Before I head to Auschwitz this morning, I thought it might be helpful for you to understand how Nora and her mother are related to me.
My father, Tibor, always insisted that his grandfather Josef Munk had a twin brother named Lipot. I was able to confirm this information earlier this year, thanks to a clue found on a synagogue memorial wall in Budapest, a reference to Lipot's wife. With the help of my Hungarian guide Karesz Vandor and a willing clerk in the Ujpest town hall, I was able to locate the descendants of Josef Munk earlier this year.
Josef had five children. One of them was Marta Munk,(1914-2002). Marta's oldest daughter is Magda, whom I met for the first time last night. Magda has two daughters, Nora and Eszter. (Nora is pictured at left. See the resemblance to Meryl Streep?) Nora has brought her mom to Krakow to meet me. Nora and I are third cousins, a relationship that might seem to be somewhat obscure to my American-born friends. but to me, these connections could not be more vital or important.
When I go to Auschwitz today, I will also light a candle for Marta's mother, the wife of Lipot (Gizella Stein Munk) who died in Auschwitz with one of her five children, Magda, after whom my visiting cousin is named.
No comments:
Post a Comment