San Jose Mercury interview

translated by Alex Rozovsky
December, 1999

What's the secret to live to be 100?
It has never been a place in my heart for anger or envy. I've always
been surrounded by people who loved and respected me. I have never hurt
anybody and never felt rancor if somebody tried to hurt me. As for the
nutrition, I've never kept diet and always eaten whatever I liked. It's
what's in your heart and in your head that matters, not in your stomach.
What was your favorite age/birthday, and why?
I had a time of my life in 1945 when at the age of 46 I came back
home from the battlefields of the World War II. I was alive, my family
was alive, and life seemed to be just beginning.
What was your occupation?
Before the War, I owned a small clothing store, where I worked 6 days
a week. Later I continued my career in retail, and retired as a manager
of a large sporting goods store.
What is your biggest accomplishment in life?
I raised four children — 3 sons and a daughter, have 7 grandchildren,
and 10 great-grandchildren, whom I dearly love and proud of. All of them
were with me at my 100th birthday last December.
What is the most surprising change in the world you have seen?
My whole life was about change. I was born in the outskirts of czarist
Russia, witnessed the Russian revolution, and fought in the Civil War. I
lived in independent Latvia and survived the annexation by Stalin. I fought
Nazis and struggled under Soviet regime. I lived long enough to see my
native Latvia independent again, and was strong enough to come to America
at the age of 91 and become a US citizen at the age of 97. I saw three empires
fall and freedom triumph. Those were most dramatic changes I have seen, but
hardly surprising.
Is there anything in your life you regret not doing and would you do
it now if you could?
To this day, I regret that I failed to persuade my sister to flee before
the Nazis occupied Latvian capital Riga. She and her family perished.
Is there anything else you want to say about the last 100 years?
I saw a lot evil during last 100 years and have learned that no matter
how long it may take evil will be defeated and good will prevail.
Where will you be on New Year's Eve when the century turns?
This is an easy question. Of course, I will be home with my children,
grand- and great-grandchildren, looking forward to the new century —
my third.