The onyx crucifix hung nailed to fading, pale green walls
Above the Formica dining room chairs — near the aging refrigerator.
Years pass. Children are born: grow tall and leave home.
The brick duplex sags beneath the weight of time in the steel town ghetto.
The crucifix remains.
Family dinners, pinochle games, political discussions, high school football scores
All take place as the gray cross silently shows its pain.
Silence?? No one discusses the history of the
old , almost mystical icon which was hidden inside a
pillow case when the part Catholic – part Jewish family
Fled the Nazis as the killers overwhelmed the Danube valley:
Penniless, weak, frightened, they stumbled into the US at Ellis Island.
Names changed to appear American, they labored in the steel
mills and breweries: cleaned houses: sewed the clothing of rich matrons.
Long days, short weekends: they fought to survive the depression:
Observed government agents checking their mail – their choice of
of newspapers-their phone calls to ensure they were not German agents:
Decades pass, the family matriarch passes into the hands of our Lord.
Grown children scramble for the jewelry, furniture,
Assets in bank accounts.
The crucifix remains alone : always watchful: revered
Yet ignored:
Shunted aside on to a pile of “ we don’t want this”– you can have it.
History ignored. Family values disregarded.. then….
Family lore talks about a tiny church on the other side of the
Town: Steel mills and woolen mills closed: This once prosperous
church now sits surrounded by fading row houses, empty lots.
Once a German- Slovak enclave, the parish is in transition.
A welcoming Latino priest –dedicated to saving the history of the parish.
Says hi to the Anglo tourists in search of their roots.
What windows he queries.. oh yes, those windows ..no one can explain them.
Family legend says two lead windows were donated by one of the family elders:
One for his first wife – then for his second after the death of the first.
Yes, we find the family European name on the windows… and a replication
of the crucifix … wow!
The crucifix has indeed been part of the family for decades..
Coincidence? A part of family devotion that could have been lost forever.
The crucifix had been posited a decade since past
as a semi-decoration on the side wall of a business office.
More of an after thought decoration than an object of veneration.
Recently blessed, and understood:
A proud reminder of faith and family courage.
A gift from the Lord that has traveled many miles: Survived through generations.
A story that deserves to be retold to the next generation… not left as “stuff”.
An obligatory message to all of us to pass along our stories of family relics, pictures, and
yes muses to the next generation. Myths which will disappear when we pass on.
Lest we forget… take the time: share your stories and keepsakes with those coming behind
you.. Your traditions deserve to be preserved and repeated.
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