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BF: And when you were growing up, what languages were spoken? Did you, did, was Yiddish taught in the house?

AS: Yiddish was taught, spoken in the house when my parents didn't want us to understand. But otherwise, they spoke English, because they were eager to improve their English. Of course, by the, my mother started school at the age of six, so she was fluent in English, and my father became fluent really quite rapidly. So, so they spoke English, my father had a heavy accent, but my mother didn't. And, but when I'd go to my grandparents' house, or even when we were living above them, my grandmother would speak Yiddish to me, and if I didn't understand she would say it, but her English sounded like Yiddish. [Laughs] But I did learn quite a few words.

BF: And was the, the household Orthodox, so you followed the kosher rules?

AS: Right. Yeah, my grandparents were Orthodox. I would say they were modern Orthodox, which they didn't have that term then, but they do now. It's not, was not as rigid as the very Orthodox. But they observed the kashrut and they did not drive or work on Saturdays, and they observed all the holidays. And on my father's side, his older brother was very religious, and, but yes, so my mother kept kosher. My mother, it didn't, she didn't care if it was kosher or not, but she said she kept kosher so that her parents would eat at our house. So I grew up with kosher food and tried it, and I did follow it for a long time. I mean, not after I got married, but I mean, as a young, as a teenager and a young kid.

BF: And then tell me a little bit about what it was like in your household when you were growing up. Were you expected to do a lot of chores, were all the, did all the kids...

AS: Yeah. [Laughs] Yeah, the boys, my brothers, didn't have chores, or if they were given chores, it was, they had a way of getting out of it, but I was always very responsible. [Laughs]

BF: Now, were, do you think as a girl you were treated differently?

AS: Oh, absolutely. [Laughs]

BF: Well, one is obviously you said they, they would get away with more things than you. Is there any other things that...?

AS: Well, when I, of course, I, the differences didn't become really that apparent until I was in high school, and I remember my older brother started working on ships when he was -- I guess after he graduated from high school. So he was able to get a, jobs on ships. The first was on passenger ships going to Alaska, and he worked as a steward, waiter. And I was so jealous because I loved the water, and I loved the idea of traveling by water. And he even had, went to the Far East. I can't remember if they, the ship stopped in Japan, but I know it did stop in China because he brought back some furniture from China. Little boxes and then a, kind of like a cedar chest, and they were just beautiful. So I was jealous, because that's what I would have loved to do. And then I remember once my brother, my older brother said to me -- I can't remember. Something, "You should do..." and I can't remember whether it was... he says, "That's girl's, that's something girls should do." I don't remember now what it was, whether it was swimming, diving -- although I did swim -- I didn't dive, because I would get sinus headaches. [Laughs] I don't know what it was, but I remember being just insulted that "this is what girls should do." Ah. [Laughs]

BF: So his, his substitute for traveling overseas was for you to take swimming lessons? Get in the water?

AS: Well, not... I guess he just figured that's a crazy thought for his sister to have. [Laughs]

<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 2004 Densho. All Rights Reserved.