Gefilte Fish – Poem by Barry Vitcov

Poetry by Barry Vitcov

There are always a couple of jars of gefilte fish in the fridge
And a couple of back-up jars in the cupboard
I must alert my wife before opening one
She can’t tolerate the smell
And the plate I use must be thoroughly rinsed
Before being placed in the dishwasher
I don’t think it’s about the plate holding kosher food
Contaminating the other Christian dishes
At least I hope not

It seems that my son has inherited a distaste for this delicacy
He snickers when I have a couple smothered in horseradish
I prefer the red beet colored horseradish over the white prepared variety
With a couple of dry matzos on the side
(Which he enjoys with butter and jelly)
But his Chinese girlfriend enthusiastically tried some
Savoring it for some time
Before declaring it good
I think our cultures have quite a bit in common

I used to eat at a Chinese Muslim restaurant
The food was halal and close enough to kosher
I’ve never kept kosher but enjoy the experience
I’m not a believer in myths
I rather cherish the secular results
And Moses is the most mentioned prophet in the Quran
Unfortunately Abraham’s choices cleaved two cultures
Families are strange sometimes

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Barry began writing poems and short fiction while in his early teens. He didn’t write poetry or fiction during his 40-year career in education. Since his retirement, he has been trying to recapture his ‘fictional’ voice writing haiku, longer poems, and short fiction. He has had a couple of poems published in EAP: The Magazine.