Vera

I most enjoyed spending my free time (which I had plenty of in those years) with Vera, and sometimes with her brother George. He sometimes played with just the two of us, but mostly, he took part in our plays when other friends were with us too. Oh, Vera, how close our friendship became - soul-to-soul - like David and Jonathan in our holy writings.

Vera's family had a big house with a big courtyard, a small flower garden with lilac trees around both sides, and a [mora-bora] fruit tree on the right of the flower garden. This fruit is some kind of wild cherry-like fruit. We would roam in the big yard playing hide-and-seek or tag; the happy memories of those childhood years turned into sad memories for today.

Despite the age difference between Vera and myself, we understood each other perfectly those four short years, and complemented each other. People often teased me because of it, but I paid no attention, even when my teacher spoke to me about it during school. I thought it was none of his business. Later I found out that he wanted me to be friends with his own daughter two years my junior, whom I did befriend later. His daughter Katy very much liked to spend her time in my company, so much so that even on a day like Yom Kippur eve she visited. I also really liked to play with her, but - because she was the teacher's daughter - could not overcome a strange feeling which separated me from her.

© David Muskal, 2001