A heavy brass candlestick sat atop the hall dresser in my mom’s apartment for as long as I can remember. Now its place is in my curio cabinet and in my novel. My book is a work of fiction, but this candlestick is real, like so many things you find in stories.
The truth is that this candlestick came to America with my grandmother, Fanny, along with other items of utmost importance. When people set out on their perilous journeys long ago, it was with the knowledge that they could never return. They had to leave behind most of their worldly belongings and many loved ones.
I can picture not just my grandmother, but most of our ancestors, choosing carefully as they packed slowly, over time, or in haste, with help or in secret. No matter what they put in their tightly packed bundles, two more things always sneaked in for the journey. A bit of fear and a larger dose of hope. They would need it.
I have blurred memories of Grandma lighting the thick white candles each Friday evening and reciting by heart, the timeless blessing to welcome the Sabbath. Now, as I hold this precious item in my hands, those sacred words spill out of my lips, and a few warm tears fill my half-closed eyes. So many decades have passed, but this durable relic remains. I rub it hard as Aladdin did with his lamp, but no genie appears to tell the tale or grant my wishes. So, I guess it’s up to me to create the stories and fulfill my own desires.
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Sally Constain was an elementary school teacher and librarian in New York City for more than 30 years. She and her husband moved to Del Webb - Ponte Vedra in Nocatee in 2014. She is a member of Del Webb’s Shalom Club and was president of their community Writers Group for three years.
She is the author of the novel, The Keys to Fanny, a work of historical fiction inspired by her grandmother's life in the shtetl. It is a coming-of-age and an immigrant story. Sally’s given talks about her novel at River Garden and the Jewish Geneology Society, for local Jewish book clubs, and at Temple Bet Yam in St. Augustine.
She is also the author of a poetry chapbook, Sometimes I Wonder, and an anthology of essays and poems, Random Reflections.
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