בית

Mome

 [Mother] *

 [See lectures: Tree of Life / Mothers and Fathers]

Shteyt a boym, inmitn feld, mit file prakht,
A magnificent tree stands in the middle of the field, 
Mit fil zorg, bavasert ir, tog un nakht,
With much care it is watered day and
night, 
Shteyt der gertner dort dernebn,
The gardner stands nearby,
mit fil getrayshaft , azoy ibergegeybn.
With much faithfulness, so devoted.
  
Kukt tsum boym, derzeyt di frukht,
Looks at the tree, sees the fruit of his
labor,
Zaftik sheyn, mit azoyfil tam iz zi.
It is juicy, beautiful, with so much
flavor, 
Genisn fun di peyres, s’iz tsayt,
It’s time to enjoy the fruit,
Hanoe fun vos er hot ayngezayt.
To derive pleasure from what he sowed. 
  
Hazoyrim bedimo—mit azoyfil yegie,
“They that sow in tears”—with so much
toil,
A sheyvekh farn boyre oylom, a groyse zekhiye,
Praise for the Creator of the Universe, a
great honor, 
Baygeshtanen zenen zey fil shturems in gefar,
They resisted many storms and dangers, 
Mit shire tsum bashefer derfar,
With song to the Creator for this, 
Oz yeraneni atsey yoar ...
“Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy...” 
  
Ki ha-odam der mentsh tsum boym, iz dokh glaykh,
Because a person is similar to a tree, 
Mome mayn, farzeyen iz dayn fakh,
Mother of mine, to sow is your trade, 
Mit tfile tsu hashem borekh shmoy,
With prayer to G-d, blessed be His name,
Khanoykh lana’ar al pi darkhoy.
“Educate the youth according to his ways.”
  
Nisht umzist iz dayn mi, Mome mayn, 
Not in vain was your labor, mother of mine,
Di peyres shteyen du rayf far dir haynt,
The fruits are here, ripe for you today, 
Ikh blik tsurik, di yorn zikh geplogt,
I look back, the years that you toiled, 
Ikh bin dir shuldik, azoyfil in dem tog. 
I owe you so much on this day. 
  
Hazoyrim bedimo—mit azoyfil yegie,
“They that sow in tears?—with so much
toil,
A sheyvekh farn boyre oylam, a groyse
zekhiye, 
Praise for the Creator of the Universe, a
great honor, 
Oy ashray li, vi bin ikh zoykhe dertsu, 
Oh, I am happy, how could I have earned
the honor 
Az ikh hob aza mome vi du,
To have such a mother as you,
Aza geshank fin hakodoysh borekh hu.
Such a present from the Holy One, Blessed
be He.
  
Ver is nokh azoy vi mir, aza bal khoyv?
Who else is as much in debt as am I?
Far dir, Mome, shuldik fil hakores hatoyv,
To you, mother, I owe much gratitude,
Oy ashray li, vi bin ikh zoykhe dertsu,
Oh, I am happy, how could I have earned
the honor
Az ikh hob aza mome vi du.
To have such a mother as you,
Aza geshank fin hakuodoysh borekh hu!
Such a present from the Holy One, Blessed
be He.

Copied from the article by Ester-Basya (Asya) Vaisman, "She who seeks shall find": The role of song in a Hasidic woman's life cycle. Journal of Synagogue Music, Fall 2010, Vol.35