Sheva Zucker: Candles of Song #4

Sheva Zucker, editor of Afn Shvel (On the Threshold), launched a blog of Yiddish poems about mothers in February, in memory of her own mother, Miriam Pearlman Zucker, who died on January 25 of this year.

Sheva has given Jewish Currents permission to post these translations, along with the Yiddish originals (and in transliteration) at our website. We urge readers to visit her blog.

This fourth poem, “Mother,” is by a living poet, Gitl Schaechter-Viswanath, about whom Sheva writes: “Born in the Bronx, New York, Gitl grew up in a Yiddish-speaking, staunchly Yiddishist home. She studied in the Sholem Aleichem Folkshul 21, United Mittleshul and Jewish Teachers Seminary, where she graduated with a degree in Jewish literature. She also earned degrees in Russian (Barnard College), nursing (Columbia University) and health administration (New York University), and currently works as a clinical consultant in long-term care. She has been active in the Yiddish movement her entire life, and has worked as editor for several Yiddish magazines. Since 2005 she has been stylistic editor of Afn Shvel, the periodical of the League for Yiddish. She lives in Teaneck, New Jersey, and is the mother of three Yiddish-speaking children. She has published one volume of poetry, Sudden Rain: Yiddish Poems (Israel Book, Tel Aviv, 2003).”

MOTHER

One pair of arms
living life
separately,
left and right.

But what a sight!

From these two
is woven tight
one little nest
for child’s delight.

From Sudden Rain: Yiddish Poems
Translations by Jeffrey Shandler and Zachary Berger

מאַמע

איין פּאָר אָרעמס
אויסגעלעבט זיך -
לינקס און רעכטס
באַזונדער.

נאָר זעט אַ וווּנדער!

ס’האָט פֿון די צוויי
זיך אויסגעוועבט
אַ נעסטעלע
פֿאַר קינדער

Mame

Eyn por orems
oysgelebt zikh –
links un rekhts
bazunder.

Nor zet a vunder!

S’hot fun di tsvey
zikh oysgevebt
a nestele
far kinder.