A Hódmezővásárhelyi Szeremlei Társaság Évkönyve 2019 (Hódmezővásárhely, 2019)
EMLÉKEZÉS - Kovács László: Recollections on Human Survivors - Visszaemlékezés életben maradásunkra
LÁSZLÓ KOVÁCS1 RECOLLECTIONS ON HUMAN SURVIVAL It was in the winter of 1945, during very difficult times when most of Europe, including my place of birth Hungary, was devastated by years of war. We lived on rations even months after the armed conflicts ended, had only the very minimum for survival with not much food, clothing, fuel or medicine. My clothing was worn out and the only pair of shoes was getting small and beyond repair. Then in the dead of winter one store received a shipment of ‘new shoes.’ So my father and I got up early in the morning, had something to eat and with heated stones in our coat pockets, to keep our hands warm, walked into the center of the city and stood in line in front of the store. Finally it opened and we managed to find a pair of shoes, just the right size for my growing feet. So we purchased them and carried them home. They were not made of durable leather, instead they were fabricated out of used motorcycle tires, they looked like moccasins, tied with strings. These ‘shoes’ carried me through the winter, but as soon they leaked my feet became cold, blue and numb. We placed them near the stove during the night, rubbed some oil on them in the morning hoping that they would carry me through another day. But I had ‘shoes’!!! Basic human needs and hunger can bring out the worst passions in us, and you may never know what hunger is until you come to the end of the loaf and there is no more bread or money to buy some. We lived under miserable conditions but managed to survive - and learned to be thankful. Human beings are endowed with memory and these hard experiences are something to ponder on during the winter of 2011 as we close the old year and are facing new opportunities. December, 2011 1 A szerző 1935-ben született Vásárhelyen. 1956 decemberében hagyta el szülőföldjét. Az Egyesült Államokban lelkészként, majd könyvtárigazgatóként és egyetemi tanárként dolgozott. Jelenleg Ohio- ban él. Evek óta rendszeresen küld írásokat évkönyvünk számára. 324
