December 24, 1942 — Christmas Eve

SCAN0027

Transcription (excerpt)

24/XII-1942

…Я вам выслала ещё 50 марок и 2 посылки… Гришику расскажу как пашут: берут 2 лошади, или 2 коровы, запрягают их в плуг, и один человек идёт впереди и ведёт, а другой идёт за плугом и держит…

Context

Christmas Eve 1942. Despite earning only 17 marks per month, Raisa has somehow saved and sent 50 marks plus two parcels to her family in occupied Kyiv. She takes time to explain plowing to her young nephew Grishunok — describing the process with horses and cows in detail, as if teaching a child about a world he’s never seen.

The contrast is stark: an 18-year-old forced laborer spending Christmas far from home, yet her thoughts are entirely with her family.

Source: SCAN0027