My father came from a well to do family from Germany – history said that they made clothes for the Czar of Russia back in the Day.
Anyway, I digress – they became import-exporters and when my grandfather came here (Flushing, NY) to settle he expanded the business. He returned to Germany for a wife and in 1916 my father was born.
Marion, his mother died 3 days after giving birth to him. Willy, his father got care for him and when he was old enough my father traveled with him all over the world – his primary language – German. When he was of age for school, he’d be sent off to Military schools and schools in Germany,
in vacations he’d travel with his father. When the market crashed Willy lost much of his business and hung himself. My father joined the military with much protest of the family back in Germany – some disowned him as a family member for that but he had his own ideas.
He’d gone to school to be an architect but I guess he felt he would do the service for a bit – which turned out to be the rest of his life. While traveling in the military he had a nak for languages – he learned many including Chinese – who’d a thought ha?
Anyway, the German thing was a familial tie, I think. I recently found his cousin’s son in Valparaiso Chile – he could not believe it was me – I guess there used to be much talk of my father and how he’d been disowned by the family. Many have died back in Germany and the inheritance went to those in Chile – good for them – I hope they needed it. Money is not everything, it’s only a small part of our experience here.
Anyway – that’s the story.
