Guest Blogger: Papa

Marinka calls Papa on his cell phone.

M: Hi, papa, everything is fine, I wanted to ask you to do a blog post for me.

P: (Russian words, expressing malcontent).

M: First, you have to speak in English, and drop a few articles for effect.

P: I was just booking vacation to Krem.

M: To the Kremlin?

P: No, to Krem. How you say English? Krem.

M: Crimea? Isn't there a war there?

P: War? No war. Beach.

M: So back to me, what is your favorite childhood memory of me.

P: The elephant. I still have material evidence of that. It was very good day when we were both home (Marinka's note: I was at home because I had some deadly illness and I was bedbound, but I'm glad that papa thought that it was fun watching me on my deathbed) and we made toy elephant from scrap made from mama's overcoat. It was white and had lace. I still have it and the trunk was bitten off by someone.

M: That is precious. I remember it, too.

P: Another time was when you jumped under bus. It was nice. We standing on the bus stop to go to swimming lesson, because you were sickly child (Marinka note: AHa! The elephant has come home to roost!) you were about seven, an idiot already, waiting for bus and as the bus was pull over, you jumped right in front of you and I grabbed you by the collar and I should have killed you right there.

M: Did you ask me why I did it?

P: What can you say, you claimed Fourth Amendment.

M: You mean Fifth?

P: Yes, a Fifth. You couldn't really express yourself. Still puzzles me. Very unusual child. After that, I told you that I was going to go away for a while, because I wanted to move to America and mama didn't want to.

M: I remember that. You told me that you were going to move to Africa to help sick children.

P: Yes, but instead of Africa to help sick children, I was going to come to America and be big Jew. Go to synogogue with other sons of Abraham.

M: That's a lovely memory.

P: I think so also.