Eulogy

Tomorrow we will bury my grandmother. My beautiful, strong, feisty Mama.

Mama, Sybil, was born on May 25, 1932 in Brooklyn, NY (as my Rabbi says, "The Old Country"). Her parents were Orthodox Jews and didn't have money for summer camps and fancy toys.

She went to NYU, and eventually earned a Master's degree. She was proud of her advanced degree. She used that to become a foreign language teacher at a middle school in Brooklyn. It meant a lot to me, too. In the last year, I rediscovered Mama. I learned that my grandmother was a teacher, and even though she only taught for a few years, she was a teacher. She thought like a teacher. At the end of a long day, I would call her, and complain. We'd talk about city schools and middle school students. I'd visit her when I was back home and we'd swap war stories over wine.

She liked her wine. She suffered a lot of pain in her life, due to chronic back problems and multiple surgeries, and used wine to soften the ache. But, never in excess, and never before 5PM. And food. She loved good food, and traveling to get good food.

When I was thirteen, my grandparents took me on a glorious adventure to London and Paris for a week. It was an incredible adventure, and it set the bar for all future travels of mine. They used frequent flier points to upgrade our seats to business class, and my mind was blown before we even left the ground. We explored Paris, drank wine, ate wonderful food, and saw the sights. Then we hopped on a train to London and did the same. It was incredible. Mama taught me how to travel, how to eat, how to drink.

As has been mentioned many times in the last few days, Mama loved supporting her grandchildren and children. She attended every school concert and play and sporting event for her 3 children and 8 grandchildren. She was so supportive. She truly loved her family, and showed it frequently. She was married for 56 and a half years to my grandfather. She loved her community, as well, spending many years volunteering for charitable organizations. Cancer Care. Our synagogue.

And she was tough. She had high expectations of everyone and everything, and never let anyone settle for less than their best. But she also taught me to seek out the best, in myself and in the world around me. She taught me to enjoy travel, and food, and wine, and theater, and life.

The community, and the family, will miss her. I will miss you, Mama. I love you, Mama.