Germans have been driven away. Oh, and they beat them! Looks like they do not want to fight, their planes – about ten, seeing our three, flee away, the soldiers, as a rule, cannot withstand a bayonet fight – they run. Our soldiers are in a fighting mood, and in connection with the partial successes of the Germans, they are terribly frenzied. Our soldiers do not capture Germans or Finns – they slaughter them.
Now I feel good, as if there is no war either – I am traveling on a train from Murmansk – I do not know where. They say we will live in barracks, learn to shoot and so on. We were turned from builders into a reserve infantry regiment. Once we arrive at the place, I will write the address. My suitcase with all the stuff was bombed. Say hello to Grisha,16 Sergei.
Regards, I kiss you. Yakov.
5.
Hello Mom, Nadya, Lyalya, and all relatives.
In the last letter (I don’t know if it arrived), when I wrote on the way, I could not describe everything properly. I am writing now in brief.
After the 22nd of June, we found ourselves in the center of front-line events and our whole life went off the road and fell on uncharted paths. Now I can say that I received my first baptism of fire. Five times I was under bombing and shooting with a machine gun from an aircraft. The planes here use the following tactics: it flies with its nose down (dives) and throws a bomb beneath, then it lifts the nose up and flies up. At that time, a machine gun is shooting from the tail. That’s when the machine gun starts shooting and bullets click near you, and they clicked 30 cm of my head, then your heart really stops, and you are pressing all of you into the ground.
Well, now a lot of these planes have been beaten. They are only eager to bomb where there are no anti-aircraft guns or our aircraft, so they almost literally do no harm. When three of our planes appear, nine of them immediately flee away. One of our fighters landed on a German bomber and rode it. That pilot was scared to death and landed in our positions. One of their pilots said that it is impossible to fight with our pilots: “they, he says, are mischievous” – they are not fighting according to (German) rules.
Fun!!!
We will probably celebrate the 7th of November in Berlin.
Well, about myself.
I now live in Kandalaksha. We live in the forest under the bushes. At night it was so cold at first that I didn’t sleep but ran, now we have adapted, with three friends we put an overcoat on the ground, all three lie down and immediately cover ourselves, it turns out very warm. Now, however, we have made dugouts for ourselves. We are engaged in studies. So, I got my wife.17 I take care of her. Besides, I am now the squad leader. They entrusted me with 15 souls. The food here is very good. I feel cheerful. The only thing missing is that since the 24th of May, I have not slept undressed or even taken off my shoes. Soon we will receive good new uniforms, otherwise we are like partisans – builders (patches and holes shine). Soon we will probably go closer to A.S. Ginzburg.18
By then, write to the address Kandalaksha, mail 79, on demand, Shafirovich, Ya. V. Write your full address on the envelope.
Just write more and as soon as you receive my letter, otherwise I can leave again. I feel very, very unwell from the absence of letters from you. After all, I don’t know anything – how it is there. Write!!! Kisses to all in the strongest way. Yes, my suitcase disappeared with all the contents.
Greetings, Yasha.
6.
Hello Mommy, dear Sister, Aunt, and other relatives.
I bow to you to the ground. I don’t know, unfortunately, how your life is there, mine I must say is quite good. True, I must say that there is not enough time, and there is no free time at all. Despite the fact, however, that we learn a lot, this training is much easier than building a road. I command the squad, train them. You have to learn something yourself while you show them. What else? It seems that there is nothing more to write.
Mom, I will ask you to tell my address to Sasha, Vasya (if they are in Noginsk), Khren, Nina and Marta Terekhovs. Apologize to them for me not writing to them. However, apart from Nolik, I wrote several letters to all of them. I think that they will all understand that I was, and even now I am not that far from the front and that we did not come here to rest. There was nowhere to write, no paper, no pen, no time, and besides, there was simply no physical strength to sit down to write a letter. Now I more or less have the opportunity to write to all of you, so I beg you – write. After all, I have not received a single letter! What’s the matter with all of you there? Allah knows. You Mommy cheer up there. Lyalya probably needs help a lot. But maybe they didn’t take Grisha? How is Sergei? See, I don’t know anything.
Well, for now, with the Red Army arctic greetings. Ya.
My final address is Field Post Office 441, Reserve Regiment, 2nd rifle company, Shafirovich, Yakov Volfovich.
Write your address on the envelope. Don’t write No. 441, just write 441.
Khapulin and Katz are alive and well.
7.
29 July 1941
Mom and all my friends – hello.
I am sending you my warmest Red Army arctic greetings.
My life has finally improved and returned to a normal track. I already wrote that I am the squad commander here. I am busy with fighters – I teach them bayonet fighting, tactics, rifle components. You wonder – how can I know this myself? Yes, I didn’t understand anything about this. But I grasp the explanations on the fly, and I finally master them myself already in the process of training my fighters.
The other day I had to part ways with my friends. Except for us, the commanders, all our soldiers went to the front. They are now at the forefront. It seems, I can’t say for sure, that Monya Katz also left with them. The command recognized all the soldiers of my squad fit for their stay at the front. It is very pleasant to feel that I have already brought though small but benefit to the state for defense.
Now I am working with new fighters. This is likely to continue.
Today I was told that I and all the commanders (prepared from soldiers like me) were enrolled in the regimental school, which is being organized again here. Upon leaving it, I will receive the rank of sergeant. So, if I am alive, and I did not doubt it even when it was possible to doubt it, I will have to serve for 3 years.
Studying at school lasts for a month and a half. But it hasn’t been organized yet.
The big question is where after school – to the front or continue to train fighters? Anyway. Until now, I did not control my fate but completely obeyed it, and, I must say, it never let me down. I think that this time I will not be wrong too.
The weather is wonderful here. Very hot. We swim. Today I hit the road and went to pick cloudberries – this is a very tasty berry. If not for 12 hours of classes and zero free time, I would not have felt the war. Well, I forgot. I took an oath of allegiance to my beloved socialist homeland.
The food is very good. I receive a salary of 12 rubles 75 copecks. This is for the Arctic (instead of 8.50), for the Arctic sometimes they give 600 g of condensed milk. Oh, and it’s delicious!
Well, it seems that’s all about me.
Write to me immediately if you want to find me here (anything can happen), write more, as I have not received a single letter. Tell everyone my address:
441 Field post station, 56th reserve regiment, 2nd rifle company, Shafirovich, Ya. V. (Write the return address on the envelope.)
Write