Bless the Bread
A new year for many of us means a time to take stock, to make resolutions, or to once again start that illusive diet. But for my son Noah it means the rock, jam-band Phish will be on tour at Madison Square Garden once again for several consecutive nights.
A few years ago the New Year’s holiday fell on a long weekend, and my husband and I planned to get away. Noah and five of his out-of-town, Phish-loving friends had tickets for the shows and we invited them to stay in our Manhattan apartment in our absence..
On Friday afternoon one of the group offered to go down to the supermarket to get groceries for dinner. My son asked him to also pick up a challah, and then as his friend was heading out the door, Noah called after him, “And tell them not to slice it.”
But once at the bakery counter the young man, not familiar with Jewish lexicon, asked hesitantly, “May I have a … chabad?”
The bakery guy looked puzzled until it dawned on him what was meant. “Sliced or unsliced?” he asked.
This time there was no hesitation. “Unsliced!”, was the ready answer.
And so that Shabbat night six friends gathered around our dining table to light candles and bless the wine. And, with his grandmother’s silver challah knife, my son sliced … the ciabatta.
Happy New Year one and all!
– Dana Susan Lehrman
Dana Susan LehrmanThis retired librarian loves big city bustle and cozy country weekends, friends and family, good books and theatre, movies and jazz, travel, tennis, Yankee baseball, and writing about life as she sees it on her blog World Thru Brown Eyes!
www.WorldThruBrownEyes.com
LOL, Dana! Really funny story. Happy 2020!
Good Laurie!
Here’s to a happy and healthy new year for us all!
Dana, I must tell you that we started watching The Great British Bake-Off last night (David’s girlfriend is British). One of the challenges was making ciabatta. Neither Dan nor I knew what kind of bread that was, but we learned (they made very fancy kinds). So I roared with laughter at the end of this story. Loved it!
I bought the real challah to have in the house for my kids, who are home for this holiday, leaving over the next couple of days.
Happy new year to you and Danny.
Good Betsy!
Here’s to a happy and healthy new year for us all!
Very funny, Dana, and well told! How interesting that Phish plays Madison Square Garden every year for New Year’s Eve. I see that they are there again this year. I wonder how that tradition got started – do you know?
Don’t know but surely it’s a money-making arrangement for both the venue and the band! That’s show biz!