I’ve imagined for so long the stories that were told to me that they’ve become part of my own memory. My dad traveled when we were children so my sisters and I spent a lot of time with our grandfather. He taught us to remember who and where we came from and no matter how much money you have you’ll never be poor if you know your history. He wasn’t what I would think of as religious, but lit candles every Friday night and said prayers. He believed in Jewish Mysticism before it was trendy and told us about a man in London that he met when he was young who read the bumps on his head and told him about how in the future everyone would be watching a box. When he couldn’t sleep at night he would lay in bed imagining fantastical machines he would invent and later tell us about them. I also remember him telling us that he didn’t suffer during the great depression because he hadn’t put everything in the stock market. Seemingly conservative – but also extremely open minded. Because of his heart condition my parents were very protective of him. I remember when my aunt had cancer and I overheard them saying they were afraid to tell him how bad it was, keeping him from the news until she died and making sure he was sitting down with a glass of scotch when they did tell him. I never understood why they didn’t have faith that someone who had experienced so much loss wouldn’t be able to handle it — he did. He told us he believed in moderation. Maybe, because of his humble beginnings. That having too much of anything wasn’t good and took pride in telling us that he used the money he did make to bring his brothers and sisters to America.

We always made a profit. Even through the depression in 1929 and 30 we still made a profit.  We didn’t lose any money see?  Ben Benjamin talking about Schwartz and Benjamin.(from the tapes I made as a child)

I recently found this album full of beautiful unmarked photos.  I never knew my grandfather when he was healthy and physically strong so it’s fun to see him in a different light and amazing to remember the adversity that he overcame from his Dickensian childhood. I’m guessing they’re from the late 1920’s or early 1930’s.