My dad had a sister who had a big farm, and she would get some food for us sometimes, like a little bit of fresh butter or eggs, because we were so limited on what we could buy. We had the coupons, and you could get maybe a loaf of bread for the five of us a day; that’s it.

We were very limited on what you could get. It was very hard, and my mother was so skinny. A little bottle of milk was sometimes all she could get for all five of us. I remember one time, I tipped the glass over at the table, and so I licked it off the table because it was still good. It was on the table, but it was so good. You don’t want to lose that because when you don’t have any food, it is precious. You lick every drop of it because it’s good—delightful. Even water was good.

Did you have any animals—a cow or a chicken?

Animals? No, you couldn’t have any animals. Only if you lived in the countryside—you might have a dog or a cat, but no, you would need to feed them, too. To have a chicken would be beneficial; an extra egg would have been a luxury.

Did your family know any Jewish families who lived in Strasbourg?

Oh, a few of them. They were hiding. Some people were hiding Jewish people. That is why the Gestapo was always searching, but beware if they found some hiding.

Anyway, after that, we returned after about two years, but the war was still going on in Italy. In our neighborhood, the Battle of the Bulge was going on. It was not far from us. When we got back home, we had to go to a German school there. And participate in the Hitler Youth? Oh, yes, and if you didn’t do it, your parents were penalized. So, we learned. It was a tough time.

My dad had a radio, but they confiscated so much in your house. They knew we had a radio and wanted to take it away, but my dad was hiding it very well. One of our neighbors was helping my dad because he was not going to join the Nazi Army. So, our neighbor was hiding him. We didn’t know, and then, we were searched by the Nazis. They would kick our door open and search all through the house.

Was this in the house in Strasbourg or after you evacuated? This was when we came back to Strasbourg, yes. That was really tough because they kept a good watch on us. It lasted several months (when he was hiding), and then, he knew through the radio that the Americans were landing in Normandy. It was no time to go outside your house because there was a man always leaning over on windows, helping the Nazis, and giving them information. So he was a spy? I do not know. It’s so amazing that I still remember that guy leaning on the window all day and all night. He never rolled the shutter down, so he could always watch the neighborhood

Another of our neighbors across the street was the owner of the brewery. He often invited the Gestapo and Nazis to his house. His son, who was my age, kept telling them, “We are still speaking French together when we play.” We were born as the French, but we had to learn German at the school. You had to be careful to whom you talked and be aware of suspicious people. A lot of suspicion… We learned more about diplomacy after the war; they talked to us about that at school—the behavior and mentality of people, especially in wartime when food was scarce and when people were under much fear and stress.

Who talked to you about that (the mentality of people)?

In schools and our parents. My mother was really good at that. You have to be very careful about how people judge you and how they defend themselves about it, how they are just pointing their fingers at people even though they are the ones who are doing the bad things. (During the nights when they were searching, they would just kick our door open, search every corner, throw everything out of the closet to find something French.) My mother was hiding the French books very well. She was a teacher.

So, they were just trying to erase French culture and submerge the country with German culture?

Yes, the school was pretty tough, and the teachers also. Were they really strict (the teachers)? Yes, and when you are young, it has much impact on you. My older sister was thirteen by the end of the war, and she even had to dig ditches. You were really supposed to be fourteen and a boy, but she was thirteen. She had to go to dig ditches already. Ditches for…? Yes, they dug deep ditches, so the Germans could hide in ditches and shoot at the Americans when they came. Oh, like trenches. The children were the ones who had to dig those? Wow, I didn’t even realize that. Yes, and she was only thirteen. Did you have to dig, as well? No, I was only nine.

That was during the last five or six months before the Americans landed in Normandy. When the Americans arrived in Strasbourg in their huge and heavy talks, all the houses were shaking, and they threw us chewing gum.

Did you say that Strasbourg was the city that you were born in?

Strasbourg is in Alsace, I was born in Lorraine, and my dad was a surveying architect, surveying the city. He was also an engineer, and he graduated in 1921. He was born in 1900; he was just twenty-one years old. I have some nice pictures of him where all the men had hats on. Did you know that? They had hats on! (Laughs…) They were very stylish and dressed up in their suits and their ties and everything.

I think it’s wonderful to be so in touch with your heritage.

Yes, it’s important. I think it’s very nice. My older sister was a mathematician, a great mathematician, a doctor in mathematics. She taught math to the guys who went to the moon. It’s above me. (Laughs…) In this country? In France.

My son, along with Dad and I, flew over Europe often so that my son would learn English, French, and German because Strasbourg is Alsace. (Usually, here in the US, it is called Alsace-Lorraine, 2 different counties.)

Could you spell the name of the town you were born in?

Metz. M-e-t-z. During the war, they built a big Maginot Line. If you like history, you’re going to have to learn that. They built it so that the Germans wouldn’t pass through there. Oh, we learned about that! And they thought that the Germans wouldn’t be able to pass, but then, they passed through Belgium, right? Right, it was a big battle, “The Battle of the Bulge.” Four of my mother’s cousins (four boys) were all shot. Even two of them were at a much younger age. Oh, it was just miserable, so sad.

I remember so much about the Nazis because when you are young, it stays with you for the rest of your life. We are very sensitive of what we see and hear. You do not grow out of it. Every war brings back memories. You have a fearful reminder as you live through each other war. A lot of children in Iran and Iraq—do you think they’re going to remember all that? They’re going to remember that, whether in a good way or a very bad way.

All of my sisters and I have three names Do you go by both names, like double names? Not really, but we record them as they are in many documents, on passports and others. (She tells me some of the names.) They’re beautiful names.

Yes, the saint of Odile was the daughter of an emperor from Alsace-Lorraine from the time of the 4^th century. A very intelligent person (the emperor)—he built castles and had a lot of land and horses, and the castles still exist! Those constructions are incredible and strong. The entrance or hallway was where the hunters would leave their gear and things like that. They would have the most daylight beams going into the dining room through small-shaped windows, and the walls are thick like that (showing me how thick they were). So, how they could build that is unbelievable! And you’re going to learn that; you have a lot of things to learn. (We all laugh…)

You’ve told me a lot about your childhood. What was it like when the war was over?

When the war was over, we were happy. We could buy a little bit more because when you would go to the store, you had a little more coupons. There was a change because before, there were Gestapo in the store to make sure the store wouldn’t give you extra food. If the bread weighed too much, they would cut a piece off—if it was more than a kilo. It was by weight, not by loaf. They wanted to make sure that you didn’t get too much. (I groan.) Oh yeah… (Chuckles…)

Children need to learn by example not to waste food. They need to appreciate how it is made, how you grow the grain, and that you might not have bread tomorrow. It’s a very precious thing just to make bread. It’s a lot of work; have you ever done that? Well, I haven’t made bread with yeast and everything to have it rise, but I’ve made banana bread and stuff like that. It’s different. Yes, usually, you have to depend on the sun and the rain. You know that? It’s the way to survive because you could lose all your food. And they were working hard—those people—to make their food, to make grain, and to make wheat (you need wood to make the fire). Wow, I bet. Just like the Indians.

I will always remember that our first Christmas after the war, we could buy little Tangerines. They came all the way from Algeria, and they tasted sooooo good. We did not have any during the war, and even on that Christmas, we had just five of them, one for each.

Well, I appreciate everything I have. I worked hard for all my life; I worked a lot. I think that’s great. It’s awful when people take things for granted. Oh, yes. It’s nice that someone works hard so that you can have an easier life later on. We just have to stay healthy.

 

(To be continued in Part II…)