The Old Country
We brought some of the thin books that a friend had given Tin years ago – each one asks a question – Why, When, How, Where, and Why. We were reading about the Nile River, how it is the longest river in the world.
Later, I was asking Tin where the Nile is located and he said Australia {and we laughed]. Then I said, think of where your ancestors are from, but he kept saying Australia.
I said again, who are your ancestors? Tin said, “JEWS.”
All three of us belly laughed for a good ten minutes.
And while the conversation didn’t flow to the next logical course – is Judaism a race or religion, why African Americans’ ancestry is unknown, and all the complexity that comes next, at this juncture, it was easy to simply say, “Africa, silly,” laugh and move on.