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My imagination takes me back 35 years. I see
before my eyes my poverty-stricken shtetl, with
its autumn mud and its summer dust. The rich
men and the intelligentsia are far from my
thoughts. It is the folks-mentshn , the plain people
who are etched in my memory. I see them clearly,
as if they were standing in front of me, with their
pitiful faces and their simple attire. One such
folks-mentsh was Chayimke the water-carrier.
As I remember him, he must have been about
50, though he looked younger, for he was always
full of humor. He never complained of his lot but
was always satisfied; nor did he have envy or
hatred toward anyone. Chayimke was the happiest
man in the world. He asked for nothing more
than warm clothing for the winter and a piece of
bread to eat.
4.
CHAYIMKE THE WATER-CARRIER
By Basye Cohen (Zilberman)
Shloyme Yucht, another water-carrier, who was a
mute.
I
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His goodness and contentment radiated from
his face. When he laughed, his dimples and his
yellow beard shook.
But who had the patience and the time to
pay attention to Chayimke the water-carrier? He
provided water for the town, carrying it from the
pump in his karamisles [a wooden yoke carried
on the shoulders, with two pails hanging from
either end]. He did not know how to write and
let his customers total up the cost of his labor, for
not everyone paid him the same price. Sometimes
he did not earn enough for the Sabbath. I
would ask Chayim, "What will be?" and he
would answer me, "Don't worry. When Moshiach
comes, things will be much better!"
His little house stood next to the cemetery. At
times I would peek into his little house and a
shudder would go through my body. The walls
were covered with mildew and moisture. In the
winter, snow blew through the cracks in the thin
walls.
I would stand and wait until Chayimke's
deaf-and-dumb wife would come out. She knew
exactly when I was to come. We understood each
other by sign language. She had made peace with
her bitter lot. It was evident that Chayimke showed
her a great deal of warmth and tenderness.
I would leave their home with pain in my
heart, thinking, why does God give one person
everything, while another gets nothing?
There were many such Chayimkes in Libivne.
Their souls were snuffed out like candles. No one
ever was aware of them.