A Time of Love
Published in Issue #9 Translated from Hebrew by Sondra Silverston(Excerpt from a Novel)
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So in the end, everyone gave in and Pnina would stand under the chuppah with the gornisht. The ceremony would take place at the community hall on Rothschild Boulevard at one-thirty in the afternoon.
It was a gray winter day, and the sidewalk was wet and muddy. Bricks and wooden boards blocked the pathway because the rain had put a stop to the construction work. Pnina walked at the head of the procession wearing a blue dress made for her by a seamstress, an old acquaintance of the Mameh’s who had recently come to Israel from Poland and worked in the clothing store on Ahad Ha’am Street. The Mameh thought they should make a dark dress that Pnina could wear again after the wedding. A ribbon with crimson silk edges decorated the opening at Pnina’s solid neck, slightly softening her worker’s look. Ita, Aron’s wife, walked at her side, asking occasional questions and offering last-minute advice that sounded to Pnina unnecessary and too late in coming, but today she had patience for everyone.
The main thing is not to argue too much, Ita said, and not to think you’re better than he is.
Pnina nodded with a smile.
Nu, tell me, how did he propose? Ita asked.
He didn’t, Pnina replied. When I found out that Dinka was going to Jerusalem with Natan, I said to him, Hanan, my big sister’s house will be empty.
He said, okay, we can live there free of charge. But, she added, her face glowing, the Mameh said she’d open the knipel and give us...
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