Lola Taubman - December 22, 2009
Relations with Germans
This was 1944. Germans.
Yeah, but it started in '43 already. A few Germans came and they said we should stay in our bedroom, the whole family, and sleep there and cook there. They use the rest of the house.
And did you talk to any of them?
No.
No conversation, nothing.
No. We had to cover the windows with dark paper so the bombers shouldn't see where we are. And if a little paper was hanging over, they would report us to the, to the police. We had neighbors that we were friendly with--the father had the barber shop and my mother grew up with the barber's daughter. So when Christmas came she would cook fondant candy with aluminum foil sort of, and helped decorate the tree. And when we taken away uh, it was the day after Passover, but it was before their Easter and they always baked big, big challas in a basket that they took to the church to be blessed. So I knew they had all kinds of baked goods, and I said, could--I explained to her that we didn't have matzo anymore and we didn't have bread yet, would they give us some bread. They slammed the door in my face.
These were your friends?
Yeah.
This was the German barber?
German, German. Their name was Schlager.
And Emma is German.
What?
And Emma is German.
Yeah.
So the war started for you in '38 then?
Yes, yes, yes.
Was there rationing? Rationing?
Well, sure. We were on food uh, tickets, you know. And if we had a little too much sugar we went to a small village and tried to barter it for chicken or eggs or potatoes. Heard there was very little bread, very little wheat.
And was there anti-Jewish legislation already, laws passed?
I'm sure, in Hungary.
But nothing you remember affected you?
No.
Daughter: Tell him what happened when your father got the delivery.
You know, after they took his license away, he had contact before with Romania where they made cheese and it used to be shipped from Romania into the Carpathian woods where the lumber jacks lived. And my father tried to make a little money. So one day they made a mistake and instead of shipping the cheese into the woods, they shipped it to our house. These good neighbors of ours, the Schlagers reported us and they put my father--you know where the jail was? As big as this table and he couldn't even stand up. And uh, I tried to bring him food that my mother made. He was crying and I was crying. And then the soldier came, "Enough already," slammed the door on him. So my mother tried to get some money from the family, and, and uh, my, my uncle was doing business yet uh, he was shipping lumber to different countries and the collection was through Budapest. And uh, so my, my mother sent the money and, and my, my cousin was an attorney and he got some connections and for money they let him out...
So you...
...my father.
...bribed somebody basically.
Yes, yes.
And did you continue to do things--what, what was a Friday night, Friday night like at your house?
Well, my mother always lit candles. I think we were selling candles in the store, so she had some candles. And uh, uh, in the beginning, we didn't have a, a menorah. You know what we did? We put a piece of log in the window, and we attached candles and we, and we sang all the songs.
And even when the Germans were there, did you still celebrate Shabbos?
You know, the German officer that came, he came and went, but I don't recall whether my mother was able to light candles or not. There weren't many Fridays after that.
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