A moviegoer, I’m not. Nevertheless, there are a number of movies from decades ago whose lines I cherish. Among those was the soliloquy given by the actor David Opatoshu who played the role of Akiva Ben Canaan in the movie Exodus. He explained that to speak about justice and Jews in the same sentence was an absurdity. To paraphrase the summation of the soliloquy, he said: “The next time any tormenting occurs, let it be done against some other people. We Jews have had more than our share of torment.” With this in mind, I offer a sampling of Yiddish words and expressions that explain what we as a people continue to endure as a result of the current situation with our “neighbors” in Gaza.
Tcheppen (annoy). If I ever write my memoirs, I will be sure to include my first trip to Israel. I was part of a group embarking upon a year in Israel for tenth graders. The group departed from Montreal. Unfortunately, we missed our connecting flight in New York. As a result, we found ourselves on Japan Airlines headed for Orly airport in France. We were late in taking off, as there were several mechanical delays. My conversational Hebrew was quite poor at the time, so I spoke Yiddish to the elderly gentleman who was assigned to accompany us on the flight. Turning to me he remarked, “Japan Airlines? Tcheppen Airlines!”
Fahrdrayen dem Koppf (drive someone crazy). Just as psychiatrists are referred to as headshrinkers, so too are nudniks referred to as kopp drayers. There are many well-meaning people who are simply not aware that their mouths should be registered as lethal weapons. Not content to simply make a request, they either natter or repeat that request time and time again. By the time they are finished, the poor individual who was subjected to such kopp drayenish (being driven crazy) can no longer think straight.
Dehrgayen dee Yohren (torment). Literally, it means to cause one’s years to reach their conclusion. A more accurate English translation would be, “He’ll be the death of me, yet!” Because we live in an imperfect world, there will be occasions where somebody gets under our skin. And no matter what we do to ameliorate the situation, it’s to no avail. That individual will simply not leave us alone. Another way of describing this intolerable individual would be to say in exasperation, “Ehr dehrgayt mir dee yohren.”
Tzahppen dos Bloot (to drain blood/ being a blood sucker). Once upon a time, in the days of the feldsher (barber/surgeon), one would go for bloodletting because it was believed that illness was caused by bad blood. Yet, metaphorically, bloodletting continues until this very day. Long before children are old enough to qualify for a driver’s license, there are those who have mastered driving their parents up a wall. Perhaps the most graphic description of a difficult child came from a desperate parent who resorted to Yiddish and exclaimed, “Zee tzahppt foon mir dos bloot!” (She drains the blood from me).
Mootchen (irritate/suffer). Like tcheppen, mootchen appears in the reflexive form. Tcheppeh zich opp (Go annoy yourself /get lost) and ehr mootchet zich (He’s suffering) are both common phrases among Yiddish speakers. I recall seeing a server specifically designed for horseradish with the inscription, “Dos lebben is bitter vee chrain” (Life is bitter like horseradish). Anyone who can identify with such a predicament is ayner voss mootchet zich (someone who is suffering).
The greatest wish for many who have endured hardships, either from other humans or from illness, is that they should no longer have to endure any tcheppen or mootchen. Their situation has reached a point where it’s as though the antagonist has resorted to tzahppen dos bloot or dehrgayen dee yohren. In exasperation they are about to cry out to the tormentor, “Farhdray zich dine aygen kopp” (Go drive yourself crazy!).
Rabbi Shawn Zell has recently returned to New Jersey, after serving at a pulpit in Dallas. He possesses certification in teaching Yiddish. Rabbi Zell is the author of three books.
