I don't know where to begin.....
My grandfather on my daddy's side immigrated from Minsk, Russia. My grandmother immigrated from Poland. My grandfather and his family was thrown out of their house so the cossack soldiers and horses could inhabit it. They shot and killed his father in front of him, and put he and his mom on a transport train. They needed more room for the horses, so they threw his mother from the train, killing her. He immigrated to America as a 12 year old boy. He learned English and got a job cleaning a synagogue. I don't know anything about my grandmother's early life.
When they married, they had 2 children, my daddy being the oldest, born in 1911. My father was reared in a very kosher Jewish household with violin lessons.
Most of my childhood, my mom's parents lived with us, my grandfather dying of prostate cancer in 1958. I don't know much about their childhoods except my grandmother was one of 11 children and my grandfather's mom died of breast cancer when he was growing up.
My mom's father, wouldn't let my mom date as both of his sisters got pregnant before they married. But, my grandmother would sneak her out of the house. They were living in Mobile, AL. The teenagers would go to the Battlehouse Hotel to dance as they would have live music. Well, this particular night, my father was playing with a combo. Before they got to Mobile, he had dreamed that he was going to meet a southern girl and marry her. He saw the backside of my mom, and lost his heart. He turned to the drummer and told him that he was going to marry the girl he was pointing at. The drummer laughed at him.
The next day, he went looking for her. God had to be guiding him as she worked in a drug store and he walked in saying and pointing, "So there you are!" She hadn't noticed him from the night before. He wouldn't leave until she promised to go out with him. Daddy was 30 and Mom was 18.
They dated for 5 nights. On the 6th night, since the combo was about to head back to New York, he asked her, "Would you like to dine with me at the automat in New York?" She asked, "Is that a proposal?" He answered, "Yes it is." She said, "I'd love to."
End of Part 1
My grandfather on my daddy's side immigrated from Minsk, Russia. My grandmother immigrated from Poland. My grandfather and his family was thrown out of their house so the cossack soldiers and horses could inhabit it. They shot and killed his father in front of him, and put he and his mom on a transport train. They needed more room for the horses, so they threw his mother from the train, killing her. He immigrated to America as a 12 year old boy. He learned English and got a job cleaning a synagogue. I don't know anything about my grandmother's early life.
When they married, they had 2 children, my daddy being the oldest, born in 1911. My father was reared in a very kosher Jewish household with violin lessons.
Most of my childhood, my mom's parents lived with us, my grandfather dying of prostate cancer in 1958. I don't know much about their childhoods except my grandmother was one of 11 children and my grandfather's mom died of breast cancer when he was growing up.
My mom's father, wouldn't let my mom date as both of his sisters got pregnant before they married. But, my grandmother would sneak her out of the house. They were living in Mobile, AL. The teenagers would go to the Battlehouse Hotel to dance as they would have live music. Well, this particular night, my father was playing with a combo. Before they got to Mobile, he had dreamed that he was going to meet a southern girl and marry her. He saw the backside of my mom, and lost his heart. He turned to the drummer and told him that he was going to marry the girl he was pointing at. The drummer laughed at him.
The next day, he went looking for her. God had to be guiding him as she worked in a drug store and he walked in saying and pointing, "So there you are!" She hadn't noticed him from the night before. He wouldn't leave until she promised to go out with him. Daddy was 30 and Mom was 18.
They dated for 5 nights. On the 6th night, since the combo was about to head back to New York, he asked her, "Would you like to dine with me at the automat in New York?" She asked, "Is that a proposal?" He answered, "Yes it is." She said, "I'd love to."
End of Part 1