Last week I attended a book review featuring Frieda Arkin who at 86 years old has written her second novel, "Hedwig and Bertie" which has been very well received. She wrote her first novel in her fifties and since then has written a number of cook books. She read from her book and then answered questions from the audience. I always find that the most enjoyable part of the presentation.There were a number of "girls" there that I have not seen in a few years. I would see then at the local community center where I attended a class in "Yiddish." As time went by the group would tell jokes with a Jewish flavor and hardly spoke Yiddish, at that point I stopped going, it was not what I was looking for.
Well, when I got to talking to them, they told me that they still go to that class and how great it is now. There is a young woman in her sixties (that's young) who contributes a great deal to the group and, "I should go." They were so enthusiastic that I just had go see what was going on. I went this past Monday and sure enough it was a lot of fun.
One of "the girls" told a story about her father who was a house painter and that reminded me of a funny story which I managed to butcher in Yiddish.
It had to be in the early 40's when my neighbor had a painter come in to do her apartment, he painted all the rooms, including the bathroom. In those days as I remember it, if you wanted to maintain the toilet seat, you painted it! Well, he painted the toilet seat and when the neighbors daughter came home from work, you guessed it, she went to the bathroom and she sat on the freshly painted toilet seat!! Need I say more!!
If I hadn't gone to hear that author, I won't have seen "the girls" and I won't have gone back to the Yiddish class.
One of my mothers favorite saying was, "If you don't go out, nothing will happen." How true!!