Anka's Secret: An epic, heartbreaking, and powerful World War 2 novel based on true events by Tamar Ohrenstein

Author:Tamar Ohrenstein [Ohrenstein, Tamar]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-12-05T16:00:00+00:00

Tel Aviv, May 1933 – The Family Reunites

It has been five months since I moved to Jaffa. I take whatever work I can get. I have been a porter at the docks and a grocer at a market stall, and a few days from now, I will start my new job as a truck driver. I miss working in the fields. There, I felt like I was fulfilling the vision we dreamed about, but I will only be able to get back to all of that once I am reunited with my family

Lena and Gabriel, now a married couple, have opened their humble home to me. They are kind and friendly, but I do my best to be there as little as possible. After all, they are still newlyweds trying to start a family. I work long hours and at night I return to their tiny apartment tired and drop on the bed they have given me. From time to time, I finish my work early, pop into the store and bring home some groceries. In this way, I try to repay my wonderful hosts.

Though I am tired, I find it hard to fall asleep, ill at ease with so many worries. First, it is clear that when Mama and Sonja get here, I must find us another place to live.

Their visas have already arrived, and next week they will board a ship on their way over here.

But they’re still on their own, I remind myself. Is Mama able to take care of all the errands needed for packing up her house and getting ready for such a significant move? She’s never done anything like that. It was always Father’s job, and after he passed, I took it upon myself to do those things. Will Hanan have the time to help them? Will he get here with them, or is he already on his way to Palestine? Lately, letters have been held up for long periods, and the last information I received from him was two months ago. I look at my calendar and cross off another day, but when I see the days that still stand between my family and me, I start dwelling on my concerns again.

I look at the tiny space to which I am confined, the thin curtain separating me from my hosts. Will they be able to live together in such a small room for several months? How long will it be before I can bring them to the kibbutz where they’ll only have a tent rather than a real house, but it would be their tent? Will they be able to adjust to life on the kibbutz and establish a daily routine? Will Mama be able to adapt to a community of young people? Will she be able to participate and contribute to the society in which she lives so that “kind souls” have nothing to say? And how will she manage here without knowing the language everyone speaks? Despite my best efforts, I have not persuaded her to learn Hebrew.

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