JGA SEPT-OCT 08 - The Jewish Georgian

September-October 2008 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN Page 17
Make time
for time
BY
Shirley
Friedman
No watch or clock can ever tell us exactly what time it is, because we can measure
time only by how much of it we have—it’s either early or late, we’re either pushed
or at leisure.
Time was running out for Daddy in 1959, truly running out. But we knew it, and he
didn’t; so in fact, time was short for us because it became our responsibility to use this time
meaningfully for him and for ourselves. We pour water down a drain and clutch protectively
the small canteen in the desert.
We were clutching, but we couldn’t let him see the tips of our fingers. We went home
for a few days’ visit. The doctor would come for a moment and stay for hours, revealing
his special problems to Daddy. (The clock stopped long ago for that kind of luxury for doctor
and patient.)
One afternoon, I said I’d like to ride to Albany, just 36 miles away, to get a bolt of
material for some curtains. From the early 1900s on, merchants all over the Southeast
bought stock from Hoffmayer Dry Goods Company. Mr. Hoffmayer, a polished gentleman,
died a few years before, and Mr. McCollum, an equally charming man, became president
of the company.
Daddy had been retired for several years and hadn’t seen any of the group for a long
time, and he decided he would like to make that short trip with us and “visit.” He had very
little strength to get about, so we were happy that he wanted to make the effort; but I was
filled with trepidation that things couldn’t possibly be the same at that establishment. I
knew what he remembered—walking in, in a strut, being welcomed like a celebrity, and
being the master of boredom avoidance: that he was creating fellowship and mirth in a usually
staid atmosphere.
I told my mother that I was afraid that he’d be disappointed, and I couldn’t stand to
see it. “Don’t worry, it’ll be all right.”
He dressed spiffily and looked fine. It took all of his energy, so he was more subdued
than usual during the drive. When we got there, my heart sank, but he suddenly straightened
up like a pine, much taller than he was, threw back his shoulders, cocked his hat on
the side of his head the way he always wore it, and strutted in. If I hadn’t known better, I’d
have sworn I heard a large band playing “Pomp and Circumstance.”
Mr. McCollum was seated in his glass-enclosed office, and the staff were at desks in
the huge room. The minute they spotted Daddy, they all stood up and ran over. Mr.
McCollum shouted, “Barney!” Everyone was hugging and laughing and remembering the
past as the wonderful final visit began. They followed us around as we “chose,” and Daddy
kept them laughing the entire time.
It was perfect. They never knew he was ill. I was so filled with the grave realities of
life that I underestimated what can happen when “back of the job is the dreamer who’s
making the dream come true.”
Epstein students encounter symbol
of hatred as they arrive at school
tudents and parents of Atlanta’s Epstein School were confronted with a spraypainted
swastika when they arrived at school on the morning of August 20.
S“Our
hearts go out to the children at The Epstein School, who arrived for class on
Wednesday only to be confronted with a terrible image that reminds us all of the cruel
history of anti-Semitism and of the extermination of the Jews by the Nazis,” said Bill
Nigut, Southeast Regional Director of ADL.
“Epstein School responded immediately by giving their students comfort and by
calling in the police to investigate the crime. But it is sad to think the students at Epstein
were given a reason to feel a little more vulnerable to the bigotry that still exists around
them,” continued Nigut.
ADL, which offers education programs aimed at helping Jewish students learn how
to respond to anti-Semitism, offered assistance to The Epstein School in the aftermath
of the incident. Sandy Springs police are investigating the vandalism. They say they
believe it was not the work of an organized hate group, but may have been related to
neighborhood tensions over the school’s plans to expand.