A quick note: This is a special NYC edition, slightly delayed because of travel. Weekly Notes from TLV will resume this Thursday, and more is coming from The Middle Ground this week. In the meantime, check out the latest episode of The Next Move’s Older/Wiser podcast, where I spoke to Linda Chavez about upcoming Israeli elections.
Last week, I spent 24 hours in NYC. It is a city I love with all my heart and one of the most special places in the world. A lot of my affinity for the place has to do with my mom’s family.
I often write about my father’s side of the family, the Iraqi heritage, and the story, but my other side is just as important and interesting.
My maternal great-great-grandfather Joe arrived from Hungary at the turn of the 20th century, as did the rest of my maternal ancestors, from other places in the old country. Latvia, Russia, and so on.
That is how my grandparents arrived in the tri-state area. My grandfather grew up a few miles west of New York, in Newark, then the Jewish heart of New Jersey. I definitely inherited his hairline, but my mother generously claims I inherited his intelligence too. He graduated from high school at 16 and finished his undergrad degree at 20.
My Great-Aunt Betti even went to prom with a very famous Jewish contemporary. You’ll never guess who!