The Eternal Outcast

By Katherine Griesz

This book deals with the political history of Hungary in the mid 20th Century. It focuses on Hungary’s Jewish population mass murdered by the Nazis in the 1940’s leaving a gnawing emptyness in the center of the nation’s fabric. The Nazi regime was followed by the brutality of communism. The story is told through the eyes of Mike - the husband of the author - who was brutalized by these two regimes, losing a part of his family, his personal liberty and every material possession he had. After immigrating to the States the difficulties of his life in the States is told; up until the day he finally found success in America even graduating Magna cum Laude from college at age 52.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu Publishing Services
• Release date: Oct 16, 2019
• ISBN: 9781684709373

Book preview

GRIESZ

Copyright © 2019 Katherine Griesz.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of the author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

ISBN: 978-1-6847-0938-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6847-0937-3 (e)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 09/11/2019

Foreword

This is the story of a real-life hero, a young man born into wealth and privilege in and observant Jewish family in twentieth-century Budapest, Hungary. At a young age, he suffered through Nazi persecution, which killed his father and brother. As a Holocaust survivor and sole supporter of his widowed mother, he was forced to rebuild his life and his family’s business.

But just a few years after World War II, the Communists took over the Hungarian government and ushered in a reign of terror. Under this cruel and bloodthirsty regime, survivors suffered a second, in some respects, even more unendurable fate.

Our hero lost everything once more, this time to the Communists, who left him and his mother penniless. After an unsuccessful attempt to flee to the West through the Iron Curtain, the two fugitives were captured, imprisoned, tortured and brutalized. Their personal funds on deposit in a foreign country were expropriated under coercion, and life was in ruins again.

Our brave young man finally managed to escape his native country and ultimately succeeded in settling in New York City. He worked hard to establish himself in his newfound homeland and even enrolled in college to get an American education, which he deemed necessary to be suitably employed.

At the age of 51, he received his much-yearned-for college degree and graduated magna cum laude. This is a man who stood tall and courageous and always fought back. A real-life hero!

PART I

Prologue

It was snowing outside, coming down in really large flakes, reminding me of the European winters of my childhood long ago. Here in New York, where I had been living these past 50 years, the snowflakes were gentler, smaller, and more translucent. I shivered as I moved closer to the window and pushed the flimsy curtains aside, just enough to allow me to peer out onto the dark street. A lamp was dangling in the wind below and it barely shed enough light for people to find their way home on this raw, wet evening.

The radiator in my apartment was cold, as usual, something that occurred quite often. I must buy a heater one of these days, I thought, having contemplated such a purchase for a while. But this was something I had not yet gotten around to doing.

I sighed deeply, a sigh that matched my emotional state to the view beneath my window. Just as darkness ruled the street below, there was darkness in my heart as well. And why shouldn’t there be? I was a widow of only a few days. Yes, I was all alone now. Without my husband Mike, without a family, left with only the memory of the man I loved deeply. Memories of good and not so good days, but they were mine and I treasured them.

Drawing away from the window, I buttoned my housecoat up to my chin, rubbing my hands together, trying to create the illusion of warmth. Everything is easier to bear in the summer, I thought. Maybe even death.

I looked around my apartment. It was quite spacious because it was meant to be a home for two people, not just one. Now I was the sole occupant. All around were mementoes of Mike, who was living with me in this apartment not long ago. His clothes were still hanging in his closet, his shoes mounted on shoe trees, reflecting his conservative European taste. His shaving gear and toiletries still occupied the shelves in the bathroom. But he himself was gone.

What to do now? It was 11:00 at night, time for most people to snuggle into bed. Oh, but not me. I was a night owl, never getting to sleep before the early hours of the morning, and even then, I was often unable to sleep. So many things went through my mind. Scenes kept cropping up from my long life, the past intruding, replaying the good, the bad and the unbelievable horrors Mike and I went through separately in our teens. We had related to each other all the particulars of our sufferings long ago. Yes, I heard it all many times before, and I was as familiar with the details of Mike’s young years as I was with my own.

A noise I recognized began to fill the apartment, but lasted only a few seconds. The steam was rising, and the room became lukewarm for a few minutes. Then the cold returned, along with complete silence. I was used to it by now. Sitting on the couch, looking at the dark television screen before me, I reflected about my own past and the one Mike and I shared. No author has the imagination to write a tale like ours, I thought, suppressing a bitter smile. But there it was. Leaning back and savoring the softness of the pillows of the couch, I searched among the pictures of the past, scenes emerging from my childhood through adolescence, and finally maturity. I could also vividly imagine scenes from Mike’s life, details of which I heard so often…

MIKE’S STORY

Chapter 1

42333.png

Home and Family

Mike was born in Budapest into privilege and considerable fortune. It was all there, the luxury apartment in the center of Pest where he spent winters, and the spacious summer residence the family moved to every June, high in the hills of Buda. It had been named Villa Alice, built by his father as a gift to his mother. Fully staffed, Villa Alice stood silently and majestically atop a hill. The facade looked down on a beautifully landscaped garden, complete with a fountain surrounded by marble cherubs.

As a child, Mike liked to look at the fountain and its spray of cascading water. Holding onto his nanny’s hand, he spoke in a caressing voice to the stone cherubs, believing they were actually living beings.

Look, Nanny, at the little angels, he would say. Can I play with them?

No, Mike. They are not really alive. They are made of stone, Nanny Margit replied. And anyway, we must go up to the house because luncheon is being served now. You know Mummy does not like us to be late.

Disappointed, the small boy nevertheless obeyed his nanny and climbed the broad marble steps into the house. Nanny Margit looked at her charge. What a beautiful child this is, she thought, holding the little boy’s hand in hers. Every feature in that sweet face is like a work of art.

By the time they entered the house, the rest of the family was assembled around the large dining room table. Armand, Mike’s father, sat at one end next to his wife, Alice. Farther along was their older son, Leslie. All three of them were silently spooning the chicken soup which had been prepared by Rose, the cook.

Mike’s brother Leslie was five years older than Mike, and was not at all like his younger sibling. He was quiet, contemplative and very serious, while Mike was outgoing, fun loving and always inquisitive. Leslie was tall for his age and rather skinny. Mike, on the other hand, was quite a bit shorter than Leslie and a bit on the chubby side. Yet the two brothers, different as they were physically, were close and loving companions. Anybody could see the affection they held for each other.

The family was very close and devoted. Leslie loved and coddled Mike, whom he referred to as his baby brother. The little boy barely reached up to his brother’s waist. The two of them were very different in their interests and their natures, too. Leslie, with his large dark eyes inherited from their mother, loved to play his piano accordion, enjoyed the arts and he kept his nose in books. His little brother was lively, and from his earliest years was very interested in the world he lived in, trying to understand how things around him worked.

The boys were the darlings of their parents, Armand and Alice. Armand, a respected businessman, dealt in special textiles and supplied them to retailers around the country. Alice led the life that was customary for wealthy women of her era. She ran a warm and comfortable home for her family, supervising the servants, entertaining clients and friends, but was always at hand for her husband and two sons. The four of them were bound to each other with unbreakable bonds of affection.

Despite the family’s wealth, they preferred not to show off, but to live quietly and modestly. As Armand, Alice and everyone else knew, anti-Semitism was present in Hungarian society. It simmered under the surface and emerged only occasionally from its makeshift hiding place.

You don’t have to wear your diamonds, Alice, the boys heard Armand caution his wife frequently. Everybody knows that you are my wife, they know who you are. And the same goes for your mink coat, my dear, he added. Wear the mink, as a lining inside, for warmth, but let the outside be a cloth coat. Armand frowned. There is enough trouble in the world. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.

42766.png

It was the end of summer and one could feel in the air that autumn was just around the corner. The leaves would soon be turning yellow, red, and brown, and this meant that the family would be leaving their summer residence and move back to their apartment in town for the winter months. Their home was right in the heart of Pest, a stately apartment building close to shops, theaters, restaurants and best of all, right across the boulevard from the giant, imposing St. Stephen’s Basilica. The Basilica, the largest church in Budapest, is dedicated to Hungary’s first ruler, King Stephen, who eventually was elevated to sainthood. This beautiful neoclassical cathedral could accommodate 8,500 people at once and, incidentally, is one of the world’s top ten most photographed buildings.

Although very happy in the summer villa, Mike was equally glad to return to the city and go back to school. He was just eight years old, in the third year of elementary school, and was enjoying his school days thoroughly. He was popular with the other boys and very good at his studies, which made up for his lack of interest and involvement in sports. He could write reasonably well and read fluently. Arithmetic was his favorite subject.

Budapest was a glittering, cultured, world-class city, a pleasure to live in, with a large Jewish population of about 800,000. Hungary was still fairly tolerant of its Jewish population, and for the most part, Jews were left to live and work in peace. Jews were visible in all walks of life. They were farmers and merchants, actors, artists, writers, teachers and business owners, and active in every other field and vocation. Many of them achieved wealth, became influential and had a say in the country’s economic management.

Additionally, many Jewish families lived in the countryside. Those living in the capital were much less religiously observant than their brothers and sisters in the rural areas. They preferred to consider themselves first and foremost Hungarians, and demonstrated unquestioned devotion and loyalty to Hungary, which they considered to be their country.

Chapter 2

42333.png

The Storm is Approaching

The year was 1933, and the world was changing, but not for the better. In Germany, a party founded in 1920 called the National Socialist Workers Party, Nazi Party for short, was gathering strength and influence. A man by the name of Adolf Hitler joined the party the year it was founded and became its leader in 1921. This party exhibited violence and intolerance right from the time of its inception and its members were known for their insane hatred of Jews and the Jewish religion.

Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933 and his government assumed dictatorial powers. Many German citizens were arrested as the Nazis rounded up political opponents, and the first concentration camp, Dachau, was established near the city of Munich.

Young as he was, Mike always found politics and the people who made the news more interesting than anything else. Listening to the conversation of the adults around him, he began to hear the name Adolf Hitler ever more frequently. He also noticed that when this name surfaced, the faces of his mother and father darkened considerably.

Father, who is this Adolf you talk about so often nowadays? young Mike inquired.

He is a very, very bad man, son, Armand answered, sighing.

Do Leslie and I have to be afraid of him?

No, of course not, son, Armand replied with a smile. He is far from us and lives in another country. We are safe in Budapest and nothing bad will ever happen here. Hungary is a good country and has been our home for generations. Mother and I, you and Leslie have absolutely nothing to fear — I hope, he added, turning away watching young Mike race out of the room.

And so it was. The 1930s marched on. The world continued to change in many ways, and more shadows began to appear on the horizon. But the Jewish population of Hungary pretended that all was well, and chose to ignore the tragic events that came to pass in many of Hungary’s neighboring countries.

Under Hitler’s government, a totalitarian state no longer based on democratic principles was established. In the rest of Europe, life for Jews became progressively worse. The height of Hitler’s ambition was to put in place an aggressive policy of expansion that would secure ample living space for the German people. In order to establish this giant German state, Hitler began to invade neighboring countries, one after another. First, he annexed Austria, claiming that, as the two countries shared the same language, they were in reality one country, and Austria was treated as such. Austria, in turn, accepted this political development enthusiastically. Hitler’s forces subsequently occupied the Sudeten region of Bohemia, then Czechoslovakia. This was followed by the invasion of Poland in 1939.

But this was not enough for the dictator! There still were several Western European countries there for the taking. After the invasion of Poland, German forces marched into Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, and France.

Hitler’s fanatic hatred of Jewish people, their religion, their customs, clothing, traditions, even their very existence, was by now well known the world over. The fate of the Jews in every conquered country was the same. Death! No sooner did the German boots tread the ground of an occupied country, than their Jewish citizens were concentrated into ghettoes. From there, they were transported in cattle cars to various death camps. Once in the camps, the younger and healthier ones were temporarily spared and used as slave laborers, while women with children, pregnant women, the frail, and the elderly were immediately dispatched to the gas chambers.

It was hard not to pay attention to what was happening in the countries surrounding Hungary, but the Jews of Budapest tried to pretend that nothing was seriously wrong. Nevertheless, fear and dread ruled the hearts of everyone as they tried to banish these feelings and avoid thinking about what the future could bring.

42760.png

The Regent of Hungary, Miklos Horthy, was a statesman who ruled the country between World War I and World War II. He came from a noble family and had been a self-confessed anti-Semite all his life, a fact he did not bother to hide or deny. His sympathies lay with Germany and he forged a strong alliance with Adolf Hitler. Horthy disliked Jewish power and was often heard bewailing the fact that so much of the wealth, power, and influence was concentrated in those hands. They own factories, are involved in the world of commerce, are the owners of different businesses. They are a part of our theatrical world and our press, he would say frequently. And yet, he was also heard adding to his usual boisterous tirade, declarations, But they are smart, these Jews, and the country needs them, really!

As a result of the Nazi influence a sharp anti-Jewish movement was taking hold. In 1938, the first anti-Jewish laws were put into effect restricting the number of Jews in the liberal professions to 20 percent. This law was ratified by both houses of parliament and it also reduced the number of Jews in economic activity to just 5 percent. They even gave this law an attractive Latin name: Numerus Clausus.

The lifestyle in Budapest, despite being eroded and diminished, held fairly steady. Amazingly, despite the prevailing political and social developments, Budapest was still an agreeable place in which to live. The coffeehouses and restaurants were bustling, as were the theaters and movie houses. Jews still travelled whenever possible, shopped, and gave parties. These activities were carried out to disguise the ever-growing fear and dread present in every Jewish soul.

It is terrible what’s going on all over, was an oft-heard exchange on the streets. In response, there were optimistic statements from middle-class citizens, like, We mustn’t fear. Hungary is a good country. We have lived here for generations and have had an undisturbed, peaceful life. Besides, Horthy, our regent, although no friend of the Jews, is still a decent man and would not allow anything bad to happen to us.

But as changes started to appear, those members of the Jewish community who refused to be fooled by happy talk began to make plans and seek a way to leave the country.

Mike and his brother were well aware of the changes, but reacted to them differently. In 1938, Leslie was 18 years old and Mike was just 13. Leslie considered himself to be an adult, one who was interested in art, books, and music. And lately, Mike noticed that Leslie had a new interest. Girls! Especially one girl, Sylvia, their next-door neighbor. Mike watched Leslie blush every time Sylvia appeared. He witnessed Leslie and Sylvia talking in hushed tones in the elevator, on the staircase and the dark corners of the hallway. Before long, Leslie started to visit Sylvia in her parents’ apartment, where he would serenade her on his piano accordion.

If I hear you play that melody from ‘The Pearl Fishers’ to Sylvia through the wall once more, I’ll go crazy! Mike complained. And anyway, what do you want from her? Leslie smiled as he looked through the window. Are you going to marry her, Leslie? Mike asked, anxiously.

Don’t be silly, Mike. I am only 18 and she is 16. That is too young to marry. But I sure do like her.

She is very pretty, Mike agreed. Tall, blond with beautiful blue eyes. Are you sure she is Jewish? She doesn’t look it.

Of course she is.

Well, you have a lot of time, Leslie. Our whole life lies before us and we will get to do so many exciting things. I want to study and travel, and see as much of the world as possible. He fell silent and added, I want to see America, especially New York. It seems so fascinating. I am sure I would love it. Mike looked at Leslie. Of course, we must go together, Les. I wouldn’t go without you." Mike wanted to reassure his brother, but deep inside he did not feel the way he sounded. He knew that Leslie’s goals lay elsewhere.

42753.png

Mike was very sensitive and inclined to pick up subtle signs around him — the change in his parents’ behavior, for instance. Outwardly, life went on just as before, but lightheartedness had disappeared. Signs of worry mixed with expressions of fear appeared on the faces of Armand and Alice.

Father, is anything the matter? asked Mike more and more often of his father.

Well, the political situation is not the best, as you know, son, Armand stated. But we must not give up hope. I am still optimistic that everything will work itself out for us here in Hungary.

But Mike could not be fooled. All his young life his sensitive nature ruled both his heart and his head. He absorbed and could harmonize with people’s feelings and was attuned to his surroundings with a depth of comprehension unusual for his age. He noticed, for example, that his mother and father had lost their usual vitality and were huddled together in deep conversation when they thought they were alone and unobserved.

Armand looked careworn and often desperately sad. He lost weight, seemed older than his age, and wore a perennial frown. There were also times when he paced around the large living room, restlessly gesticulating, as though he wanted to explain something to his wife.

You know, Alice, he said on one occasion, our two sons are quite different. Mike is five years younger than Leslie, but it is he who is more aware of the tragic conditions in our world.

Yes, Alice agreed, he is going on 14, but he is exceptionally mature for his age and seems aware of everything going on. He was always like that. Plus, he reads the newspapers cover to cover every day. Once you finish with the paper and discard it, Mike sneaks out of his room, retrieves it from the floor where you dropped it, takes it with him and reads every word! No wonder he is up-to-date with all the politics, Alice said, smiling. Leslie is so different! Besides, Leslie is in love.

Yes, I noticed that he was sweet on that tall blond girl next door. Her father is an attorney.

It has been going on for quite a while now. I wouldn’t be surprised if they got married, once sanity returns to this world.

"The word is ‘if.’ IF