meshiksa hasidic roots: Frum stroll in Willy

Yesterday, i was in Willy to watch all these peyos running, buying, cleaning before tonight.

I was with a guide for a private tour.

I loved to feel the electricity in those peyos before celebrating Pesach, looking at us and eventually listening what the guide said to me.

We caught the attention of 2 men. The first one was a monument of history: a survivor of Auschwitz. He was very young when he escaped from the camp. I really adored this moment, even if i didn't really understand what the guide and him were saying. But just the idea this man talked to us and wow, a survivor.

They are not too many survivors who are still alive. When you met one, you want to spend time with him, to put him in a frame. Maybe he knew my family…

A teenager came closer to us to listen too. When i turned my head and smiled at him, he ran away and didn't come back.

I asked questions to this man, he didn't look at me and was waiting for the guide to repeat my question.

No, no, no, i was not upset. It made me laugh because he didn't ignore me, he felt i was there, looking at him intensively, drinking his words.

I didn't ask him if he had the tattoo, no doubtless, too young when he was there… And i am not sure to be ready to see one.

They are always astonished that outsiders can be interested by them. Roooooooh!

We stopped in a bookstore to have a look at books to color.

No women in the store. One peyos man was able to stare at me. It was my turn to be astonished that he did that with all these H babies around us. The bookseller helped us. When i paid he didn't want to take the bill from my hand, so i put it on the table as he did the same to give me the change.

They have a Hasidic Monopoly: i would love to play and buy all the houses on Bedford and on Lee Ave with fake dollars, peyos, and tzitzit. I will rent them for free to support them with their 12 kids.

I wanted a book from the truck and a young boy gave me an old prayer book which belonged to someone. I have the name in Yiddish, the address and the phone number written in the book.

And a small piece of paper with something written in Yiddish and a drawing.

I was like a kid holding tight this present which means a lot to me before putting it in my bag.