Ben wrote:
> Sheryl Rosen wrote:
>
>> Know what? That's the absolute DEFINITION of Gracious Hospitality!
>> 5 Stars to your friend's mom!
>
>
> Wonderfully hospitable. Deceiving her husband and going against her
> religion, but I guess they might have been the type that do it for show
> rather than a commitment to what they believe in.


As the years have gone by, I've come closer to Ben's way of thinking. I
can see that Mrs. Lieberman made a choice with good arguments on both
sides of it.


She could have refused me the milk, but that would have meant, not just
explaining, but explaining to a 16 year old in front of her older friend
and the other guests. (My school friend who invited me was a year older
and far more popular and grown-up. Anyone could see I held her in awe.)
Further, if I weren't Jewish, the explanation might not have been so
embarrassing for me. A non-Jew wouldn't have been expected to know, but
mine was a real faux pas; I should have known. That's in favor of
giving me the milk.


On the other hand, Ben's right. That's her home, her religious
conviction, her rules. Like so many, I've become more conservative as
I've gotten older. I have more respect for religious commitment and
religious rules than I once had. Looking back, I wonder if she might
have said something along the lines of "no." But then, as I've gotten
older, I've lost touch with the teenager I once was. Now it is easy for
me to think I wouldn't have been embarrassed then, but that's because I
wouldn't be embarrassed now. As an adult, I'm more O.K. with minor
corrections than I was at 16.


Either way, let's not be too hard on this woman from 30 years ago. She
made her decision then. Let's not second guess her now.


--Lia