Ici's Maiden Aunts

My mother, Margarete, was the only one of her sisters who married. That meant several maiden aunts to care for, but who also cared for us.

In 1928 Budapest still was jammed with newcomers, so the government hurriedly built many small apartment houses in a former park to accommodate singles or childless couples. All my three aunts ended up living there, and all three found jobs (with my father’s help) in the post office, working with telegraph machines.

Irenke also had a kindergarten teacher diploma, so she knew a thousand little verses and ditties to teach us. She would would have made a perfect mother. She was once engaged, but her betrothed left her for another girl who happened to have a large dowry. We children adored her. When she visited us, we hardly let her go home. And she and Ilus not only helped my mother to raise us, but dressed Kato and me by making and buying all of our clothes.

I should also introduce to you my mother’s youngest sibling, poor little Juliska (Julie). Perhaps it was because my grandmother was over forty when Juliska was born, but it seemed that everything was wrong with her. She was very small and learned late to talk. Forever sick and weak, she never went to school and despite efforts for home schooling, could not read or write.

My grandparents kept Juliska at home, even when she was twenty or thirty. When my grandfather died, his children sold their home in Nagyvarad (which was now in Romania), and brought their mother and kid sister to Budapest. First they lived with Erzsi neni, but Juliska was too much for Erzi to handle. Erzi sent Juliska to live with Jeno. (The siblings paid him for her keep). My grandmother did not last long in the big city. She passed away in a few years and Juliska also followed her.

Most likely Juliska's problems were hereditary and would have been treatable nowadays.