He Doesn't Know He's My Hero (Part 2)

So I've been thinking a lot about my Dad lately, and how much I miss my family in Alaska. I've actually been thinking about a paper I wrote about him for an English class a few years ago, which you can read here. But my dad is just so incredible that he took it upon himself to take my laptop and tried to have his work buddies fix it (it was pretty much dead), so instead they copied all of my files and put it on an external hard drive (everything which he paid for himself) and mailed it to me. 

While looking through my files that I hadn't touched in about 2 years, I found a Word document that had my notes of the time I interviewed him about his homeland, about anything that he remembers, and his escape from Czechoslovakia, so that I could write that paper. As I read it I realized I didn't even include half the information I put in that paper. It is such a good insight. And very special to me, as my dad is like treasure chest with the key at a bottom of the ocean. He rarely likes to talk about his past. Maybe one day he will. 

{Note: these are very raw (as in unedited) and personal. Anything in quotations are things he actually said, whereas things after "D:" are things he said but that I summarized when I took notes}

A - Anna
D - Dad

A: Fun things you did as a child. 

D: The funnest thing was to ‘grab something to eat’. Berry picking, hiking in the mountains, mushroom picking. Not much fishing (can’t really fish there). Hiking with friends usually. Not a lot of friends. Went on a field trip with class once.

A: All your brother’s and sister’s names. 

D: Peter (4 yrs older), Agata (1 yr older), (Paul-aka dad), Adele (2 yrs younger), Jan (5 yr younger) .

A:Your favorite thing about the town you lived in. 

D: Church bells (every hour and 12 hr, 300 ft, hear for miles and miles) and Easter holiday.  Church is huge. Gothic cathedrals. Whole town is cathedrals. Spisska Nova Ves. Used to be an old fort. All the women’s last names are taken from their father’s name with an ‘ova’ added on to the end of it. Started the town in 1268 ad. Born in Levoca.

A: Most memorable tradition(s) 

D: Easter.

Easter holiday – The food prepared at your house, taken at 6am (father would be at church with the food) to the church to be blessed. Delicious ham (not factory made.) Boil in the pot for hours with spices. ‘Best thing in the world. Can’t buy it anywhere here’.  7am water chastening. Girls represented Jews and the boys would chase the girls and toss water on the girls or throw them in creeks. The boys would go around house to house to get coins and they’d put a perfume on the old women’s heads.  Dressed in nice white shirts and suits. Everyone dressed up nice. All the girls would prepare houses, paint the walls and wash the houses. Everything done by 9am. Always happened on Monday mornings.

Before: not much farming. Socialistic co-op farming.  A lot of different stores, meat etc. now they have a grocery store.

You couldn’t just say you were "communist". You had to swear your allegiance to the party.  Swear for life, forever. “I think my oldest brother joined up a long time ago. My father and mother didn’t and none of us kids did.” Father voiced his political opinion, sent off to jail for a period of time.  Mother was forced to go to work because we didn’t have enough money for food. [my] dad went to daycare a few times. Mother worked in a factory where they made furniture – assembly line. Grandpa worked for the railroad. Dad trained for the railroad.

A: How did you choose that? 

D: “ You don’t choose it. You go where the money is. You go where you can find work.” 

19 when enlisted in the army, faked an appendix attack, applied for a temp visa,
Dad and Miki (his friend) had a small suitcase. Miki made a million $ in Texas and then got leukemia cancer and died.

A: If you could go back what would you visit first?

D: “I would go see my mom” All the siblings live next to her.  Had a small airport where they had sporting hang gliders, 1 or 2 person thing. Big huge model airplane. 50 ft wide wingspan. They would tow, had a cable connected to the glider and would take it way into the sky, disconnect the cable and the guy would just glide all day long.

A: Favorite food?
D: any sea food “I could see” Perogi – little dumplings. Like spicey Hungarian food. Beef, chicken, and pork.

A: When you first left, did you ever think it was a mistake and that you wanted to go back?

D: “Yeah, I didn’t know if it was going to be good.”

A: Tell me your story of how you escaped: 

D: *Preparations* had a chance to go see a soccer game in Austria. And it just happened. I was able to go. Austria was a neutral country. After me and friend went to Austria, stayed at Refugee camp, worked seasonal jobs, waited for approval to US. Had a chance to go to Australia, Canada, or US. Chose America.

*While being searched* D: "kinda scary, but we made it through.” The Czech soldiers searched through the little suitcase and found many pictures and one pair of change of clothes.  Soldiers didn’t search everybody. They thought Miki and I looked suspicious and ‘we almost didn’t make it.’

Refugee camp: complex of buildings. Free to do what you wanted, free to work or not work. It was your choice. 

~ Click the link at the top to read the whole story ~

It's not much, but I'm so glad I have this tiny bit of information from my dad. I don't know what it is lately, but I have been interested in learning his language and wish from the bottom of my heart I knew more about his homeland. My dad is the hardest working man I know. I may not know him as well as other kids know their fathers, but I love him.