AND BABY MAKES FOUR
…or 14,707,401 if you search online and find the 2019 statistics of the number of Jewish people in the world. When we heard “it’s a boy,” we felt the royalty flowing through our veins. Not only will the Cohen name be carried down another generation, but the patrilineage of our people means that as a descendant of Aaron, our baby grandson carries the royalty of the high priests.
As a male child born of two Jewish parents, the son of our eldest son has the added distinction of being the first in the line of children from the 28 biological grandchildren of his paternal great-great-grandparents to carry on the Cohen lineage. For us, that is a big deal. After researching our children’s ancestry for over 30 years, this is a proud moment indeed.
Our grandson’s bris*, welcoming him “into the tribe,” took place during the coronavirus pandemic. The protocol was slightly altered, with the guests attending the religious ceremony via Zoom. Only the two immediate families were on the scene, with half of us remaining outdoors. We wore masks and stayed socially distanced. The officiant, a mohel**, allowed the two grandfathers to join the parents inside the house to hold the baby. That was only after following COVID-19 protocol and having our son run a thermometer across their foreheads.
My husband, the paternal grandfather, was honored as the sandek. The sandek is the person who holds the baby on his lap during his ritual circumcision. The baby’s maternal grandfather then caressed the baby in his arms at his naming. The baby’s maternal uncle was the officiating rabbi.
The mommy spoke about their son’s name, and his namesakes, my father-in-law, and my father. She so beautifully acknowledged and explained, “Thank you all for being here [on Zoom], a strange time but the silver lining is that we get to be with many people who wouldn't have been able to be here physically anyway.
“The name we've chosen for our son is Dizzy Bozeman Cohen. Dizzy is named after Judd's two grandfathers Isadore "Issy" Cohen and Benjamin Mark. Since Issy and my father Mitch both share the Hebrew name Yitzchak, we chose Dov Ber as Dizzy's Hebrew name, which was Judd's grandfather Ben's full Hebrew name.
“Aside from the fact that their children would go on to get married, Issy Cohen and Ben Mark had a lot in common:
-Born 1911 -Although they had different backgrounds--Issy born in America and Ben born in Ukraine [in Chudnov, the same shtetl where Dena’s paternal great-great-grandfather was born], they both ended up living much of their lives in Elizabeth NJ, where they both raised their families. -Both working-class people who knew how to work hard for a living--Issy spent most of his career as a milkman and Ben as a mailman -And above all else, they both loved their families
“We think Dizzy is already connected to his namesakes through the circumstances of his birth--
-Issy Cohen's favorite number was 5 since he was the 5th child in his family [of 14] born on the 5th day of the 5th month. Dizzy is the 2nd child born on the 22nd day of the month in the year 2020, so maybe his favorite number will be 2. Or maybe not -Dizzy's birth weight was 8 lbs, 4.6 ozs., and Ben lived with his family at 846 Cross Ave in Elizabeth.
“After their kids got married Issy and Ben formed a beautiful friendship. We think they'd be glad to know that their memories are forever linked in their great-grandson.
“Dizzy's only been around for 8 short days, but he's already shown us that he has a goofy, laid back personality, and he makes our house and our family feel fuller. Solly has really taken to him and has stepped into her role as big sister--she likes playing with Dizzy's toes, grabbing his blanket off him when he gets hot, and alerting us with a concerned face whenever he starts crying. We can't wait to see more and more of Dizzy's personality and enjoy him as he grows up. Thanks, everyone for joining us, we can't wait for you all to meet Dizzy.”
Dizzy was elegantly dressed for the occasion in a family heirloom, first worn in 1951 by his paternal grandfather, then by his daddy in 1988, and most recently his uncle in 1994. The story of the once crumpled treasure is part of our family lore.
In 1994, after our younger son’s bris, my mother-in-law took the outfit home to wash and press. Although she thought she returned it soon after, we couldn’t find it anywhere in her house or ours. Then, in 2007, while looking through a stored family tree file, I found the cherished bris gown, which we thought was lost forever. When I pulled out letters I had written in 1995, I saw what appeared to be a crumpled up piece of paper at the bottom of the file. Reaching in for it, to my surprise, I pulled out the treasured bris gown. It must have been picked up with the papers and put in the file.
That, my friends, is the story of a bris during a pandemic. We socially distanced with our children in their backyard as we celebrated with a seudat mitzvah**** eating bagels with schmear*****, lox, and the like. Dizzy’s paternal aunt and uncle brought the traditional baked goods, including rugelach and black and white cookies.
We made it an even more festive occasion by displaying colorful blooms gifted by our talented friend/neighbor Cricket from her enchanting gardens. The vase included a carefully arranged floral centerpiece with a variety of colored hydrangeas and purple Chaste Bush flowers added for height. Adding the perfect amount of pomp and circumstance, the parents provided framed photos of our two grandchildren to decorate the dessert table.
Our fathers, who were not materialistic, posthumously reaped huge dividends on this auspicious day, as their names and lineages were passed down together to another generation of our families. Named for my husband’s father, Yitzchak ben Zelig haCohen, a descendant of the high priest Aaron, and my father, Dov Ber ben Nachman haLevi, a descendant of Moses, may the royal bloodlines of our precious grandson, Dizzy Bozeman Cohen, be the source of a majestic life for our bundle of joy.
After being washed and ironed by this proud grandma, the rescued bris gown is back, hanging on display, ready to be worn by future members of our family. L’dor v’dor, meaning from generation to generation. Amen.
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*Yiddish bris, short for bris-mile, from Hebrew bĕrīth mīlāh, literally, covenant of circumcision
**mohel: A person who performs ritual Jewish circumcisions
***sandek: A sandek is a person honored at a Jewish brit milah ceremony, traditionally either by holding the baby boy on the knees or thighs while the mohel performs the brit milah
****A seudat mitzvah (Hebrew: סעודת מצוה, "commanded meal"), in Judaism, is an obligatory festive meal, usually referring to the celebratory meal following the fulfillment of a mitzvah (commandment), such as a bar mitzvah, a wedding, a brit milah (ritual circumcision), or a siyum (completing a tractate of Talmud or Mishnah).
*****The use and spelling of schmear or shmear in American English is a direct loanword from Yiddish, where its original usage referred to cheese. In modern usage it has extended to anything that can be spread, such as cream cheese spread upon a bagel.
July 29, 2020 - “pre-bris” Dizzy Bozeman Cohen dressed in bris gown handed down from his paternal grandfather Arnee Cohen and also worn by his daddy Judd and his Uncle Moss
Dizzy was given his paternal great-grandfather Benjamin Mark’s Hebrew name - Dov Ber (Dov meaning “bear” in Hebrew and Ber meaning “bear” in Yiddish)
Zeidy, the sandek, holding Dizzy for his bris July 29, 2020
Cartoon saved in Judd’s baby box - in the news the day of his birth 3/11/88
Another March 1988 cartoon saved in his baby box from his aunt, uncle and cousins
July 28, 1992 Judd ready to go to his first Yankee game with his daddy and grandfathers, Issy Cohen left and Ben Mark right
Solly captured by Uncle Moss in muddy action after the bris …it’s playtime!
Back at the South Orange Frame Shop awaiting a new brass tag with Dizzy’s name
Issy Cohen and Ben Mark - 1981
1991 with Issy and Hilda Cohen (left) and Ida and Ben Mark (right) - Judd in front with Rina in back with grandmothers (before Moss was born)