Home Movies

Our task this Shabbat was actually pretty well timed... my Dad's cousin has been transferring old home movies into digital form and then sending them to our family. The videos are old - old enough that my father was very young, but not so old that I couldn't recognize my grandmother and grandfather (although they were, of course, not as I remember them). The movies are silent; some in color, some not. I've only seen a couple before, so I decided to watch a silent movie that had a personal connection to me instead of one from youtube.

There used to be a family council that met once a year for many many years but hasn't been in existence since probably the 70s. It was a grand event (we have a picture of one such council where there had to have been at least 100 family members there - all from one side!) The video I watched was shot during one of these gatherings in the mid to late 60s. I never met my grandfather on my dad's side, and my grandmother was pretty sickly throughout my childhood. It was pretty exciting to see them alive and vibrant, dancing and singing (silently to me), hugging and kissing people I've never met but am related to. Unfortunately, no one can really tell me what exactly was said in this video, but the tone is pretty clear: love and family.

Lisa Friedman