Ancestry

My family is of Russian decent. I knew three out of my four grandparents. The fourth died when my mother was a child. I remember my grandparent's accents and the intonation of how they spoke. When they came to America, they settled in Brooklyn. New York was where most immigrants arrived as it was a major port and screening was done at Ellis Island. My parents were born in America and I, as a second generation American, have lost part of my cultural background due to assimilation. Brooklyn is still a major area for Russians to settle, especially the southern part. Brighton Beach is called "Little Odessa" as it is by the ocean and most of the stores are Russian owned. If you walk through that neighborhood, you do not feel as if you are in America, as all of the store signs are in Russian. Since my father started his treatments, most of the caregivers are Russian. They are all kind and caring people. It takes a while to adjust to their accents when they give us information. It is funny that my parent's, being brought up listening to their parent's accents, are having a harder time understanding than I am. For some reason, I am comforted by these people. Maybe, in our time of need, we feel best when we go back to our roots.