Mr. Monday and other tales of Jewish Amsterdam

164 Air. Monday and Other Tales of Jewish Amsterdam

A little old lady is standing on the corner of the street near the stopping-place of the tram. The tram grinds to a halt and the conductor enquires "Do you want to get on?"

The lady answers "No, I don't want to get on."

Then the conductor waits quietly until she has entered the tram safely. He knows the district and the people.

They have a boundless respect for superstitious acts and deeds. When a relative has died, they mourn eight days long, seated on a low stool 01־ a cushion on the floor. So, woe betide the rash person who chances to put a cushion on the floor in order to sit on it in everyday life. Then they say of that act "One does not do a thing like that. That is a niegish."

Cause and effect are two sides of a coin to them. On days of mourning one puts a cushion on the floor, "therefore" putting a cushion on the floor can, G-d forbid... cause days of mourning.

At home, Father has his own chair. If someone else accidentally goes and sits on it, Father admonishes him gravely "At least wait until I'm dead.This is a niegish."

That attitude also applies to clothing. "I never wear black ties because that is a niegish."

Or dishes:

"The day my sister died we had brown beans for supper, and do you know we also had brown beans when Mother closed her eyes? In my family we have a niegish regarding brown beans, we have never eaten them again since then."

Suddenly they can be tormented by anxious premonitions. Says someone, "I heard a fire-engine drive past and