Branches Book

BRANCHES

3rd class on this train, because we found a very nice delicatessen in Lublin with challah. Even in Kiev, we never got to have challah. Mama says we should enjoy what we have now, because there’s going to be no more good food after Berlin until London. We’ll have to eat these cold ‘sausages’ these Germans like so much. August 9th, 1902, Brick Lane, London, England There was quite a celebration all over London today. Apparently it was the coronation of their new king, Edward VII. It was the first time that I felt welcomed in England, that I felt happy to be here. I am learning English now, and already I speak it far better than my Russian and almost as good as my Yiddish. Here, my name is not Alie anymore, it’s Louis, something more English to help me fit in. I still haven’t found any work yet, but I’m hoping I will soon. Papa has been working hard to find a job, but there aren’t many opportunities for a hat maker. He works for this short mean man, but he pays well so we don’t mind. Papa hopes to open his own hat shop, so he’s been saving up. He said that once he opens it, he’ll teach me to make hats and I’ll get to work with him. I’ve spent some time looking for a job, and I’ve managed to get work carrying coal to and from the docks around London. It doesn’t pay well, but the extra money is very helpful for our family. I use the money I get to buy food for us. Sometimes mama lets me get the milk, so I go to the market and give the man five pence for the bottle, and a half a penny for a cup of milk just for me. Sometimes I get scared in London, but much less than Kiev. A big scary gang will come and knock on our door asking for money. They say they need our money to protect us, but I don’t understand, there are no Cossacks to beat us here. Although they take our money, it’s better than hiding with the curtains drawn from angry people in Kiev. I do not take my life here for granted. No one has called us Bolshevik Jews here, no one has beat us. For that, I am thankful. December 1st, 1916, Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, America How interesting! I just found my old journal, and it’s been fourteen years since I last made an entry. It never fails to surprise me what kinds of things I forget about tucked away in my house. Since our journey began in 1902, we’ve traveled thousands of miles. After four years in London, we finally decided to move on. We took passage on the S.S. Merion from Liverpool to Philadelphia. This time we brought food with us, and managed to keep kosher the whole voyage. We didn’t need to resort to the rancid, watered down soup that they usually give us. I’m not sure that anyone died, but we all looked a little like skeletons when we made port. Since arriving in America, we settled in a steel-mill city called Pittsburgh. There I met a beautiful girl

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