When we slather our mothers with chocolaty tributes on Mother’s Day, we will be stepping onto a chocolate trail pioneered by Jewish mothers before us, notably Rebecca Gomez of the 18th-Century Colonial Period. Related Gomez, along with her husband and son, had an appetite for the chocolate business in Manhattan. After the death of her…
Over rooftops and forests, rivers, domes and the belfries of Vilna, the magic carpet in my mind flies to a small maze of buildings where the ghettos used to be. Near the river flats, and that green bridge Milosz writes about in a poem — the bridge where my mother was almost arrested for being…
It’s Mother’s Day! For the moms among you: we thank you for your sacrifice. For the non-moms among you — call your mom. Obviously, you wrote your Mother’s Day card weeks ago, but just in case you’re running a little late (ie. forgot), we’ve rounded up some of the most inspiring Jewish celebrity quotes about…
“What does he do for a living?” “Did you eat?” “When are you going to give my grandchildren?” “Are you sure you want to eat that?” These questions, they’re punchlines to jokes. So is the stereotype of the Jewish mother. But it’s often more accurate and bitting than we dare to talk about. Our 2013…
Rachel Ament with her mom // Courtesy of Rachel Ament Mayim Bialik’s mom thinks you’re jealous of her. If Barbra Streisand could be so famous and amazing and wonderful with her nose, why should mine be any problem Actually, the way my mother told it, I was indeed a fantastic, gorgeous person and I am…
The author and her mother // Courtesy of Laura Harari This Mother’s Day, I’m getting creative with my flower arrangement. I’m filling it with kale. Not only does it top the list of the trendiest vegetables of 2014, it is also a tribute to my mother: a slim, tall, Jewish Sofia Vergara, who was way…
Frimet Goldberger and her mother at her wedding // Courtesy of Frimet Goldberger When I close my eyes and try to picture my childhood, I see my mamme steering a 12-quart boiling pot of peaches compote. The peaches arrived in a box, all eight pounds of them old and already rotting, costing a grand total…
Mela Mietkiewicz, the mother-in-law of the author // Courtesy of Dorothy Lipovenko At the top of a staircase, a pious Jewish family in pre-war Europe gazes out from a series of framed photos. A boy of bar-mitzvah age stands with two older sisters, faces too young to be so serious. Seated between their parents is…
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