Am Yisrael

Polatschek Family Reunion

Prague

Czech Republic

June 15, 2015

 

They mourn differently. 

I read somewhere that when parents lose a child, the mother and father mourn differently.  In general, Women “speak.”  Men “work.”

So it was in my own family. 

On June 5, 1972, at the age of twenty-eight, my sister Paula Carol Wiesenfeld passed away unexpectedly.  From that day forward my mother Ruth Polatschek spoke lovingly and admiringly and proudly of her only daughter. 

From that day forward my father Otto Polatschek closeted himself and immersed himself in his lifelong devotion to stamp collecting.  He also began a new Project.  I can only guess his motivation; he decided to construct a Polatschek Family Tree.

The Jews of Suriname

Paramaribo
Suriname
February 5, 2018
 
Jews arrived in Suriname in large numbers in the late Seventeenth Century.  They became successful plantation owners out in the savanna.   The area is called "Jodensavanne."   They built a substancial brick synagogue they named Beracha v' Shalom (Blessing and Peace).
 
Because of disruptions in the sugar trade, they eventually moved to the capital Paramaribo.  They built the magnificent wooden synagogue Neve Shalom,1837 (Oasis of Peace)  that is still in use by the diminished community.  The smaller Zedek v' Shalom Synagogue (Justice and Peace) built in 1735 is currently rented to a computer company.

Athens: Museums

Athens

Hellenic Republic

Sunday

April 26, 2015

 

I need a drink every time I visit a place like this.

Housed in a small, lovely building, displaying a variety of secular artifacts and religious icons, the Jewish Museum of Greece carries the appropriate name - a museum - the lifeless panorama of history.

Jews lived in Greece for more than two thousand years.  But in large numbers, Jews arrived in Greece following their expulsion from Spain and Portugal in the late Fifteenth Century.  For more than four hundred years, communities thrived here, especially in the northern city of Thessalonica, known as the “Little Jerusalem.”  In 1940, the Jewish population of Thessalonica exceeded 53,000 children, women and men.

Bris and Bar Mitzvah in Bangkok

Bangkok

Thailand

March 22, 2018

 

The Chasids know how to party!

This month I was invited to two celebrations.

Rabbi Moshe Hadad and his wife Elisheva invited me to the Bris of their son Yaakov Yehuda.

The ceremony took place in our* temporary shul.  A new one is under construction across the street.

The Bris itself was part solemn and part joyful.  But the luncheon served later was 100% joyful.

On Sunday March 18, I was invited to attend the Bar Mitzvah of Yaakov Hadad, the son of Rabbi David and Mrs. Nechama Hadad, the brother and sister-in-law of Rabbi Moshe.

The Bar Mitzvah meal was creative and delicious and bountiful.  But the dancing!  Oye, the dancing!  Joyful does not begin to describe this celebration.

Ulm: Stolpersteine Ceremony

Ulm

Baden-Württemberg

Federal Republic of Germany

October 29, 2016

My Cousins and the Stolpersteine

Otto Polatschek is gone but not forgotten.

Lisa Polatschek is gone but not forgotten.

In Ulm, Germany, Otto inherited a retail shoe business from his parents Alois Polatschek (1879-1929) and Paula née Brumlik Polatschek (1883-1932).  But as the Nazi menace in Germany became more threatening, Otto sold his business to the Werdich family and fled with his wife Lisa to Berlin.

"Shliach" is the Singular of "Shluchim"

ב"ה

Shliach is the Singular of Shluchim

 


Brooklyn
New York
November 8, 2015

 

I met Harley Greenberg in Chengdu, by chance....

……….

Harley Greenberg and I first met in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China in the fall of June, 2010.  We have been friends ever since.

Harley was a Peace Corps Volunteer in China.  He smiles, a warm and caring smile.   

Harley and his wife Helen live in Chengdu (population 9.6 million).  They have a darling infant daughter who they named Jeanne.  From the recent photos he has sent, Harley appears to be one of the most affectionate men I have ever known.   He overflows with gratitude and joy and love as he embraces his wife and child.

Harley and Helen operate the Windhorse Tour travel agency in Chengdu – the gateway city to Tibet.  In 2010 they helped me with my local plans and also booked me on the Yangtze River Three Gorges Cruise.

In the spring of the 2011, I called Harley from Bangkok.  During the course of our conversation I happened to ask him if he was planning to attend a Passover Seder in Chengdu.  Not only did Harley have no idea if there were any other Jews in Chengdu, he was quite unaware that Passover was soon to arrive.  

As we spoke, I did a search and found a small group of Jews in Chengdu who were gathering to conduct a Seder.  I gave Harley the information and encouraged him to make contact.

Two weeks later I called Harley again. 

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