Six Words on the Jewish Mother
Image by Getty Images
There is no figure more evocative than the Jewish mother. She makes you chicken soup when you’re sick, asks you if you’re still hungry an hour after a big meal and tries to set you up with all of her friends’ kids. We all have a story about her. Now, we want to find out what she means to you — in exactly six words.
The Forward is partnering with Larry Smith, editor of SMITH Magazine, home of the Six-Word Memoir®, to celebrate Mother’s Day. Submit your six-word memoir on your mother or grandmother below before April 24th. Larry and the Forward staff will pick our 12 favorites and publish them in the Forward for Mother’s Day. Those people will receive a copy of the new book “Oy! Only Six? Why Not More? Six-Word Memoirs on Jewish Life,” published in collaboration with the Jewish cultural mavens at Reboot. We’ll also print another six from noted members of the Jewish community.
For inspiration, here are a few examples about Jewish moms culled from SMITH Magazine’s library of six-word memoirs. For more examples check out smithmag.net/jewish.
Mom: “Jewish boys don’t play football.”
— Michael Areinoff
Mom: “Jewish boys don’t play football.”
— Michael Areinoff
See, Mom, I’m a doctor. (Ph.D.)
— Jerry Heyman
Yes, I’m wearing a sweater, Mom.
— Mikey Franklin
Mother, our lady of perpetual dissatisfaction.
— Jennifer Glick
Secular mother, orthodox schools, reform rabbi.
— Rabbi Ruth
SMITH Magazine may contact you about inclusion of your Six Words in a future book or other media project.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
