The Leap to a Life of Our Own

FOREWORDThis is about my birthplace, a town of about 100,000 in the northeast corner of Romania. What is interesting about this town called Botosani (pronounced Botoshani) is that by comparison with Bucharest, the country's capital with ten times as many inhabitants, Botosani had roughly half as many famous people born there. What factor(s) may be responsible for such an outstanding pedigree for this small town stuck in the northeast corner of the country? it is undoubtedly related to individual intelligence, talent and being born there, rich or poor and maybe also to some specific factor(s) related to the place, call it the "Ghenghis Khan" factor. After all, he proved to be a genius and his grandson is reputed to have started the settlement. Botoșani (pronounced Botoshani) is first mentioned in 1439, in one chronicle that makes the mention that "the Mongols came and pillaged all the way to Botușani". The town was reportedly established by Botu Khan, the grandson of Ghenghis Khan. The town is then mentioned during the conflicts between Moldavia and Poland in the fifteenth century. There is also mention of the arrival of settlers from Transylvania, probably Germans and Hungarians and others migrating along the trade roads extending from the Baltic countries, Poland and Belarus to the Danube and the Black Sea.Below are examples of famous personalities born in Botosani, many with international reputation: -Grigore Antipa (1867-1944) Biologist-Max Blecher, (1909-1938), Jewish writer-Demostene Botez (1893-1973), Poet and prose writer-Pascal Covici (1885-1964), Jewish-American book publisher and editor-Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889, born Mihail Eminovici), outstanding poet, novelist and journalist-George Enescu (1881-1955) World famous composer, violinist, pianist, conductor and teacher. He is regarded by many as Romania's most important musician. (Born in Judetz Dorohoi now Botosani).-Reuven Feuerstein (1921-2014) Israeli clinical, developmental, and cognitive psychologist-Alexandru Graur (1900-1988) Jewish, linguist-Nicolae Iorga (1871-1940), historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, poet and playwright-Isidore Isou (1925-2007, born Isidor Goldstein) Jewish, French poet, dramaturge, novelist, economist, and visual artist-Mime Misu (1888-1953, born Mișu Rosescu) ballet dancer, pantomime artist, film actor and director-Octav Onicescu (1892-1983) mathematician and founder of the Romanian school of probability theory and statistics-Henric Sanielevici ((1875-1951), Jewish journalist and literary critic-Ion Sân-Giorgiu (1893-1950), modernist poet, dramatist and essayist, and far-right politician-Artur Stavri (1869-1928), poet-Adolf Josef Storfer (1888-1944), Jewish Austrian lawyer turned journalist and publisher(Source: Wikipedia)Botosani is on the road extending from Lithuania, Letonia and Estonia and the Jewish Pale of the Tsarist time, down along the Siret and Prut rivers that empty in the Danube and the Black Sea. In fact, it served as a sort of a caravan route for merchants trading northern goods from the Baltic for exotic wares from Constantinople. Along this route, also came the Jews after the pogroms that liquidated some, and motivated others to search for luck elsewhere. The town's main street was called Calea Nationala (National Way) for good reason. On one such caravan was an orphan child, both of whose parents had been killed in a pogrom in Lithuania. As was the custom, local rabbis and rebs (learned men) attended to those passing through with food, clothing and helping them as best they could in their suffering. The baby in question was offered for adoption to any family that wanted him. One barrel maker by the name of Bodnar picked up the baby and looked at the boy with moist eyes.