Sister letters 1932

Gnadenfeld, 2 February 1932

Dear Sister and Brother-in-law,

Mrs. Johann Becker, just came in and asked me to send along a letter that she wanted to write to Aunt Neufeld, since she did not know her exact address.  So, I am asking you to send the letter to Aunt Grete. You surely know where she is living now? Grete thanks you in advance for your trouble. Many thanks for the parcels. Those from the other family members have already helped us very much. Since Christmas, we have had a very mild winter, with very little snow, although on Christmas Eve, everything was white and covered with frost. In addition, there was wonderful moonlight. The previous night, we had quite a blizzard. Perhaps the cold will still get here.

Since yesterday, Jasch is again in Halbstadt. He was called there because they could make such good use of him there. Here they did not want to let him go, since the threshing is still continuing (now the straw is being threshed once again so that the January plan can be fulfilled). On the 10th, we received flour for one month and oil for three months. Since then nothing more, and probably there will be no more as all the available grain and flour hardly suffices to fill out the January plan. We have a little flour, but not enough to bake bread. Now we are eating potatoes and red beets (pickled ones). This evening, we peeled some small cooked potatoes. Then I put them through the meat grinder, added a little onion, eggs and flour, and put it on the tin to bake as cookies for prips (a roasted barley beverage). 

Since January, the cows have been socialized, and daily we receive one or one and one-half liters of milk that Artur and Kolja have, for some time now, been going after, because I find it hard to walk that far. The cow that we once owned now has a little calf.  If the cow were still in our possession, her milk alone would constitute our entire sustenance. The cooking oil too is just about all gone, and who knows whether there will be more. Well, that is to be decided in the next few days. Our chickens are already laying up to six eggs a day and that is a very great help. By this time, some people are eating only beets and potatoes, so far we do not have to do that. I dilute the milk with water and often cook rice, and while eating, we think of you with thankful hearts. 

We are hoping that asch will be provided with some produce for himself and also for us, but then we must first discontinue our membership in the cooperative. I very much wish that we would, for I am fearful of the coming work year. Thank God, our children are all well. Artur and Kolja are no longer chubby, and are growing fast, and Wally, too, but Liesel is still beautifully plump. 

If you have received my previous letter ten, of course, you know that in March I am meeting my difficult hour. Pray that all may go well. That is so comforting.

10 April, 1932

Dear Lina, Dietrich, Paul and Rudi,

The day before yesterday we were again permitted to pick up a package from you at the post office. A big, big thank you for it! One from Hermann arrived at the same time. If you could send this letter to him as well then he also is heartily thanked herewith. Your parcels always arrive at a time when I have reached the end of everything.

On the 26th of April. As you see, I already started this letter 16 days ago. Then guests arrived, Aunt Marichen and Aunt Varja came over for a visit, and later, there was always something that just had to be done, so that I was unable to start writing again. Surely you will already be waiting for news from here. Our youngest is a little girl and her name is Gretchen. She was born on the 27th of March on the first day of Easter. By this time, I have fully recovered. When the little one was three weeks old I had to go back to bed for three days. It was an inflammation of the abdomen. Asch had to come from Halbstadt. Brauns too, again helped very much, so that I could rest calmly and was soon restored to health again. During my initial confinement, Jasch’s sister Liese was with us and ran the household, and Jasch was home for five days. But he was unable to stay longer and Liese, who wanted to remain longer, had to return to the cooperative because of very urgent work there. She took care of the chickens and was gone on the seventh day. So, at that time, I had to get up. Aunt Braun bathed the baby and washed the diapers and Miche put the house in order and carried in the water for me. The baby is very calm. She weighed 9 3/4 pounds and has blond hair and dark blue eyes. Everything went quite fast and well. We are so thankful to the dear God, for in these times a long confinement would have been inconvenient.  

So far, our other children are in good health for which, in addition to the dear God, we have you self-sacrificial family members to thank. No one else here receives as many parcels as we do. For that matter, I am unable to think of what we would have had to eat otherwise. We even received 16 dollars from Artur in Oberlin. But as a document of the Am-Deruta in America, we were able to send that to the Torgsin in Moscow, and order food stuff from price lists. In this emporium, only dollars are accepted and the shipping costs are subtracted. For us, five dollars were subtracted and for the remaining eleven dollars, we received four large packages, each weighing 16 kg. That was a good lump! I have not yet thanked Artur, but I want to soon.

I sowed all the vegetables a week ago. Jasch’s foot has been quite sensitive this winter. The general situation here is certainly not improving. The famine is constantly getting more severe. Produce is unattainably expensive, or no longer to be had. May God be merciful and help, and He surely will, for it says, when the distress is at its worst, God’s help is nearest.

In Berdyansk and Melitopol, there are now also such foreign emporiums where produce and manufactured goods can be bought quite cheaply for dollars or gold. But since frequent house searches for these goods are made, many are doing jail time, and all such items must be forfeited in order to be set free. Very few of these wares have remained with the people. But some have already bought very good flour, rice and sugar in Berdyansk.You must be marveling at my fine correspondence stationery. Yes, the economy here has had such an upswing that we are unable to get any other.

Jasch is still working in Halbstadt. It is not bad for him there. One time, he even brought home some flour. But the separated life is not to our liking.

21 July, 1932

My fervently beloved family members!

Two weeks ago we received that beautiful big package from you. Thank you, thank you for it! We do not know how we shall repay you for all your love. We are already so deeply in debt. The generous piece of sausage especially excited the children to great joy. I immediately cut off a thin little slice for each one, but unfortunately there was no bread to go with it. Now we have had fresh bread for nearly two weeks. The first ripe rye was immediately threshed and milled. But only baked bread is distributed. Almost everyone eats at, or out of, the community kitchen. The people wish so much that they might be able to take the flour home and to bake the bread themselves, but that is not permitted. Just once, there was one kilo per soul. The potatoes are producing quite well. And the beans and also the other vegetables are doing well. You see that the famine, at least for now, has ended. To God be praised for that! In comparison with last year the harvest is very light, and already even before threshing, there is much pressure to send out grain. When the assigned norms are filled out, there will again be nothing left for us. Well, perhaps there will be an insight, and we will be left as much as we need. There  is, however, not much hope for that. Soon there will be enough dry goods. There already are said to be some in Waldheim. That would be very good, for the need is very great. Only it is all very expensive. I am writing this letter at the day-care center, where I am working. It is still early in the morning. Except for the cook and the baking women, the other women are not yet here, for today is my early day. One person must always be there early because some children, whose mothers go to work early, are brought here early. The day-care center and kindergarten here are in the same house, namely in Abram Braun’s house. My children are still home, sleeping. A while later I will go and get them, when the two other women arrive. 

The work here is not difficult, at least physically, but it takes such a toll on the nerves. I am with the little ones since I have a little one myself. Gretchen is already nicely plump, but for nearly a month she has had a bad cough and diarrhea. I am fearful that it may be whooping cough. But the cough is not too severe and the physician is unable to diagnose it. Our children are all here during the day. Only for the night do we all go home, and only at supper is the family completely together. For that matter, not even always then. Sometimes, Jasch only arrives home late. He is now again occupied with repairing harvesting machines that are all out of kilter. He has it very hard. Everything that the others do not get done, he must do, so that he often also loses his day of rest. Until now we are still able to observe Sunday, but who knows how it will be at threshing time? During those days, we must again accept the grain production plan for this year. More is to be delivered than even exists. So for our eating there remains nothing.

Still, when we love God then even these things must serve us for the best, is that not so?

Greta Becker has received a package from the Neufelds, but since she does not have their address, she wants to put in a letter of thanks. Please will you forward it?

The 28th of July. I wrote this letter one week ago, but was not able to find time to make an envelope until now. There are none available. This week it rained almost every day, so that it looks as though again all the grain will be rain-damaged, just as last year. On average, the yield is two to three pood per hectare, which is very little. It may well be the answer of the Almighty One to the great plans made in advance.