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Ceceilia Patrourtsa
(Florida)
[Missing Page?]
"My husband iss so sorry not to be here. He have to work. When I told him
you wanted the story of our marriage, he told me to order the flowers so
when you come you will know that he loves me very much. That he iss happy
to be married to me as much today as the day he married me. He could not
be here himself to tell you all this but he said that the flowers would
tell you."
Three-year-old Elizabeth came in, seated herself beside her mother and
said, staring at me, "What's your name and what do you come here for,
anyhow? Do you want to see my picture?"
Her mother smiled and said, "She expect you all the morning. I told her
you wass coming and to keep herself clean. They like to dress up. I want
to bring in my other little girl for you to see. She got her hand hurt
this morning. Her sister, here, hurt her. They are so jealous of each
other and that big one there fight the little one something terrible. She
would kill her I think if I did not be around to watch. I hope they'll
stop fighting sometime. Bolo," to Elizabeth, "bring the baby here to see
the lady and then get us some Coca-Cola out of the ice-box."
Bolo brought the baby and left her in her mother's lap. Both children wore
silk dresses that were too long for them, decorated with hand work.
"Dis is little Polly and she name for my sister Polly who work at my
father's store. My sister is little and I think, too, that dis one be
little joost like her. That Elizabeth is a big girl for her age and that
is why she hurt the little one so mooch when dey fight like. Dis one only
two years old." Bolo left to get the Coca Cola and her mother settled down
to tell me about the life of her family.
"My father, he come to this country when he was a very young man. Then he
send for his wife to the Old Country and they have five children and good
success." It sounded a little rehearsed when she started to talk but less
so as she continued. Her accent was more apparent when she forgot to make
an effort to speak correctly.
"My father he hass been in the store business for a long time, ever since
I can remember. He use to have a little grocery store and we did not have
all the nice things then that we have now. But my father he iss a good
buyer and my mother she iss a good saver and knows how to save the money
in the home.
"My mother never spend too mooch of the money in any easy way. She feel
one can save the money by not buying a lot of things that some people buy;
like going in debt for a heap of things for the house. She won't do that
and she always do all the work the hard way. She do all she could to save
and have something in the home, while my father he do the best to make
something in the store.
"So we get a little money saved up and then my father, he go in the big
store and sell nothing but sweets and from the day he opened up he done a
big business."
Bolo returned with the Coca Cola and a plate of chocolate creams. Ceceilia
offered the candy again and again.
"Eat as much as you can. It is good and cold. The children they do not
like candy at all, so I have to eat it myself. My husband he go by my
father's store and buy it every day from him. You know that is the way of
showing that he wish him much success in the store. He knows that the
children no eat mooch of it and I have to. My father should be in some
other business, for my sake... it make me too fat.
"I use to sit and eat candy and crochet and eat candy and crochet. Dat iss
how I make so mooch of the handwork you see all over everything. I like
pretty thing and my husband he like it too, so I make the portiers and the
scarfs and chairbacks and the mantle covers and the tablecloths and a
bedspread on the bed in my room there.
"So, back to my story - my father
always been able to send us to a good school. He thinks a youngun can
learn more in a private school than in the public school but I don't think
so. He pay [?] a month for me all the time I go to school from the first,
to the time I graduate from the high grades. And the same for my sister,
Elizabeth. But my baby sister, she didn't like it and wanted to go to the
public schools and she did. She graduated from the Lee High School two
years ago and she is brighter than us that had more expensive training.
"All Greek families and their children to the school where they learn to
speak more Greek than they would at home. We do not speak so much Greek in
our houses when everybody in the house does learn the English. It is best
that we try to speak the English good and so we do not talk mooch Greek
before one another but send the children to the school, so that they ;will
have the friendship of other Greek children and learn enough to be able to
speak some Greek for it usually helps them in business later.
"The Greek school is conducted in the afternoons and on Saturdays. I am
going to send my children to the public school. My baby sister learned the
most there.
"My mother she never learned to speak the English language. She has to
speak the old language of her mother country although she been here for a
long time. But she stay home and have the children and work hard like a
servant for all of us and don't get to know the English. She thinks that
is lazy not to do all the work yourself. She come here forty years ago and
never go out mooch to see other people, just stay home and work. We try to
show her the easy and modern way of doing housework and washing but she
says it isn't good enough. She iss happier when she can work hard for her
family and that iss all the fun she want. But me, I gotta go to the shows
and go out riding and all that.
"One thing we don't do that the American girls do and that is to have
dates with the boys until we are 19 years old or older. Our fathers are
very strict about that. And a Greek girl will not marry a man unless he
doing some business and can take care of them right. Not like some girls
that joost get married to stay married for a little while. He always try
to stay married if there's a chance in the world to do it. We are ashamed
to be divorced, the man as mooch as the woman.
"Our customs in marriage today is not mooch different from the American.
If we want to marry out of the order, then we may. It is not necessary,
now, that we wait for the oldest one of the daughters to marry like the
customs of the church says. All of the Greeks do not follow the church as
closely as they use to. The older ones that come from the Old country
follow it all right, but the American-born do not always. The parents
would be happier, though, if they themselves would do like the Americans
do.
"Now, for instance, if my little sister Polly was to take a mind to get
married next, it would not matter so mooch to my daddy and mama. They are
use to it by now. But I don't think the older sister Elizabeth will make
Polly do that, because she can get married anytime she gets ready to.
She's got a fellow and go with now for three years, and, if the two of
them thought little Polly wanted to get married, they would marry first so
Polly would not feel like she done wrong. We like to do things the right
way for to make everybody happy with us.
"I was married by the priest who was here before the priest we got now.
The one that married us, his kidneys were bad and he had to go to another
climate for health.
"We was married in [193?] in the woman's club. I am so sorry not to have
the newspaper clip in and the pictures of my wedding for you, like I
promised. I can't find any of it now and one of my girl friends who had
copies of it lost hers too.
"It was a beauty of a wedding, all right. We had an orchestra to play the
wedding music. You know that piece I mean about 'Here comes the bride' and
the girls sang a song about 'I Love you truly'. I was dressed in white
satin with a boat-neck and buttons all the way down the back and long
sleeves. I had on white kid shoes and carried white roses. My dress cost
me $35. My brothers were dressed in tuxedos.
"I had bridesmaids and junior bridesmaids, four of each. Their dresses
were made by the same dressmaker that made mine. She was the best
dressmaker the Princess shop has.
"My dad, gave me in marriage joost like the American custom is and when we
had a big dance at the club and everybody had a good time for we had lot
of good things to eat.
"We had a honeymoon to Miami for two weeks and then he moost come back to
go to work for he iss married now and Greek husbands try to take good care
of their wife, and give dem everything they need.
"My husband is a good bit older than I am and all he thinks about is
trying to make and save something for the children to get educated with.
He is good and spends all his money for us.
"He got a restaurant, and my husband make about $30 a week for his own out
of the business. He could make more, but you see he has a partner in the
business with him and it takes care of two families. There's not so mooch
profit to be made in the restaurant business in the summer like in the
winter. My husband is not making mooch right now and we have to use a
little of the money we made last winter to pay our expenses. You see in
the summer months there is not as many tourists and business going past as
in the winter, but maybe he can build it into a good business. There's no
money working for anybody unless you get a [?] good job and we think it's
best to try make a good name for yourself.
"Even with my husband making $30 a week, it take a lot to eat and have
enough for the bills we have to pay for. The car iss paid for and he keep
insurance for the car, because you can never tell when somebody will run
into you and tear you all up and maybe kill you, so he keeps the car
insured for accidents and that costs plenty for the good kind.
"He have our children insured, not for a death policy but for a policy so
they will have money when they grow up. Then they can start in business or
take special training for business. We do not carry any insurance on
ourselves because I know if I die my husband could take care of the
children and if he should die he knows that my father would help me. Our
families always help each other, even cousins take care of cousin's
children before they ask for relief of the Government.
"Everybody in business has to give a certain amount of charity out. There
is people that will come to the businessman that they think is got
something to give away. Whether he has or not, and if he doesn't, then it
knock his business."
Elizabeth had by this time [???] with her mother's purse in her lap.
Ceceilia continued to rock the baby who did not make any move or try to
get down, but looked constantly at me as she sucked her thumb.
"I said Greek families always help each other. And that is so. None of our
people has had to have the help of the relief, except in the way of
borrowing money for the use of building and keeping the homes they already
had.
"Like we he got a Government loan on this lot when we got married and
built this house. He should have got more money and built a better one
because the neighborhood is out-growing our house. It is too little and
modest. The other houses all around here are so much better than ours that
we decided to try and save some money each winter so that we can soon have
another one that looks prettier.
"It is good to be able to get Government help. I think our Government,
right now, is the best that we've ever had, but of course there's always a
lot of money to waste in all big things, like the relief and such.
"In the Old Country conditions are mooch worse than in this country. They
have not got the feeling of helping one another that we got in this
country. Over there it's all for one and one for all, that means that each
one tries only to help himself and not the nation in general.
"The lunch should be about ready. Your must be awfully hungry by now. I
hope you like what I have today for I have tried to fix you something that
iss good to us. It is barbecued chicken that I fixed myself, and
strawberry shortcake.
"Would you have some of our wine? It iss good to start an appetite up. I
have it on ice. We don't drink mooch but joost a little before dinner when
my husband iss here and then we enjoy our food."
The luncheon was well cooked and nicely served by the maid. The children
were mannered and quiet at table. They were served something of everything
on the table and drank Coca Cola with their meal.
During luncheon the telephone rang. It was the sister Elizabeth calling,
Ceceilia told me when she came back to the table.
"Oh, I am so glad, you know she say they have a letter from my father. He
took my brother to the Mayo Brothers, in Rochester, for an operation. The
letter said my brother is not serious. He thought it might be he need an
operation. He had a thing like a boil on the end of his spine and it
scared us so my father took him to the best place. But the doctor say no
need to worry, it is just a boil and it be all right without operation. My
mama must be very happy today to hear from them. And such good news."
After lunch Ceceilia sent the children to bed saying, "They tired out
today. We stay down to the beach two weeks and they play so hard they
can't get rested yet. When I tell them we coming home they try to get all
the fun and the sun and they got burn up from it. I think they would take
the ocean home with them if they could only.
"My husband, he come down to the beach every night after he close up store
and we have a good visit there for two weeks.
"The children have so much good time but they worry me so mooch about the
sun and the deep water, I am glad to get them home again. I have not been
feeling so good again. I think I am going to have another baby already
again. And already there is so mooch to get done that I don't never get to
go to the shows like I want to. I like to go and have some good times, and
having a baby is a lot of trouble and cost so mooch money to us. But then
we have them and don't let it worry us for we think that we won't have no
more than God wants us to have anyway. So if we have more, then we will be
able to take care of more, for that is the way that we measure our
fortune.
"We are taught that if we have one child that we will have enough to take
care of one child and if we have five then we will have the strength to
make a living for five."
Text from: Library of
Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection
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