Cinderella

I returned to the harsh reality of life with Aunt Irene. The stovepipes quite often fell apart and I had to clean the soot. To make things worse, Irene accused me of not putting the pipes back together properly. I could not bear it, but said nothing, just swallowed the pain as the bitter tears streamed down my face.

There was a door from our bedroom to the store. Irene always locked this door when the store was closed, and kept the key in her pocket. I felt very insulted. One, day, I learned of her fears. She asked my to promise her that I would not secretly leave her. As my parents wanted me to stay with her, and I myself felt sorry for her, I promised her not to run away.

My daily household chores included light cleaning, helping in the kitchen - including washing dishes - and carrying water home. A young gentile lady came in to clean the house each week. She also took our laundry to her house, and I picked it up when it was ready.

Irene told me about another young gentile girl who worked for her, Zulishka. She served Irene faithfully for several years, but was a free-thinking, good-looking young girl. Zulishka fell in love with a young man and bore him four children without marrying him. Such behavior was unacceptable for all but the lowest classes in those days. Unfortunately, this sort of sinful behavior is open to all these days.

© David Muskal, 2001