B y E i l e e n B l u e s t o n e S h e r m a n // I l l u s t r a t i o n s b y L e o n a r d K e n y o n

A HEARTWARMING HANUKKAH STORY

RACHEL LOOKED everywhere for the Hanukkah menorah .

When she asked her dad to help her find it , he just shrugged and mumbled something about the attic .

He had not been any help last year either . Since his wife ’ s death , a long 18 months ago , Mr . Levy had shown no interest in holidays . Their sparkle had been snuffed out by his sorrow .

He still prayed at the synagogue , but celebrations were another story . Last Hanukkah , Rachel and her brother Sammy had spent the week with their cousins in Minneapolis , but this year , the Levy family would be home . Still , Rachel was not discouraged . She had saved enough money from her weekly allowance to buy gifts for her father and brother , along with dreidels and candles from the synagogue gift shop .

Now , her only problem was to locate the family menorah .

Except for a dollar or two , her money was spent . A new menorah was out of the question , and she didn ’ t dare bother her father again about the old one . Rachel remembered how much her mother had loved that menorah .

It was one of the few possessions Rachel ’ s

34 // BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE Holiday 2020