Green Pickles, Red Grape Wine and Mondel Bread Cookies All Homemade

When I was a kid in 1940, we lived in a neighborhood of Jewish people, Christian people, Polish, Italian and Greek folks. Everyone was friendly to one another, we played with girls of our age or boys of my brother's age and we all got along and never argued. Mom use to go play cards with the neighbor ladies and each one hosted a visit every 4th or 5th week and they served dessert of homemade or bought from a bakery cookies and soda.Mom was the one they liked to come over for her fresh baked Mondel bread a misnomer, Mom called hers Mondel Sliced cookies from a loaf of dough she cut in slices. Some were chocolate and some were pink, green, or even blue colored by food dye to make them look more scrumptious.

Dad pickled green fresh tomatoes and everyone loved them if they were lucky enough to get a bottle from him, only if he liked the person. He also made red wine from the grape vines we had in the back yard and you can bet his wine was better than the popular brand called Manischevitz wine. You had to be in Dad's good grace to get one of those Joe's wine.

There was no anti Semitism then or talking against one's religion, Christian, Jewish or whatever was practiced. There was no envy between you and your friends and someone got their toy different than yours, you would let her play with it for a few minutes. Next thing, she had gotten one or you had gotten what she had.

Those were the days of no television then and we all had a huge floor radio encased in pretty wood furniture and it was in the living room looking so grand as it were a piece of furniture, which it really was and if we were lucky enough, we had a small radio in our bedroom so we could listen alone what we really wanted to hear.