aci 40 st From Zoos To Iguanas, Respect For Animals nti ti v By MARY KORETZ Each month in this space, L'Chayim will present a Yiddish lesson entitled, "Du Redst Yiddish? (Do You Speak Yiddish?)," whose aim is to encourage further study of Yiddish. The lesson will include a brief story utilizing the Yiddish words to be studied and a vocabulary list with English translations. Two books which may be helpful for beginning Yiddish students are Yiddish for Beginners by Dr. Joffen and Der Yiddisher Lerer by Goldin. Weinreich's English-Yiddish Dictionary also may be useful. The lessons were prepared by Mary Koretz of Oak Park. She has taught both children's and adult classes in Yiddish at the Workmen's Circle. Following is this month's lesson: When I spend tseit in the countryside, I feel as though I could live there aybik. It is azoy idyllic: the shtark leafy trees providing shade; the groz, so silky and yielding unter bare feet; the lake so klor, mirroring the cottages and boymer; the sky so clear that the shtern appear almost gring tsu dergraychn. After a voch, I develop a terminal case of nimas vern. Something is felndik. I have a benkshaft for that which a metropolis possesses. I miss a good bibliotek, a kunst museum and the symphony orchestra. These three are repositories of man's intelligence and passions. Still, I miss the country but find a good part of it when I go onkukn the zoo. The place is a vunder in its presentation of anderish forms of life. It brings shtiker of the world to us. From Africa, the majestic giraffe moving with a modne kind of grace, or the clumsy hippopotamus, the mias aardvark . . . From West Asia, the two horbn camel, from Europe, the badger; from Tibet the chaynevdiker pandas; from India the shrekediker tiger and the exquisite peacock; from Arctic America the ponderoous musk-oks, the crocodile from almost ometum, Asia, Africa, Australia and America. Pieces of the velt, different but lebedik. This is gebracht to us in a zoo. There is immer something new to oyfdekn on a lovely day (who goes to the zoo when the weather is bad?) Recently, in Salt Lake City, I saw for the ershte time an all-white peacock. When he spread his feathers into a lacy fan, he was breathtakingly beautiful. I'm zicher that he was aware of his great beauty, he stood so regally calm. Pieces of the velt alive and different is the gift of a zoo, that bareicht our lives. There was a time I kein mol nit getracht of reptiles as a form of life. Efsher because they are azoy lethargic and seem nit lebedik. My youngest child hot zay lieb gehat. One day, he hot gekoyft a klayn iguana, about four inches in length. It was bright green with amber colored oygn. The inside of his moyal and its tsung were also amber colored. Unlike merste reptiles he was lovely. Thoughtlessly, I bamerkt that he would make a great pin to decorate my klayd. My son iz geven horrified, by my remark. From his attitude, I hob gekumen to the awareness that reptiles have life deserving of respect. We named the iguana "Sam" and hobn geboyt a large shteig for him. We provided him with esenvarg and a source of varefrikeit. He fascinated me, even though I never saw him move. On several occasions, I gemaynt him dead. I would take time off to fashion a rede for my youngster. I wanted to tell him in as tsertlech a way as possible about the toyt. Subsequently, I found that Sam had changed his ort. I knew neis of his death was premature. But a tog came when he didn't move anymore. I was farvundert to find how much I missed him, how much I cared. chaynevdiker . appealing, charming moyl fearful tsung shrekediker ox merste oks everywhere bamerkt ometum world klayd velt alive iz geven lebedik brought hob gekumen gebracht always hobn geboyt immer shteig discover oyfdekn esenvarg first ershte confident varemkeit zicher enriches gemaynt bareicht never thought rede kein mol nit getracht. maybe tsertlech efsher lifeless toyt nit lebedik liked them ort hot zay lieb gehat neis purchased hot gekoyft small tog klayn eyes farvundert oygn mouth tongue most remarked dress was came built cage food warmth thought speech gentle death spot, place news day astonished Famous Facts Q. Who wrote the first Hebrew-Sioux language dictionary? A. A dictionary of the Hebrew and Sioux or Dakota Indian languages was compiled in 1842 by Samuel W. Pond. A hard working Christian of old New England Puritan Stock, Mr. Pond had little formal schooling; however, he had a phenomenal gift for languages. Had a nineteenth century Jewish traveller through the badlands of South Dakota chanced upon a Sioux synagogue, he might have been honored by being called to read from the wokicuze (Torah). And if he had come late to services that would have been wowantani (sinful). Mr. Pond's manuscript was never published, and the original rests today among the treasures of the Minnesota Historical Society. Compiled by Dr. Matthew and Thomas Schwartz Vocabulary time tseit forever aybik so azoy strong shtark grass groz under unter serene klor trees boymer stars shtern gring tsu dergraychn .within one's reach week voch boredom nimas vern missing felndik yearning benkshaft library bibliotek art kunst visit onkukn wonder vunder varied anderish pieces shtiker strange modne ugly mias humps horbn THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS L 5 -