Today 7th of August 2004, we are is Cosoveni to talk to our aunts Marita and Câmpeana. Life long and be blessed, I am happy to see you!
Live long! welcome!
Aunt Câmpeana and aunt Marița, I kindly ask you in the name of our Lord, to testimony your recollection of the Bug as it was…
Marița: I will tell you how we went there and how we returned.
Please tell us whose daughter, are you?
Marita: Me? My mother was named Sâbinca.
What was your father’s name?
Marita: Her old man’s name was Hârța.
And Ion, whom does he belong to?
Marița: To Gugutu, the old and rich one. He was rich.
What was his wife’s name?
Tinka.
And you, aunt Câmpeana, who are you, whose daughter?
Câmpeana: My father was called Ristea Mihai. His father was Mihai, and so on.
I have heard a lot about you and I want you to tell us your recall of the Bug as it was, full of pain and sorrow.
Marita: They took us from here, where we had land, and they took us by transfer. They would take us from one post to the other, beaten, killed and hungry.
Don’t rush…
Marița: They took us to an ugly valley…
You talk too quickly… Talk slowly do not rush like this…
Câmpeana: They took us to Transnistria.
Marița: They took us to three places… in Three Vans( Trei Dube), they took us to Grashneanca…
And we went and we returned, too quickly, it’s not good.
Marița: That’s how I talk, bless your mouth…
Aunt Marița!
Marița: Say it, Lumina, be blessed!
Please tell slower, so it does not upset you, I know that you are old and sick. Please tell us slowly and without rushing.
Marița: I say… They took us and put us there on the field in Transnistria. Those who had what to eat, ate, those who had nothing to eat, died. We would throw the dead to the dogs and the animals would eat them… they were starving, whole families, father, brother it did not matter who they were, were thrown to the dogs so dogs fed out of them, and I could see people starving to death
Aunt Marița, please tell us everything, do not leave anything unsaid about what happened there.
Marita: When they beat the people, we went with the war line there.
Were you grown up, were you married?
Marița: I had two children. They died of starvation, of hunger at the Bug, ay the Bug, in Transnistria.
God bless theyr souls!
Marița: They ate coals so hungry they were, they went by the fire thinking they were eating potatoes. They ate coals, drowned with coals.
Wre they bigger?
Marița: They were…
What were their names?
Marița: Luna was the girl.
And the boy?
Marița: Deordi.
May they rest in peace!
Marița: Live long and be lucky. The entire camp mourned them back then. We had a cart, beautiful horses, we had just purchased them, your father knew too when we purchased them, we had just got separated from our in-laws, we were related, we traveled with Pițulo.
Tell us aunt Marița.
Marița: We came on foot with the war line and there was a rain, snowy rain and we were wearing opinci made of cow leather on our feet and on the winter night we were standing in the middle of the road. Long winter night. Water was running down on us and sweat was running down our spines, as we were at the Prut, at the Prut we were and the army was crossing. We approached, water running down on us. We waited so long that the cow skin was cemented on our feet and was pulling the skin with nails with everything. I threw away the opinci as my legs were frozen. Bare skin got off with them. The feet were frozen so long we stayed on the road. They died, or else Germans would shoot them saying it’s a pity that they suffer any longer. They would leave the small children on the road, telling them: ” Wait here on the road, we will be right back”. „Do not let us here”, crying. We have no other choice.
And what was your old man doing?
Marița: he helped us out, so that we would not die … he picked up that one… and the other one, or another one, or his sister. There was his sister Lena the old one, your mother knew her. And the poor man helped her up, he carried all he could so people will not be left behind and die there on the roads.
What else do you remember about the life at the Bug?
Marița: We were taken to Transnistria, we suffered in that Transnistria.
Câmpeana: Now its my turn to tell you.
Marița: The gendarmes were beating us and I just said, „Stop hitting me there, as it hurts” and he stopped. The gendarmes were beating us up.
Son of Marița: tell them how you arrived there. What accommodations you had.
Marița: In huts.
Son of Marița: How were you living there?
Marița: Lot of smoke, smoke, smoke. ,.. we lit the fire in a hut that was dug out deep in the ground and there was a lot of smoke…
Were there forests there.?
Marița: There were forests. The Russians were digging the huts so that we would not die, as many of us died on the roads, in the fields, just like sheep. They would die and were thrown away just like that…
What did you eat there?
Marița: We didn’t have anything to eat until then. We didn’t eat anything…
Son of Mariței: Tell them about the corn.
Marița: In the huts we ate corn.
Tell us, so we know.
Marița: we used to take green corn, rubbed it out on an iron to get out some flower to make polenta. We did not eat much; we did not eat. We suffer al lot, and many died because of starvation.
A lot of people were dying there?
Marița: About hundered people a day. Children, women, men, died of hunger and cold. We had no place to stay. Many died when they put us in huts because there were many left outside and died at the entrance of the huts. They stood like sheep. They died, it was a great suffering….
Tell us about the city hall what the city hall was like?
Marița: It was a large house where they put the dead. Poor things were lying there undressed, naked only bare skin. We suffered a lot; we had great misfortunes here and there’re and when we came back here. They would shoot people, bombs were falling. Bombs fell out of the sky…
Son of Mariței: Tell them how you went to the valley to get your brother.
Marița: My brother had left; they drowned the children…
Who drowned the children?
Marița: The gendarmes.
Romanians or Germans?
Marița: Romanians, Romanians. They were drowning.
Why?
Marița: They drowned my brother-in-law, they put a pistol here in his ear and shot him and he died. Another child they shot in his neck and trough his shoulder and the poor kid could not get out of the water and he drowned there. Romanians were beating us and hit us.
Romanians?
Marița: Yes. Russians were feeding us.
I heard that you know songs of the Bug. I’d like you to sing one for us. .
Marița: Our Milla knows the song. Mihai can talk Russian.
Câmpeana: So, I told you what happened to us and how people died on the roads.
Marița: well, they died, they starved to death, we knew no families back there… poor people starved to death, fainted, they took the golden necklace from my throat.
Who took your necklace?
Marița: I do not remember. He beat me down and took my golden necklace from my throat. They took us and got us to Trei Dube (three vans) in Trasnistria.
On the roads children died
Their mothers were crying
That on the roads they stayed.
We looked at our soul and took it
Let her tell, let her tell!
Son of Maritei: tell it slower.
Câmpeana: Let her, she is ill.
Little children crying
That on the roads they remained
How their mothers were crying
And their mothers were crying
As they could not carry them on their back
So their mothers were crying
Marița: My heart hurts so I can sing no longer.
That was the song of the Bug that I told you.
Old people are old people we all know that they are ment to go and we need to know and hear their testimonies.
Marița: Live long and be blessed with luck!
E perina andel zaia The blanked on the back
So roven le romnea Women were crying
Perinença andel zăia The blankes on their backs
Kă našti mai jean po drom As theyr backs hurt
Kă našti mai jean po drom. They cannot walk on roads any longer
Uli Devlla kă merăn God come down, and see them die
Thai ašen on po drom See them remaining on roads
So roven kol boreora How wives cry
Šaorança ande angalea With children in their arms
Perinença andel zăia With blankes on their backs
Perinença andel zăia With blankets on their backs
So rovenas le romnea Women were crying
Kă našti mai jean po drom Because the walked on the roads
Pharîle lenga pînră They feed got hurt
Kă našti mai jean po drom From so much wakling
Marița: we walked, and walked on foot, up to Trasnistria we walked. And on foot we returned from Trasnistria.
Câmpeana: Perinença andel zăia With blankets on our back
Šaorança ande angalea With children in our arms
Perinença andel zăia. With blankets on our back
Kon meralla či merala Some died, some did not die
Hai merănas le romnea And women died
Sa mulle on pel droma All died on the roads
Uli, Devlla kă muline Come, God, as they died
Ande trin thana šudine Thrown away in three winds.
Câmpeana: All dead. Wherever they took us, people kept dying.
Marița: She is not telling lies, this is truly how it was.
Câmpeana: All died Lord, they died!
Marița: In Transnistria they took us and all, Lord, died.
Aunt Câmpeana I heard that you did not get a compensation for the time at the Bug?
Câmpeana: I did not, bless your soul.
How comes that?
Câmpeana: I did not get any. I spent a lot of money, and I did not get a thing.
Please tell us, why did your money not come?
Câmpeana: Why they did not come? Many people got it, just me I did not.
Did you make all papers for them?
Câmpeana: I did all papers and got nothing.
Who wrote your papers?
Câmpeana: Gaje. People. Romanians wrote them, how? An accountant.
How old were you when you were taken at the Bug?
Câmpeana: Aunt Marița how old was I?
Marița: She was nine.
We will try to help you out so that you can get the compensation too like all other people who were there. Trust God, and He will help you.
Câmpeana: God.
God works through people
Marița: God, may I praise him!
Tell us yourself aunt Marița the money that you received, can they compensate for the sorrow and pain you have lived through?
Marița: The sorrow suffered by all those people on the roads and all that happened to them, that can be paid off. Sorrow, sorrow cannot be paid off by anybody. We left back there our horses, our pillows, our blankets our clothes, our soaps, the grease, and the bacon that we had in our wagons.
What would be your message for your children and grandchildren?
Marița: I wish them to be healthy and have luck, The same to you. God may help them all and may they be lucky! As I came from church.
Live long and have luck! Stay safe near God and be with Him!
Marița: You too, be blessed and may God help you and us!
Thank you!
