All posts in Memories from home

Introduction I was born in Siedlce – a town of 40 thousand inhabitants in central Poland, between Warsaw and Brisk, at a distance of about 100 km from Warsaw. Most of the residents of my town were Jews living in the city center, and a Polish minority, whose homes were in the periphery – in the suburbs. The Jews have left their mark on the streets and […]

Who will count the celebrations, and especially the weddings I have attended with my parents. Weddings of those days are not at all like the weddings in our time. To begin with, most weddings were arranged marriages agreed between the parents of the groom and the bride, and only a few were the result of love. When a guy […]

Usually a Jew blesses the wine on Friday night. I did not know that. I only knew that you drink four cups at Seder, or that the cantor in the Great Synagogue was doing it. Father, of course, would bless the Challahs and I as a big boy would follow. Friday Night meal was customary as in most Jewish […]

The first Hedder of Rav Asher When did I start going to the Hedder? It must have been between the age of three and four. What parents did not want their child to know how to pray or at least know the blessing of Shema? So, like any Jewish boy I also began to study in the famous Hedder of […]

Written in Yiddish by Yosef Finkelman. Translated by his Son Yechezkel Philon to Hebrew and published in the book “Be’darcheu Hachaim” (the roots of life). Translated from Hebrew by Mr. Yuval Romano. Goat Lane was one of the little alleys in Siedlce. All of which had a Jewish character, but nevertheless was alive and active twenty-four […]

The first Hedder of Rav Asher When did I start going to the Hedder? It must have been between the age of three and four. What parents did not want their child to know how to pray or at least know the blessing of Shema? So, like any Jewish boy I also began to study in the famous Hedder of […]