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After the war no one cared that we’d been baptized. It was taken as something important for our survival. Nobody in our family was a member of a Zionist organization, only I attended Maccabi. We didn’t do a lot of sports in Maccabi, I would almost say that after the war it became a cultural organization. We sang songs in Ivrit and religion was taught in a haphazard way. Occasionally we went on bicycle tours, but that’s all as far as sports go. I attended Maccabi only until 1949, as after that there weren’t enough of us children around.
After the war we celebrated the high holidays only symbolically. We also went to the synagogue only on those occasions. For Passover we ate matzot and various traditional foods prepared from matzah such as for example matzah dumplings. I also had a Jewish wedding. My father attended the synagogue occasionally, or when they needed a minyan. In time it all ceased, because there was no one to attend. My parents celebrated Christmas because of me, because as a child I didn’t want to have anything that was different from my classmates. We also exchanged gifts. Why can’t a person practice that which is nice? There’s nothing wrong with that. Up to the age of six I didn’t attend religion classes, and then the Slovak State was created and everything else that followed. The only place I learned anything was in Maccabi. It’s only now, in adulthood, that I sometimes read something about Jewish history and various events.
After the war I associated mainly with Jewish children in Maccabi. In 1949 the Aliyah came and everyone moved away to Israel. In Zilina there was no one of my age left, maybe three of us. At school I had many girlfriends, I was friends with practically all the children. It’s like that to this day.
We were a relatively large family, and met regularly with those that had survived. Mainly we stayed in contact with my mother’s brothers and their families, until Gejza left for Israel. Uncle Oskar lived beside us. Gradually everyone died, only my mother and her brother Oskar remained. That was our social circle. My parents had mainly Jewish friends, but also met with non-Jews. I can say with certainty that Jews made up the majority. As much as it was possible, we went on vacations outside of the country. I know that my mother was with my aunt in Vienna and they also used to visit Budapest. We younger ones were used to going to the seaside; my parents were no longer of an age where they could have come with us.
After the war we celebrated the high holidays only symbolically. We also went to the synagogue only on those occasions. For Passover we ate matzot and various traditional foods prepared from matzah such as for example matzah dumplings. I also had a Jewish wedding. My father attended the synagogue occasionally, or when they needed a minyan. In time it all ceased, because there was no one to attend. My parents celebrated Christmas because of me, because as a child I didn’t want to have anything that was different from my classmates. We also exchanged gifts. Why can’t a person practice that which is nice? There’s nothing wrong with that. Up to the age of six I didn’t attend religion classes, and then the Slovak State was created and everything else that followed. The only place I learned anything was in Maccabi. It’s only now, in adulthood, that I sometimes read something about Jewish history and various events.
After the war I associated mainly with Jewish children in Maccabi. In 1949 the Aliyah came and everyone moved away to Israel. In Zilina there was no one of my age left, maybe three of us. At school I had many girlfriends, I was friends with practically all the children. It’s like that to this day.
We were a relatively large family, and met regularly with those that had survived. Mainly we stayed in contact with my mother’s brothers and their families, until Gejza left for Israel. Uncle Oskar lived beside us. Gradually everyone died, only my mother and her brother Oskar remained. That was our social circle. My parents had mainly Jewish friends, but also met with non-Jews. I can say with certainty that Jews made up the majority. As much as it was possible, we went on vacations outside of the country. I know that my mother was with my aunt in Vienna and they also used to visit Budapest. We younger ones were used to going to the seaside; my parents were no longer of an age where they could have come with us.
Location
Slovakia
Interview
Judita Schvalbova
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