"Now the man who had once been the child asked it again and wondered if the giving and the goodness and the journeys of that mythic ancestor might have been acts born in the memories of screams and burning flesh. A balance had to be given the world; the demonic had to be reshaped into meaning"(My Name is Asher. pp 323).
Asher created his own nythic ancestor through his art. He envisioned his ancestor as the Jew in one of the stories he heard when he was younger. This Jew made a Russian nobleman rich by tending his estates. Asher believed that this Jew made him wealthier. Asher also questioned if the pains and anguish between him and his parents originated from their grandfather. He believed that the journeys travelled through the fire and death and dreams brought a Jew to balance the world (pp323).
Asher's parents did not talk much about his grandfather. His grandfather started from as being a recluse and scholar that stayed in the synagogues and academies to an emissary for the Rebbe's father. He first lived in Russia and moved to Mozyr where he was named "ilui" meaning genius. He abruptly left Mozyr with his wife and children to Ladov and became a member of the Russian Hasidic sect led by the Rebbe of Ladov (pp5). His grandfather travelled across the world constantly to help the Jews for the Rebbe.
Asher's father, Areyeh, continued his father's journey by serving the Rebbe and travelling to Russia to help the Jews. Areyeh was loyal to his missions for the Rebbe. He did not feel whole when he was forced to stay at home while his wife, Rivkeh, was ill. Areyeh felt that his journey was incomplete. He was brought back to life when he able to resume his journeys.
Asher's mother kept herself alive when she decided to continue her brother's mission by going back to school to serve the Rebbe. She started to travel with Areyeh so that she can take care of him while he was in Vienna.
Asher's journey took a different turn in the generation's cycle. His passion was not to serve the Rebbe, but to create art. Asher's pursuit in the art world required him to travel around the world too. Asher remained faithful to his religious faith even though the he felt abandoned and along by the people who shared the same religion. His experiences helped him understand the journeys travelled by Asher and his parents.
Asher witnessed his parents experiencing happiness to sadness and depression and back to happiness again. He viewed his mother's recovery of suffering by painting her being crucified in the window she would always look out of while she was depressed, along with Asher and his father standing on each side looking at her and at each other. This painting could be compared to Micheangelo's Pieta, a statue of the virgin Mary cradling her dead son, Jesus, after he has been crucified. This statue showed peacefulness in Mary's and Jesus face after his suffering ended of torture and pain ended.
One of Potok views were that the society in which we live in can hold us back from pursuing our dreams. We should as parents and as a member of the community try to understand why an individual will venture off into something that we believe is not acceptable. If we still cannot truly understand their choices, we should still encourage them, not ridicule them or dispose of them. All of us have a purpose in life and that is to love, help, and support one another no matter where I paths may lead. The different paths we choose will eventually end up in the same place everyone wish to end in this life's journey.
I really enjoyed reading this book because it relates to the trials and ordeals people experience in their spiritual life even when they try to do the right thing. Potok focused on the journey of each character and brought them together as he called it, 'the balance of the world'. (pp 323). It caused me to question my life' s journey; how it relates to my mother's journey and if it will continue with my son's journey. I have a bachelors degree in studio art so I can relate to Asher on using my paintings and drawings to speak to people about how I view the world around me. I've also experienced similar events on my mother always working and would hardly see her. Like Asher's parents, she had other goals for me too, but at the same time supported my goals. This book really took me back to my life as a child.
