Made in Moscow

My mother's parents emigrated from Russia to America in the early 1900s. They arrived on a crowded Ellis Island in New York City, with thousands of others doing the same thing. I often wonder what that must have been like for two young lovers, perhaps not even qualifying as adults yet.

I hardly knew them and they didn't speak English, so the stories were not given to me directly. I can guess that they probably felt fear, exhilaration, and wonder. They may have been physically ill after the long sail across the Atlantic. They had very little money, so they rode in the bottom of the ship. They eventually married and headed westward across the eastern states of America. They ended up as Ohio residents, my grandfather working in the steel mills just west of Cleveland. All nine of their children were born and raised in the small house they owned in South Amherst.

My mother never traveled to Russia, but one of her sisters did, and she brought these Russian figurines back as a souvenir gift for my mother. I cherish them now that my own mother is gone - eleven years now.

I don't know why my grandparents are on my mind just now. Perhaps this was the date that they arrived in this country. Or maybe it's just that the holidays cause us to think about family more than normal.

I'm happy to have these special little treasures that remind me of my heritage.