JANE AND GILA
Nellie had been trying hard to make friends with Jane
deLacey who had been stand-offish towards her since learning that Nellie was
Catholic. Jane came from England
in 1594 when the political and religious climate was not at all friendly
towards Catholics. Nellie had gone out of her way to convince Jane that she was
not a threat to national security . . . or anyone for that matter. Jane was
warming up slowly.
When Jane met Gila, the little Jewish immigrant girl, she was fascinated by her. There were no Jews in England in 1594, and the traveling production of "The Merchant of Venice" hadn't made it to deLacey Hall, so Jane was thankfully unaware of anti-Semitism. Jane and Gila soon became fast friends, despite the fact that Gila spoke mostly Yiddish, and Jane spoke Elizabethan! When Passover came along, Jane wanted to help Gila as much as she could, and Gila took the opportunity to do a little "ecumenical outreach." She asked Nellie to help Jane in the kitchen.
When Jane met Gila, the little Jewish immigrant girl, she was fascinated by her. There were no Jews in England in 1594, and the traveling production of "The Merchant of Venice" hadn't made it to deLacey Hall, so Jane was thankfully unaware of anti-Semitism. Jane and Gila soon became fast friends, despite the fact that Gila spoke mostly Yiddish, and Jane spoke Elizabethan! When Passover came along, Jane wanted to help Gila as much as she could, and Gila took the opportunity to do a little "ecumenical outreach." She asked Nellie to help Jane in the kitchen.
Gila put the girls to work doing the grunt work; peeling and grating potatoes for a kugel, and peeling and chopping apples for the traditional charoset, while Gila tended a pot of spring greens. By the time the sedar meal was ready to serve, all three had bonded like sisters!
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