ARE YOU A GIRL? BY SHARON AMOV.

MY GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER, GILI, IS THREE YEARS OLD. SHE IS VERY SMART, EXTREMELY DRAMATIC AND HAS A LOVELY VOCABULARY. SHE IS AN ENGLISH SPEAKER AND IS IN THE PROCESS OF LEARNING TO SPEAK HEBREW AND

SHE IS A QUESTION ASKER!

GILI'S ENTIRE FAMILY IS CHARREDI. I AM A REFORM JEW--I WEAR SLACKS--DO NOT COVER MY HEAD AND I DD NOT KEEP KOSHER.

HAVING SAID THAT, OUT OF RESPECT, WHEN I VISIT MY DAUGHTER'S AND GRANDDAUGHTER'S HOMES FOR SHABBOS, I DRESS APPROPRIATELY. WHEN MY FAMILY COMES TO MY HOUSE I DRESS IN AN ORTHODOX FASHION AND ONLY SERVE THEM KOSHER FOODS.

LAST WEEK GILI AND I WERE PREPARING FOR HER BATH. AS I HELPED HER TAKE OFF HER BLOUSE OVER HER HEAD, SHE POPPED

HER LITTLE HEAD OUT AND ASKED ME "NONNIE, ARE YOU A GIRL"?

"WHY ARE YOU ASKING MY SWEETHEART?" (I ASKED, PLAYING FOR TIME, BECAUSE I KNEW IN MY HEART THAT SOONER OR LATER SHE WOULD ASK ME QUESTIONS--BUT I WAS HOPING FOR LATER).

"I AM ASKING BECAUSE MY IMMA, MY ZOFTA AND ALL OF MY FRIEND'S IMMAS WEAR SKIRTS."

"WELL HONEY, I QUIVERED. NONNIE IS VERY OLD AND ALMOST NEVER IN MY LIFE HAVE I WORN SKIRTS. BUT IF YOU WOULD LIKE FOR ME TO, I CERTAINLY WILL." "BUT YOU SAY THE SHEMA AND LIGHT CANDLES" SHE COUNTERED. (SHE ALREADY SEES THE CONNECTION.)

"I WILL TELL YOU ABOUT THE SHEMA" I IGNORED THE CANDLE

LIGHTING ISSUE ON PURPOSE AND HELD BACK GIVING HER THE MORE COMPLICATED REASONS FOR BOTH HER SAKE AND MINE.

I NEEDED TIME TO COMPOSE MY "REFORM JUDAISM SPEECH".

NOT AN EASY TASK.

"NOW I WILL TELL YOU ABOUT NONNIE AND THE SHEMA. WHEN I WAS A LITTLE GIRL LIKE YOU I SAID THE SHEMA EVERY NIGHT WHEN MY IMMA AND ABBA PUT ME TO BED. I STILL DO AND YOU KNOW I ALWAYS SAY IT WITH YOU. WE WILL TALK ABOUT IT TOMORROW--GOOD NIGHT--LAILA TOV--SWEETHEART". AND WE SAID THE SHEMA TOGETHER.

THE NEXT EVENING WE WERE AGAIN PREPARING FOR HER BATH.

"NONNIE I HAVE DECIDED" SHE SAID EMPHATICALLY--"I WANT YOU TO WEAR SKIRTS--THEN YOU WILL BE A GIRL".

"GILI, I PROMISE THAT I WILL TRY TO WEAR SKIRTS AS MUCH AS I CAN--AND OF COURSE I WILL CONTINUE TO SAY THE SHEMA--OK?"

"OK NONNIE--I LOVE YOU." "I LOVE YOU TOO MY SWEETHEART."

WHEW! THAT WAS NOT SUCH A HARD TEST TO PASS. HOWEVER I AM VERY SURE THAT THE NEXT TESTS WILL BE MUCH MORE COMPLICATED AND I WILL PREPARE FOR THEM AS HONESTLY AS I POSSIBLY CAN.