Mom and dad were so clever. Dad finally had a decent paying job in the shipyard and mom planted a large victory garden in our little plot of ground. Her family would not go without fresh vegetables and fruit even though times were tough for everyone. Others who were not skilled at farming would pay Mom for any produce that she didn’t need. Note that she did not give the excess away; rather she saved every nickel and dime. Then Dad bought Mom a wringer washer (the first one in the projects) and she would charge women who wished to use it. They were an enterprising and proud couple. Because it was war-time, each family received a certain amount of ration stamps for food (depending on the number of people in the family) and the stamps were viewed as gold. One day Mom came back with our allotment of sugar for the month, placed it on a chair and ran off to do something. I, being the smart 2-year-old child that I was, grabbed the sugar and proceeded to drag the bag down our front flight of stairs which naturally caused it to rip and the sugar spilled out in a long trail. I don’t think Mom was happy with me. 

– Karen Turinia

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant