Mother Russia, and The Sky Unwashed by Irene Zabytko

My genealogy research has revealed many surprising things, but nothing has been as surprising as finding out that I married a man whose grandfather lived a short distance from  my grandmother  in what is now the Ukraine.

My great-grandfather John Bacher, or Becker as he was christened at Ellis Island, was an ethnic German living in Tortschine, Volynia, Russia during a time of anti-German sentiment. The Germans had been allowed to live as a separate nation within Russia for centuries, but anti-German sentiment withdrew privileges until finally they were no longer able to sell land and were required to serve in the Czar's army. Service was for 15 years, six active and nine as reserves. John was a saddle maker. He was one of hundreds of German 'draft dodgers' who flew Russia. He arrived in America in 1910 and sent money for his family to join him.

My grandmother Emma Becker Gochenour left Russia as a small child. Her mother Martha Kiln Becker and five siblings traveled by night, and in secret, sleeping in barns during the day. Once they reached the German border, they made their way to Bremen and sailed to America. The Beckers settled in Tonawanda, NY which had been settled by Mohawk Valley Germans a century before.

August Kiln, my great-great grandfather.

My husband's grandfather Gustave August Bekofske was born in Roschischtsch, Vohlynia, Russia. He was baptized in Klementuka, Lutsk. His father Christophe Pekovsky endeavored to immigrate in 1908, but his youngest had Trachoma and was unable to enter the country. They returned to Germany, except for a daughter who was married to a man who was already in Wisconsin. In 1911 Gust immigrated and settled in Port Huron, Michigan where he worked for the railroad.  Later his brother Herman arrived, and Ellis Island in all its wisdom named him Pekosky. Herman settled in Wisconsin. 

When I saw the Kindle book "The Sky Unwashed" by Irene Zabytko was inspired by a true story of Ukrainian villagers during the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident I wanted to read it, partly because Chernobyl is about five hours east of where our ancestors came from. I wanted to know more about the people of the area and what their lives are like.

The book tells of the villagers lives before, during, and after the nuclear melt down. I was shocked by the primitive state they lived in, a style of life hardly changed in a century. The author interviewed survivors of the nuclear accident and their stories obviously informed this moving story.

Kiln family funeral a hundred years ago

The main character Marusia lives with her son and his family in a small cottage in Starylis. She lives in a two room cottage with her son, his wife, and their boy. Nearly everyone in town works at the nuclear plant, including the state assigned village priest. One day the villagers notice a metallic taste in their mouths, and irritated eyes afflict them all. The women worry when their men do not return home from work for several days. When Marusia's son does come home, he is already fatally ill from radiation. The villagers are boarded on buses 'for a few days' and taken to Kiev. They are not told the truth of the Chernobyl accident.

The refugees are relegated to hospital hallways without proper sanitation, clean water, or medical treatment. Marusia's daughter-in-law uses bribery to get her husband into care. She escapes the hospital one day and discovers the Kiev women are sending their children away because the radiation has reached Kiev as well. She returns for her son and they leave Marusia behind to care for the dying son.

Eighteen months pass and Marusia has lost her son and she has never heard from her daughter-in-law. Marusia just returns to her home in the banned Starylis. Several more elderly women return over time, and they endeavor to survive alone in the abandoned village. 

Life under the Soviet rule is portrayed very elegantly through the character's voices an through the plot action.

Had our ancestors not left Russia, our fates would have been quite different. By 1915 ethnic Germans were transported to Siberia. In 1940 Volhnian families were warehoused in Berlin detention camps. Many villages were razed and no longer exist. Gust Bekofske never learned what happened to his family after WWII. Gust's sisters Alvine, Wanda and Amalia were last living in East Germany, and never heard from again. Thank God for our immigrant ancestors.

9-11

9-11. Four characters. That is all one has to say and we understand  everything.

I know that each generation has an event that changed everything. Or weeks or months or years which changed everything. Pearl Harbor. Fort Sumter. The Nazi invasion of one's home town in Europe. Hiroshima. The Titanic. The Lusitania. The Maine. Pogroms. The Influenza Epidemic. The scalping of an entire family. The Concentration Camp. The Internment Camp. The Refugee Camp. Ethnic Cleansing. There is no end to these horrors that stretch back beyond written history or even oral tradition. The Day That Changed The World.

And children do pick up on the fear. I remember the Cuban Missal Crisis, not because I watched the news or understood anything about Russia or politics, but because I remember coming downstairs from my afternoon nap to find the unusual sight of my parents watching television during the daytime. And they were worried about something. I had never before seen my dad scared. I was made aware that the world had its horrors and that my parents could be powerless to protect me.

I wrote a number of poems on 9-12. They are called The Day That Changed The World. This one is a response to fear. I have not edited or rewritten these poems. They just are.

What We Imagine

Nancy A. Bekofske

Our child is in the white hospital.

There are tubes and alien machines surrounding him.

We watch and wait.

There is red blood, vivid on the white

Like a beautiful rose.

No, our child is playing with friends.

There is coughing.

There is headache.

Our child goes to bed.

Our child breaks out in death.

No, our child is in the school room

There is a blinding light,

Wisdom is not so enlightening as this light.

There is a flash of heat.

There is ash.

  

No, our child is called.

Our child bravely leaves his only home

His only family.

Our child is trained to kill.

Our child falls, he thinks of home, He thinks no more.

No, our child wakes up in the morning.

Our child sees the rain.

Our child remembers the old life,

The days before fear.

Our child awakes in the morning.

Our child imagines

There is no one to protect him.

The Fifties by David Halberstam

I am nearly finished reading The Fifties by David Halberstam. Kindle told me it would take me 19 hours, and I do believe it has been right. And to think,  Halberstam cut 500 pages to bring it to 718 pages!

I was a small child during this time. I remember when I  learned the year was 1959. Year? I had been pleasantly ignorant of the concept of a year, other than birthdays and getting a year older. In 1959 we added Hawaii as a state and my brother was born. What I know about the Fifties I read in a book or seen on PBS or in a movie. It was too recent to be covered in my school text books. Gee, they did not even get to WWII!

Most of the information covered was familiar to me. But it has been interesting to see it all woven together in one overriding narrative.

The book helped to put my personal experience in perspective. For instance, in 1951 the farm fields around my folks house were being turned to post-war, little boxes housing. I grew up with the Rosemont Avenue kids, playing Statues and Red Rover until the street lights came on. Had I been born earlier, I would have had to walk through farm fields to school like my father did. Later we lived not far away from the second Levittown  housing project built in Bucks Co, PA, (1952-58) was meant to house blue collar workers. The downside of the suburban neighborhood was the isolation of women and children that led Betty Friedan to write The Feminine Mystique.

Levitttown, PA

I found a great website about the original, NY Levittown at http://tigger.uic.edu/~pbhales/Levittown.html

Much of what we take for granted today started in the Fifties. Scripted 'real life' television started with the game shows The $64,000 Question and Twenty One. As does the 'fifteen minutes of fame' celebrity. And of course, doing anything for money. The decline of the American automobile started in the fifties when companies took their predominance for granted and began to value profit rather than quality engineering.

The scandalous novel Peyton Place was a real pot-boiler in its day. Now some professors teach the book as a brave expression of freedom, revealing the truth behind the facade. (I have never read it, and don't expect to.)The Writer's Almanac by Garrison Kiellor offered this link today, for Grace Metalious' birthday: http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2006/03/peytonplace200603?elq=19c3c1f2c9474a87b88a0bfaabe1bf94&elqCampaignId=3255

The world of Mad Men was rooted in The Fifties, and I have to think that Matthew Weiner  knows this book very well! In fact, one real life 1957 Chevy ad by the trailblazing Gerry Schnitzer could have been originated by Don Draper! A son is getting ready to leave for the Senior prom, and when he starts for his old jalopy his dad jingles a set of keys. Next to the old clunker is a brand new Chevy convertible! The boy rushes for the keys, backtracks to the jalopy to retrieve the corsage, and picks up his girl. "What a gal! What a night! What a car! The new Chevrolet!" Yes, in this New World our sons get a brand new Chevy. Good-bye jalopies.

I was disturbed by the birth of the CIA and its involvement in Latin America, protecting the interest of United Fruit over the rights of the Guatemalan people. "The national security apparatus in Washington was, in effect, created so America could compete with the Communist world and do so without the unwanted clumsy scrutiny of the Congress and the Press." Yikes! Now the' evil CIA' of the USA television show Burn Notice does not seem so far fetched...

The overarching theme of the Fifties is the change from the Old Order to a New Order. From a time when the Catholic Church was against Cesarean section to the arrival of The Pill; from a time when GM sold a product they could be proud of to a time when the Bottom Line became more important. From a time when women's magazines portrayed the happy housewife cleaning the toilet in heels to a time of sexual liberation and reentry into the work place.

In a book talk on CSPAN  (http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/46582-1 ) Halberstam said he hoped that reading the book would help people understand 'why' the 60s. For example he refers to the rise of the VW Beetle, purchased by people who could have afforded a larger car but who 'non-comformists' were making a life style statement, a reaction against the materialism of the times. (The first car my husband and I bought was an orange Super Beetle, sans radio, for about $3,000 in 1973. In our case, it was all we could afford!)

Tonight I will finish the book. About an hours reading more to go...

1958 Penney's Fashions and Fabrics

Many years ago I picked up this over-sized booklet of J. C. Penney's Fashions and Fabrics, Spring and Summer 1958. The model looks so cool and well put together. Down to the white gloves!

I loved that it had fabric swatches in it! And all the details about each swatch, down to shrinkage.

Color trends included:

• Nautical Tricolor --Growing out of a world wide interest in boats and ships
• Checks, Stripes and Plaids, and Houndstooth, in blue, gray, brown on sheer fabrics
• Mist and Cloud colors-- muted beige and silver grays, some with tints of pink or green
• Flower Reds--Zinnia tones of red, pink, and orange
• Gold-tinged colors of coral, tangerine, melon, marigold and sulfur yellow
• Blues, especially navy and cadet, as well as turquoise and blue greens, plus French Lilac, grape hyacinth and delphinium blue
• Greens in muted and gray shades of sage and olive but also mint and emerald
• Overprinted white with florals and conversational prints were the' high mark of fashion' that summer
• Glitter--metallic yards with Mylar was used in all fabrics, including denims
• Prints of every sort

Silhouettes and details includes the chemise and relaxed sheaths, a Chinese influence with side slits and neckline, matching coats and dresses, barrel back shaped cutaway suits, dresses with fitted fronts and bloused backs, full skirts with sectional pleats with emphasis on the 'dome shape', wraparound skirts, and the 'short' hemline. Sportswear for all ages and for both sexes had found a new importance. Shorts and sundresses for the ladies and plaid shirts for men, worn untucked. 

"The Bishop instructions" were included in new patterns. In junior high my sewing class used the Bishop Method to teach us how to make an apron and an A-line skirt. I went home and asked for a sewing machine! I did not get one until I married a man whose mom was an obsessive sewer. She even sewed underpants for herself!

"Today's Casual Look is Soft and Easy" notes the head line introducing these patterns.

Really Dressed Up! offers both the full skirt and the sheath dress.

Knits were 'making news' including use in tricot lingerie, double woven white gloves, and casual shirts for me--the Polo shirts that are now the uniform of men 'of a certain age'. 

It is no wonder we love the Mad Men fashions! We have lost the elegance and sophistication of those years. 

Abstract Art... More Quilts from Grand Rapids

I loved the variety of abstract quilt art at the show last month! They are just amazing. By the awards given, it I evident that the judges were also impressed.

The non-representational Allegretto by Katie Pasquini Masopust was so unlike her Fractured Landscape quilts, which I had seen many years ago at a Lansing, MI quilt guild presentation.

Light and Shadow- Colors of Ghana by Carol Fleming Chenoweth used batiks from Ghana, West Africa.

Night Glow by Linda Bachman. I just love the broad areas of vibrant color.

Michigan quilter Deanna Gaudaur's New Beauty is a whole cloth quilt colored with threads and machine quilted designs.

Maria Reuter of Germany's Digital World depicts the digital transmission between the elements fire and water.

Chartreuse, Celadon, Kelly, Fern by Panela Zave explores yellow green.

Prize winning quilt Escuchame by Beth Markel of Michigan represents 'noise' and 'quiet' (dark areas) and how few real connections are made.

Six Fifteen by Tina McCann was so interesting with its layers of silk and wool, a very three-dimensional and textured quilt. The layers represent the layers of time.

Suddenly... by Pan Beal of Michigan started with 3/4 inch squares. it is hand quilted.

Two Mid-Century Quilts

When I went to the AQS quilt show I stayed with a friend who owns a home in Grand Rapids. She showed me three quilts made by her mother-in-law. The fabrics reflect the quilter's time span, some dating from the Depression Era and others from the Mod sixties and early seventies.

I loved the blue sashing on this Lemoyne Star. And the plaid and gingham fabrics! This quilt was folded at the bottom of the guest bed.

On the master bed was a wonderful Grandmother's Flower Garden variation. The 'flowers' were all different hexagons, not arranged in concentric colors as usually found. But each had a yellow center.

My hostess pointed out fabrics that had been dresses she had worn in the 1970s, and other fabrics from clothes worn by her mother-in-law.

There were bits of interesting textured fabrics like the red and green on white print.

I have to love that daisy on brown fabrics, recalls to mind a cute suit I had in 1967.

The third quilt was Trip Around the World, kept in a trunk. Yes, I did recommend she keep it in a pillowcase and on a shelf. The quilt had a lot of gray along with vivid red and lovely Nile green.

AQS Grand Rapids V: Portraits

Here are some quilts from the AQS Grand Rapids show that are portraits of various kinds.

Jan Berg-Rezmer, another Michigan gal, made Ask the Cowboys with photo transfer, fabric paint, and raw edge applique.

 I was in love with this quilt! Little Girl and Dog by Hiroko Miyama of Japan based it on a photo of her granddaughter.

 Ode to Inspiration by Melissa Sobotka was inspired by Pre-Raphaelite paintings.

Alice Aukeman, another Michigander, did this portrait of her daughter Renee.

I really enjoyed the ultimate Guild Challenge quilts. Wish I belonged to a guild! Gone Fishin' by Anita Gogerty was made for the Des Moines Area Quilters Guild challenge of A Small Blessing.

A nice mad working the show let me go inside the rope to be photographed with my quilt, I Will Lift My Voice Like a Trumpet.