Sonya at Sixteen
Surrounded - Heshel, Miriam, Ruthie, Harold, Abe -
no Anita
headaches, dizzy, bewildered, dead
just before Pesach
we moved on
like always
running
running from
Europe
North Atlantic
vast Canada
Brooklyn
enough already
Observant, keeping the old ways, though papa keeps his yarmulke under his hat
Ruthie and I navigate - Yiddish, Russian, English - their guides in this new world
I’m ready to break out and find my way
observant of me
still I see Benji
he helped me pick out this coat
stylish
mama says I’m too ready to leave
I should take my time
Time!
Anita was so vibrant - now gone
shvester I miss you
We are gathered before the camera
smile but don’t smile
relax but not too much
show the people in Kyiv we’ve arrived
we have warm coats
shined shoes (well, not papa)
a professional photographer
Ruthie is ready to dance
I just want this to be over.
-- Larry Wolf, 24 June 2025
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| Unknown Photographer, My Great Grandparents and their Children (1917?) |
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