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Carolyn Glazier Litwin
Teacher, Poet, Life Member, Hadassah Great Plains

Apron

Photo supplied by the author
Photo supplied by the author
Photo supplied by the author.
Photo supplied by the author.

for Etta Abrams Glazier (1902-1991)

Apron—I can hear your voice
written in your penciled script
on the envelope I saved for many years,
tucked under lace-edged handkerchiefs
in my dresser drawer.

Apron—a single word —told me
I would find folded-tissue patterns
for the florals, prints, and plaids,
fashion-fresh for cover-ups
and hostess wear, you
and your Hadassah friends
would gather to create
for fund-raising fun.

I, too, was your creation, guided
straight as stitches beneath
the needle of your Singer wheel,
the pattern you cut carefully
to follow hand-and-heart,
committed to a legacy of visions
of exiled wanderers returning, at  long last,
from homelessness to home.

Childhood memories connect me
to Hadassah in your life:
days for daughters and Hadassah
moms aboard the Admiral, sumptuous
Mississippi excursion river-boat;
Hadassah nurse in uniform
on my doll collection shelf;
Youth Aliyah—words I learned
for your state-side years supporting
Hadassah’s Rescue Homes for children
left adrift by war.

Apron strings kept us bound as you
reached your golden age and  I
learned to shape patterns of my own.
Now, nearly 90 years myself, I usually
forget an apron for protective care.
But on occasion, when I suspect splatters,
I take one you made for me
from the kitchen drawer:
Hadassah ties around my waist,
the fit remains the same.

About the Author
Carolyn Glazier Litwin, a life member of Hadassah Great Plains, was born (1934) and raised in St. Louis, MO., Carolyn learned the word “Hadassah” as the child of an avid and dedicated Hadassah mom. She left home for Wellesley College and then for her marriage and home in Topeka, KS, where she has lived for the past 70 years. There is no Hadassah chapter in her small Jewish community, but she keeps up to date with news and support through Hadassah Magazine. She proudly claims roles of traditional homemaker-wife, mother of three children, teacher, community and synagogue volunteer in many capacities. She has extended her love of gardening to include Master Gardener programs she initiated and developed for children and adults with physical and learning disabilities in her community. She teaches English as a Second Language (ESL) to non-native adults (students and residents) through Washburn University. She loves poetry and spends wonderful hours writing and sharing the magic of words.
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