Mary Antin

First, you had to have a tutor at home, who prepared you and talked all the time about the examination read more

First, you had to have a tutor at home, who prepared you and talked all the time about the examination you would have to pass, till you were scared.

One positive command he gave us: You shall love and honor your emperor. In every congregation a prayer must be read more

One positive command he gave us: You shall love and honor your emperor. In every congregation a prayer must be said for the czar's health, or the chief of police would close the synagogue.

But most of the Gentiles were ignorant.

But most of the Gentiles were ignorant.

His struggle for a bare living left him no time to take advantage of the public evening school. In time read more

His struggle for a bare living left him no time to take advantage of the public evening school. In time he learned to read, to follow a conversation or lecture; but he never learned to write correctly; and his pronunciation remains extremely foreign to this day.

We are not born all at once, but by bits. The body first, and the spirit later; and the birth read more

We are not born all at once, but by bits. The body first, and the spirit later; and the birth and growth of the spirit, in those who are attentive to their own inner life, are slow and exceedingly painful. Our mothers are racked with the pains of our physical birth; we ourselves suffer the longer pains of our spiritual growth.