Jacob Fichman is described as an impressionist and a romantic because of his treatment of natural themes: he describes nature lyrically, with an eye to colors, light, and darkness. In this story, Lipe is a tailor in a small shtetl. He is a simple jew who hardly knows the prayers and is very poor. But, he heads home early every Friday to be home to spend Shabbos with his wife Nechama and their children. The most important commandment to him was to keep the Sabbath properly. One Friday, in very poor weather, he trusted strongly that God would will bring him home safely during blizzard. But when he got to the forest, it was compleltly covered. He entered the forest in fear and could not find a safe path. All of the sudden, he comes upon a wondrous palace made of marble and aglow with candles. He travles from room to room and as he continued, the more rich and beautiful it all was. He continuously asks how he is worthy of such a miracle. He then hears a song arising from somewhere— and seemed familiar. Also, the food he ate tasted familiar—swore they were same delicacies his wife Nechama always prepared. In the morning, he realized he happened to be right on edge of his shtetl. From then on, every Sabbath he claimed his wife’s cooking was the “true taste of paradise”. He now had a renewed appreciation for his own life. The story portrays that the forest is a place of radical uncertainty.
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