A Legacy of Love
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"Mommy, do you hear that voice? Listen--it's Dos Almas en el Mundo. I heard you playing it on your accordion so many years ago when Daddy and I had our date and came home late the night before Daddy had to leave, remember? Who has such a beautiful voice, and why is he around the house? Can you tell me?" "I don't know, Linda. I didn't hear anyone singing." Still, Elena had second thoughts about the voice. She heard it but didn't want to alarm her children. How can it be? Elena thought. We haven't seen each other in twenty years. Why didn't Roberto tell me? He must know. Why am I still haunted by that song, when I hoped my life would be calm and peaceful? "Oh, David, why did you ever leave me?" she whispered. "What will I tell our children? Please help me." Elena Mendes de Lee stood at the window in the living room overlooking the gardens of her huge estate and remembered the good times the families spent when everything in La Paz, Bolivia, was peaceful. What will I do? she asked herself repeatedly. Then she heard the voice again, but the man and his song faded. Painful memories flooded into her mind. Turning from the window, Elena saw him coming closer and stood quietly, waiting for him to sing again. As his voice neared, she stepped away from the window and moved toward the door. She wanted to run outside and be the first to greet him, but, before she could, the door opened from the outside, then Linda and Davey ran in. "The voice is back!" Linda shouted. "I know, Sweetheart. I heard it, too." Without excusing herself, she hurried forward. Her hands trembled as she opened the door and shouted his childhood name, "Turo!" "Elena!" Arturo Vasques swept her into his arms for a powerful embrace, crying and kissing her until she spoke. "Turo, you're hurting me, but come in. It's all right." "Are you sure?" "Yes, I'm sure. Let's be friends again. Does Roberto know?" "He does--I'm staying at his home. He didn't want to tell you, because he feared you'd turn away from me." "That's my brother, always concerned about my welfare. Do come in. I want you to meet my children." She reached for his hand, and he followed her into the living room. Elena called her children, and Linda Maire and David Michael Lee entered. "Arturo," Elena said, "these are my children." With tears in his eyes, he reached out to Linda and Davey to greet them. Linda studied him and didn't see anything that would jeopardize her mother's fragile peace, so she smiled. "Welcome to our home," Linda said. "It's a pleasure to know a friend of my mother and Uncle Roberto and Auntie Annie." Arturo shook Davey's hand. Davey was only eight years old. "Mr. Arturo, do you know my daddy?" Davey asked. "I certainly did. So did your sister, didn't you, Linda?" "Oh, yes. I knew and remember him very well." Tears came to Linda's eyes. "I didn't," Davey said. "Maman doesn't tell me much. She says I'm too young, but one day soon, perhaps you can tell me something about him? Please?" "I can, but we have to ask your maman if I can stay to tell the story of her and your father. I'm sure Linda would like to hear it, too, wouldn't you, Linda?" Linda smiled at him as if to say, "Please go ahead." Arturo turned to Elena with questioning eyes. Years of hurt and longing showed in them. They shared many forgotten memories which must be told once again to ease their pain and restore some semblance of peace to their families. "You may stay as long as you wish, Arturo," Elena said with a smile. She turned to her daughter and saw her smile. She knew it was all right for Arturo to begin. "Arturo?" "It's time to tell your children of the past," he said. "Why don't you start?" "No. You have the honor. Please begin." "Elena, I...." He cried softly. "Before I begin, I want you and children to know it took many years for me to gain the courage to contact Roberto and see you again. I didn't know if either of you wanted to see me again." "Why wouldn't we?" "Roberto might, perhaps, but you? I wasn't sure if you would." "You're here. Isn't that proof enough?" "Yes. Thank you and your children for letting me stay. Now I should begin." He collected his thoughts. "You see, Children, your mother and my sister, Consuela, became fast friends from the day your mother first came to La Paz at the age of seven. Your mother joined Consuela for the last few weeks of kindergarten that school year. After school, they always included me in their play, even though I was four years older. "We did everything together. There was never any question about us belonging together, and we thought of ourselves as sisters and brother." Elena quietly walked to a corner near the window to listen from afar. She didn't want to interrupt. There would be many tears shed before he finished. She listened with a heavy heart and half-turned away. Her children listened intently. Elena looked up at the sky and was lost in her own memories for a moment. "There were two other families, the Sancheses and the Perezes," Arturo continued. "You know your Uncle Roberto and Grandpa Javier and Grandma Sarita. We were three boys and two girls, and the five of us became close friends. We were very mischievous. Nothing was impossible. We climbed mountains, rode horses, played volley ball, danced, and saw movies – our favorite pastime. "We went on many paseos, mostly on Sundays to the Prado to listen to the military band play our favorite music. Those were wonderful years." His voice faded as he turned to look for Elena. When he saw her back, he called, "Do you remember when you first met Consuela? You called her Suela, because you couldn't pronounce her full name." She spoke without turning. "I remember. I called you Turo, because that was easier than Arturo. Do you also remember the many musical afternoons we had in our home? We made such a racket sometimes, I felt certain Mama would have a fit. What did she always tell us? "She said the walls were so thick, they heard nothing downstairs. What a love she was. Papa could never turn anyone away from the banco. He gave time, jobs, and money to the poor." A faraway look came to her eyes. Arturo's lips curved into a tender smile. "Are they still away?" he asked softly. Sh
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About the Book
Elena, as a seven-year-old child, was saved by a Bolivian couple who in 1933, were in Erfurt, Germany, where they witnessed the beating of Elena’s parents at the hands of the Nazis. Simon Mendes promised Elena’s father that the child would be raised as their own and that they would uphold her faith. He also promised the father that Elena would never know why she had to leave Germany. Only in the event of war would she be told. As the years passed and Elena and the Mendes family was safe and happy, the unfortunate prediction came to pass and Simon wrestled with the problem that Elena must know. At the age of 16, she became aware and her memory started returning of the terrible beating her parents took, and she cried for her Mutti and Papi. As she grew up, Elena was infatuated with Arturo, whom she called Turo. Her parents, shocked, made sure she would meet a person of her own faith. She was introduced to David M. Lee, an American who was the adjutant to the American Ambassador in La Paz, Bolivia. He loved her from the moment he saw her and planned to marry her. After waiting for the right moment, David proposed and she accepted. After the war ended, the Ambassador and David were recalled to Washington. That meant that they had to go back to the United States. David, Elena, baby Linda Maire, and Elena’s parents moved to the USA. Once settled, with the separation from her parents and friends, the only one left was Roberto and his parents, especially when David had to go on a fact-finding mission to South Vietnam, where he met an untimely death because of a hidden mine. Unbeknownst to Elena, she was pregnant with their second child. She turned to Roberto, whom she called her brother. His parents and Robert’s Annie took care of Elena and Linda. After the baby arrived, Elena returned to work and Roberto, who had a lucrative law firm, listened to his hermana and became business partners. They thrived in their businesses with many additions to their corporation; going public enabled each one to purchase an estate outside Washington, where Elena found her peace. When Arturo returned, she was in turmoil, having to finally face the biggest dilemma of her life.
About the Author
Ruth Jonassohn left Germany as a child in 1939, and moved with her parents and siblings to La Paz, Bolivia, where she spent her childhood years. In 1949, they moved to the United States and settled in New Jersey. Ruth went to Business College and then worked in New York and Connecticut for a Nonprofit Corporation in the Baking Industry as a Packaging Buyer and Purchasing Manager. She was also a member of the Packaging Institute, U.S.A. In 1982, she and her husband moved to Tamarac, Florida, where she became an active member of the Board of Directors for their association. She is trilingual and enjoys classical music, opera, theater, reading, and writing. She is the author of six published novels.