Sweet Dreams

Before It All

  Back before the Nazi reign, in our little village in Raczki, Poland, I went to secondary school and dreamt of studying engineering and oil exploration at the university. After school, I would walk to Mama’s fabric store and help her out. Mama and I would then walk to Bubbe’s house where I would be met with the fragrance of nutmeg and vanilla. Bubbe, my grandmother, would always sneak me a piece of Toruń gingerbread and go back to cooking as if Mama didn’t see us and roll her eyes in response.

    Once Tata, my father, came home from work, everyone gathered around the dinner table. We all spoke about our day and gossiped. When food was served, everyone would quiet down so that Tata could say a prayer to bless our food. After the prayer, my family and I would dig into our food, not speaking until everyone was finished eating. 

    When bedtime came around, Tata read a chapter from the Torah and explained the meaning of the chapter. We all did a family prayer to close off our day just like we always did. Everyone would set off for their rooms once our evening prayer was done. Before going to bed, I bathed, brushed my teeth, and put on my nightgown. With all of that done, I slipped into bed and dreamt sweet dreams.