Chapter 2 At Aunt Leah’s party the Chanukah candles had already been lit The meno rahs were sparkling in the windows and the rooms were full of aunts and uncles and cousins of all ages doing what they always did The teenage cousins were off in a cor ner talking about teenage stuff so everyone ignored them The baby cousins were falling down and sticking their hands in the food but everyone thought they were adorable anyway Seth and Sara found their cousins
Jason and Amy and Max and they did what they did every year which was to try and find all the gold-covered chocolate coins that had been scattered around as decorations and hide them to eat when no one was looking Everyone really wanted to watch Aunt Leah’s giant new plasma screen TV but No TV at a family party said the grown-ups It was cold outside but inside there was none of the crisp snowy green feeling that Sara loved at this time of year Everything at the Chanukah party was warm and golden the glowing candles the deep-fried latkes the applesauce and the bright foil on the choco late coins It was pretty in its own way and the food was fantastic as always But it wasn’t the same as at her friends houses with their evergreen wreaths and plaid ribbons or at the mall with its candy-cane decorations or the city department store windows with their scenes of Ye Olde Village with the carolers and the mistletoe
Wake up Sara said Seth How much chocolate have you got Sara counted her coins Six big ones and five little ones little ones ing you any OK Let’s say the big ones are worth three Why she asked suspiciously I’m not giv Of course you’re not giving me any he said loudly as if he were talking to an idiot you’re going to play me for them Jason and Amy laughed Told you she was sleeping he said to them and to Sara Told you you didn’t know how to play dreidels I do so OK how You spin them around and you win Yeah right said Cousin Jason He was Sara’s age but he was always trying to act big like Seth Don’t they teach you anything in Hebrew School He thought he knew so stuff
much because he went to Hebrew School four days a week after school while Seth and Sara only went on Sunday mornings All right everyone Uncle Isaac stood up and everyone started clinking their spoons on glasses They did this every year It meant he was going to make a speech about how wonderful it was that they could all be together and he did The children waited patiently until he was done then before anyone could nab them and ask them how they liked school this year they fled off together to a corner of the den Amy pro duced a handful of little plastic dreidels and dumped them onto the floor Sara wasn’t sure she really wanted to do this but it was either join Seth and her cousins or go off by herself and risk having grown-ups tell her how much they’d hated having their cheeks pinched when they were little and then try and pinch her cheek not to mention ask ing So how’s school so she sat
