Friday, March 29, 2024 -
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Memory lane

In my grandmother’s home there was a wall of family photos. Most of these were black and white shots of ancestors long ago; many were elegantly and ornately framed. It was a beautiful display of heritage and inspired me to try to create one of my own.

An aunt and uncle of mine have a similar wall, or in their case, a hallway, a veritable trip down memory lane. Here at the Intermountain Jewish News we have several stand alone photographs as well as collages that my grandmother, late IJN editor and publisher Miriam Goldberg, made as a visual testimony to her husband Max’s illustrious career.

Over the past year, since my grandmother’s passing, I have succeeded in achieving this goal to a small extent. One of the pictures I knew I would include was a Goldberg family dinner. My grandfather, Max, was one of nine siblings, and they would often gather for special occasions like anniversaries or holidays. They are always pictured around a table at one of their homes or sometimes at the old Green Gables Country Club.

When I look at this congregation of kinfolk, I wonder about the stereotype of short Jews. Max and my great uncles were all born around the turn of the 20th century, the sons of impoverished Eastern European immigrants, yet many were tall or broad — in other words, hale and hearty Americans.

This year has been hard. Yahrzeits have a way of reminding us of everything we’ve lost, though when it comes to my grandmother, I don’t really need reminding. The pictures on the wall are a comfort, though. So thank you, Grammy, for teaching me how to keep you with me.

Shana Goldberg may be reached at [email protected]

Copyright © 2017 by the Intermountain Jewish News



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IJN Assistant Publisher | [email protected]


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