28
Friday, December 14th, 1962
I was shaking with fear and my heart stroke like hell. What if…?
At the same moment the door creaked open. In front of me appeared an old woman in wheelchair. The view confused me. The lady smiled:
-May I help you?
-Yes, I’m James. James Stratton. I’m looking for Tom Stratton. He…
-Oh, my dear James! I can’t believe my eyes! That’s you?- she interrupted me. – That’s a surprise! Come in, don’t stand in the cold!
Then she turned her wheels towards the stairs leading to the second floor and shouted:
-Hurry up, my child!
I entered the sitting room and saw a young woman in her mid-thirties swinging a baby in her lap. It was impossible not to recognize the child‘s eyes gazing at me. If the boy got lost, everyone would know that he was Tom‘s son. The semi- paralyzed lady wondered if I remember her. But my perfect memory behaved like a traitor. The lady‘s features were unfamiliar to me. How astonished I was to learn that she was my granny, the same granny that had disappeared during the war. Thoughts coiled and exploded in my head. What?! How?!
My rolling glance from the old photos on the fireplace to the entrances of the rooms betrayed my wish to hear Tom‘s steps. I calmed myself to wait until the end of his shift. 24 hours more! Too long..
I was seated at the table while the women were busy with kitchen duty. Stress made me feel as though I was hungry. A simple meal such as scrambled eggs, bacon, English muffins and coffee was exactly what I needed right then. Julia, Tom‘s wife, was the owner of a loud voice. Her echoing laugh and uninterrupted