“I’m listening.”
“I love you, and it is because I love you that I need you, I need us to leave this country.” Rebecca reached, stretching her hands to him.
“I’m not leaving without you.” Though he had said us, she needed this fact to be very clear to him.
“I wouldn’t want you to.” He consoled her worry, “but I need to request your passport from the American Embassy to show you have dual citizenship. Your passport is the only way you can get out of Germany and to America. I will need documentation to verify it is you.”
“America?”
“You have family there, your Aunt Martha. I remember you telling me about her once.”
“And what about you?” Rebecca’s concern quickly transferred to Eli.
“Aaron and I’ve talked about it.” Eli cleared his throat, “I’ll send another letter to your aunt for her support in sponsorship to say I’ll be staying with her. While I wait for her response, I’ll send my documents to the American Embassy here in Germany. I have to show my marriage certificate contract and my financial statements and acquire some papers from the German police.”
“What if it’s not enough?” Rebecca’s heart jumped and her calm disposition became nervous.
“It will be,” Eli encouraged, but he knew the chances were slim.
Since the 1930’s, immigrants had been leaving Germany by the shiploads to land in other European countries or on liberal Western soil, carrying their dreams and hopes. Since Hitler’s Chancellorship, the numbers doubled and the visa immigration departments everywhere began furthering already stringent restrictions. The number of anti-Semitic men in the immigration offices and the increase in fraudulent claims of marriage for green cards added to this problem. Eli knew he would have to get his paperwork into the immigration office as soon as possible to be approved.
Rebecca’s head lowered and Eli reached for her hand, clasping it in his own. “It will be enough.”
They finished their dinner in a haunting silence only disturbed by the sounds of chewing. Rebecca pondered over this information, trying to figure out what it all meant. Eli thought about his letter to Martha and the right wording for his request. After dinner they sauntered into the bedroom and Rebecca rested for the evening. Eli stayed up writing and rewriting his request to Rebecca’s Aunt Martha and preparing the documents he would have to drop off at the immigration office, as well as thinking through his visit to the German police.
Dear Aunt Martha,
I am writing on behalf of Rebecca Baum, your niece, and myself, Eli Levin. As you may or may not have heard, we have been married since the 31st of December. You may already know of the troubles in Germany under the new Reich leadership, but I will inform you of some of the hardships. Social prejudice is rampant with more and more Jews being asked to leave their place of employment. Violence against Jews is increasing and, sadly under the Nazis power, is overlooked and even expected. I have been a victim of a couple fights while living here and the initiator of a few myself. However, Rebecca and I hope for a world where liberty and equality is foremost and one does not have to fight to survive.
We hope to receive a letter of sponsorship from you for myself, Eli Levin, in hopes of soothing the legislation of immigration that dictates visa approval. Rebecca tells me you are a fair minded and compassionate person whom I look forward to meeting. Within the letter, we would need confirmation of your approval of us living at your home until more suitable accommodations can be arranged. I will be forwarding my information to the immigration offices soon and, when I receive your letter, I hope to add it to my documentation.
I thank you in advance for reading my personal letter and for considering the writing of a letter of sponsorship for me. I hope to see you soon.
With love,
Eli Levin & Rebecca Baum Levin
Eli showed the letter to Rebecca and without pause she signed under her name. The next day he dropped it off at the post office down the street.
Wednesday, March 1, 1933
Eli took a few days off of work to get the required documentation from the German police and, with the Nazis in favor of Jews exiting Germany, fulfilling the request was not difficult. He scurried to his Audi with the file containing Rebecca’s documentation for an American passport and the documentation he acquired for himself, including bank statements, photographs of the wedding, and the signed contract, with the signature of both witnesses.
Eli also included a personal letter describing why he wished to immigrate to America. Among the reasons listed were his and Rebecca’s desire to live close to her aunt and grandmother and raise a family, though Eli knew as well as Rebecca that her grandmother was harsher than her mother, Deseire, and they probably would not spend much time with her. Much of Deseire’s values and discrimination stemmed directly from her mother, Adel. Her older sister, Aunt Martha, like Rebecca, always had a mind of her own.
Deseire met her husband Ralph on his business trip to America, then moved to Germany where she lived ever since. Up through her fifties, Adel would visit her daughter and granddaughter. Rebecca distinctly remembered Adel commenting on how many Jews lived in the cities of Germany and remarked to Deseire and Ralph, how do you deal with it?
Only six or seven, Rebecca didn’t know what Jew meant, though, by the negative tone in her grandma’s voice, it might have meant a lot of traffic or robbery. When Rebecca grew older, she began to see the little biases and discriminations exclusive to Adel and passed to Deseire, though Martha and Ralph did not seem to share the same discontentment.
At the American Embassy, fenced in with the America flag blowing in the wind behind the metal gates, the soldier requested Eli’s identification and reason for entering before opening the gate. As Eli waited in line, he noticed a number of Jews like himself with files of papers and reasons for a visa to America. The Americans were business oriented, shuffling through people like they were shuffling through papers. When Eli approached the desk, the lanky clerk grabbed Eli’s files with robotic motions and then handed Eli his application form, took his fee for processing and then dropped Eli’s file in a stack behind him with many other records. The office was tense under the lengthy immigrant restraints. Government moved with a slow, stern hand and Eli drew back in his seat with a distaste for the compassionless regulations.
“How long will it take to hear from the immigration office?” Eli asked.
“It could take a couple months or more. It’s difficult to say for sure. If we get backed up, it could take longer.” The clerk raked his fingers through his blond hair, cooling himself in the upcoming summer heat. With the cooler broken, only one fan wobbled back and forth, offering little relief.
Eli narrowed his eyes to concentrate on the clerk’s thick American accent. Once he understood, he asked, “You think I will be able to procure the visa?” His throat tightened.
“There are quotas. If you don’t make it in this year, you could be on a waiting list for next year. But there are no guarantees.” The clerk’s grey eyes became empathetic and he lowered his head, calling the next in line. Despite the clerk’s attempts to lighten the unlikelihood of his obtaining a visa, Eli could not help but worry his paperwork wouldn’t be enough and he would end up sitting in Germany until next year or later.
He walked out of the office, considering the possibility he and his family would be left behind. Aaron’s suggestion about a forgery came to mind. He considered the shaky response of the clerk despite his hopeful expressions and couldn’t bear the thought of his family being denied.
* * *
When he arrived at the law firm Thursday, he saw Ezekiel pass through the hallway heading to his office.
“Papa?”
Ezekiel turned his head. “Eli, did you accomplish what you sent out to do?”
“Yes, and that’s what I want to talk to you about if you have time.”
Ezekiel nodded and they headed for Eli’s office.
“Let’s talk in here.” Ezekiel
sat in the mahogany chair near the desk and Eli leaned over the desk towards him. “What is it, son?”
“I know you’re comfortable in Germany and I know you hate to disrupt your life, but Germany is being ravaged of all its civil liberties. It’s not the Germany you or even I grew up in. It is no longer the fatherland of Germans.” Eli grabbed his father’s folded hands and held them across the desk. “You know as a man who studied law what these legislative actions can lead to. You know better than most how delicate our lives now hang in the power of the Nazis.”
His voice grew stern. “There’s no more legislative balance. There’s no more parliament. There’s only Totalitarianism.” Eli closed his eyes and opened them again in hope. “Papa, we must leave for the safety of those we love. You must leave for your family. I must leave for Rebecca.”
Ezekiel rubbed his chin and lowered his head. “I’ve thought about it, son, but I’ve talked to clerks at the immigration office and they tell me it’s risky. They say it’s very difficult to acquire the visas. Even then, the country we enter may reject us and send us straight back to Germany. It also costs a lot of money for the ship, the visas, and the travel arrangements, as well as money to start up a new life.”
“But, Papa, we have to try.” Eli’s eyes filled with desperation for his father to hear him, for his father to waive the stubbornness and agree to leave with him.
“I don’t know if it will be better to uproot the entire family to a country we’ve never been to. I just don’t know.” Ezekiel rested his head in his hands, wiping his forehead. “There are prejudices everywhere, Eli.”
“I dropped off my paperwork at the immigration office. I’ll let you know how it goes, but, Papa,” Eli’s voice lowered, “even if the immigration office rejects the visa, Aaron knows of someone who makes forgeries. If we have to, we could…”
“No, no, son. That could send me to jail, you to jail and what then? What good will you or I be to our families then?” Ezekiel shook his head and Eli knew he would have to wait on hearing from the immigration office and hope his father changed his mind before he and Rebecca departed.
* * *
Sunday March fifth, Eli and Rebecca joined a spontaneous Jewish anti-German boycott. Jews throughout the world held mass rallies and marches proclaiming their rights. Eli built a sign reading: Be Free of Fascism! He and Rebecca marched through the streets with other Jews and those who sympathized. Unlike the violence of the marches from the red hooked-cross Nazis filling people with fear and dread, these marches evoked humanity and dignity and yielded its participators, previously stomped and kicked by jackboots, a way to combat the maltreatment. This gave a voice to many whose businesses were being vandalized, closed down and abandoned by once faithful employees.
Rebecca and Eli marched side by side and, unlike the earlier demonstration with the Communists and Social Democrats, Rebecca was not in the least bit intimidated or afraid. The protest boycott empowered her as she watched Eli and his Jewish friends fill the streets with their heads held high, with determined voices and a sturdy will. The boycott allowed those being denied their livelihood a refusal for the perpetrators. Felt all over the world, German efforts led organized movements across Europe.
Wednesday March twenty second, fifteen kilometers northwest of Munich, the first group of prisoners made up of mostly Liberals, Communists, Social Democrats, and homosexuals was taken to a concentration camp in Dachau. The sounds of marching soldiers and military trucks dragging men away from almost every German community echoed in Rebecca’s mind, sounds of resistance, struggle, and ultimately of free thought suffocating.
Political leaders and rebels threatened the Reich and Hitler’s ideas for government. They believed in liberty and equality above all. The Nazis had no use for those values and systematically executed influential political leaders.
Part of Dachau held prisoners in row after row of cots inside buildings. Another part conducted medical experiments. In total, the camp held two hundred thousand, one third of them Jews.
Some German citizens became concerned at the recent brutality, but Hitler assured everyone his totalitarian government had every right. After all, the Communists burned down the Reichstag parliament, leaving the country helpless. The Nazi party grabbed the reigns and began leading the country again. This soothed some and worried others. Eli and his friends were not fooled.
Rosalyn and Robert stopped by Eli’s house the evening of the twenty third to discuss the country and the options left for people who did not agree with its course. Rebecca had warmed tea for everyone.
Rebecca answered the door; Rosalyn and Robert entered briskly and headed straight to the table. They did not have time to waste. In their minds the country’s downfall was imminent and they were in its wake. Rebecca filled three cups with mint tea, and then handed a cup of lemon tea to Eli who exited the bedroom.
“What is so urgent?” Eli inquired. Robert shook his head and stood, unable to sit in his anger.
“I can’t believe it. I just can’t believe it.”
“What happened?” Rebecca sipped her tea and sat next to Rosalyn.
“Didn’t you listen to the radio news?” Rosalyn asked.
“No, we haven’t had time. I’ve been busy at the hospital. Eli’s been focused on work at the firm. They’ve lost many employees.”
Rosalyn spoke with calm, a calm beyond Robert’s capability at the moment. “The Enabling Act was passed.” She said her words with slow methodical motion, almost freezing towards the end of the sentence in disbelief. Then her tone became inflamed. “Hitler promised the Act would in no way be harmful to the Presidency, the Reichstag, or municipal government. The majority of Germany bought into his conservative national leader’s façade, believing him at the ceremony where he pretended not to be in charge of a radical party.”
“Oh my God!” Eli reacted. Robert eased his angered wounds and sat down before Eli continued almost as calmly as Rosalyn. “This gives them the power to dissolve political parties altogether and grants him dictatorial powers.”
“The Parliament is now just paper for the Nazis to hide behind and play puppet master,” Rosalyn said with disgust. As Rosalyn finished her thought, someone pounded on the door. Rebecca opened it, delighted to see Aaron.
“Aaron, glad you could make it.” Rebecca invited him in, her hands motioning him forward.
“Thank you, Rebecca.” Aaron took off his dark blue suit jacket and laid it over the sofa. He surveyed the room and noticed the tension in the faces of everyone. “You all heard the news.”
“Yes,” Eli confirmed.
“What are we going to do?” Rosalyn’s voice shook. Robert and Rosalyn steadfastly supported the Communist party. The idea of not being able to participate in protests, rallies or marches in support of their beliefs was unfathomable to them.
“It’s incomprehensible what is happening to the country,” Robert said in a forceful, unabated declaration. “What is more incomprehensible is that the citizens of Germany are allowing it to happen!”
“The country will be ruined under the hands of an evil brilliance,” Aaron insisted.
“Brilliance?” Rebecca questioned.
“Hitler is no fool. He knows exactly what he’s doing, what he wants and how to get there,” Aaron responded in a confidence he carried in the courtroom. “A sociopath, but brilliant.”
“So, how do we get there, to what we want?” Eli asked Aaron.
“I wouldn’t wait too long. I’d look for all the possible routes out of Germany.” Aaron’s eyebrows clenched upward and his lip curled underneath.
“What do you mean?” Robert interjected.
Rebecca sipped her tea and answered, “Eli and I have decided to leave.”
“You’re leaving?” Rosalyn’s mouth dropped open and she darted her eyes to Rebecca. “How come you didn’t say anything to me earlier?”
“It’s not finalized yet. We have to wait on Eli’s visa from the immigration office and then we’ll make a
rrangements for the ship.”
“I wouldn’t rely on the immigration offices.” Robert confirmed Eli’s fears.
“Why not?” Rebecca inquired. Eli shook his head out of Rebecca’s view, telling Robert to close his mouth.
“Nothing.” Robert cuddled Rosalyn close to him.
Everyone left after tea and, with a long face, Rebecca followed Eli into the bedroom. Eli sat on the bed with his head down and eyes staring at the sheets. He glanced up at Rebecca, knowing she would ask, but not wanting to answer, not wanting to bring more worry to her. His eyes tore away from her to avoid the conversation.
“What did Robert mean, ‘I wouldn’t rely on the immigration offices.’?”
“Don’t worry about it, Rebecca. You know Robert. He’s just looking at it from all angles.”
“Should we worry about it?”
“It will do no good, will it? Whether they approve my visa or not, worry will not change it.” Eli rubbed Rebecca’s hands as he spoke to her and Rebecca slipped into bed under the thin silk sheet she bought for the summer sun. “Let’s not think about this much and rest now.”
Rebecca nodded and Eli pulled her to him with his arm around her neck. Rebecca nestled her head in between the sheets and Eli’s chest, a comfortable position which they had grown to enjoy.
The rest of the month, radio stations lost their right to broadcast and the Nazi paper, Voelkische Beobachter took their place, filling the news with their propaganda.
The twenty fourth, Eli sprinted downstairs to pick up the morning paper before heading off to work. The newspaper’s front page spelled out a historic day for the Nazis. The day of the Third Reich has come! Eli ripped the paper in half and tossed it in the trash can in front of the building while a neighbor from across the street watched him with careful eyes.
Saturday, April 1, 1933
Saturday morning, Rebecca awoke under her thin silk sheets in Eli’s arms just where she wanted to be. She curled her shoulders and rolled into Eli’s chest, his comforting chest that provided warmth like the sun and protection like a soldier. She longed for nothing more in this moment, this perfect moment. The sunlit air was warm and the wild flowers outside were beginning to blossom and grow on their own again. Her wide smile bunched up into Eli’s face in need of a morning shave and she brushed her cheek across his chin and giggled.
The Day the Flowers Died Page 19