Preparing for the journey

“At that point, the parents began making lots of preparations. They got rid of all they could, all their best property. For example, they gave their bees and best furniture to their neighbours. They began to collect money and food. Mother began to bake bread, dry it and put it in bags. She tied labels on the children with their first and last names so they could be found if they got lost. She sewed a gold coin into each child’s clothes so they could use it to live on, if anything happened to them.”