The plan for returning to Poland

Meanwhile, Freyda had an opportunity to talk with Rebekah while Heinrich was at work. “Rebekah, I’d like to ask you a few questions, especially as our time together is getting short; if that’s alright?” “Sure.” “What is your plan for returning to Poland? Krakow is a long ways away; how are you going to do that alone? Of course, you did that coming here didn’t you?” Rebekeh answered, “You’re right, it is a long way and it took me two weeks to do it. Of course, I didn’t come here straight from Krakow, I have several relatives and friends that I stayed with along the way – and I intend to stay with them on my return trip as well. At certain points I won’t be alone – others will travel with me for part of it. It’s safer once I get to Poland, especially when I’m in an area where a lot of Jews live.” Freyda interjected, “What route do you intend to take as you leave Germany? I say that because Heinrich wants to escort you out of our area to the nearest city where you can get some transportation. He intends to hire a wagon to do that. We’ve already talked about the need for a chaperone. I’m sure you know that Heinrich likes you and wants to be with you. We talked about that for a bit as well; that’s partly why I’m talking with you now. I guess that gets into whether we’ll ever see you again.” Rebekah thought through these questions and said, “Yes, I had a feeling about that – you have a wonderful son, and I’m not sure what to do with my feelings about Heinrich. I certainly didn’t come on this trip to find a romance. It’s a very complicated time and 400 miles is only one of the difficulties. And of course, you don’t know all of the details about my world in Poland and other places. But Heinrich did “save me” and I’ve enjoyed his company. Do I want that to end forever? I can’t say that either. We’re getting into emotions here that are hard to evaluate and be rational about. The normal way is to let the parents handle these things, but I’ve lost that avenue. I’ll have to think about that some more; until now I had no confirmation of this, though I suspected it. 

Back to your initial question; the most direct route is to go to Jüterbog, which is a few hours away. I can catch a carriage there because it is near the main road to Krakow. The subsequent stops and arrangements after that are not really important for us here. How shall I get to Jüterbog? I had some problems in Wittenberg already, as you know, so the offer of a friendly ride through country roads is quite tempting.  

Thinking ahead to some practical things, Freyda asked, “How much will all this travel cost and do you have enough money for this?” Freyda felt a little uncomfortable about this since Rebekah had seen all of those gold coins spread on the table, but Rebekah answered, “Actually, I’ve left money at the contacts I mentioned to make sure it was there for the return trip. I think I have enough to buy my fare at Jüterbog, with a little more to spare. I believe I can do what I need to do without requiring more.” Freyda was impressed with her honest answer.