Isaac Berkower - Week 9 - Is it actually Geshmak to be a Yid?

 For those who have never heard of the song "Geshmak to be a Yid", this is how it goes:

"Someone once asked me what it's like to be a Yid oy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy (x2)

This is what I told him (x3) oy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy

uoh uoh uoh oh oh

Geshmak to be a Yid (x2) ay yay yu ay yay Geshmak to be a Yid

oy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy yuy (x4)

(Repeat)"

    This song is one of the most famous songs in all of Orthodox Judaism behind maybe "Ashrei" by Yeshiva Boys Choir, so let's take a deeper dive into the meaning of these words.

    First, you might be wondering what the word Geshmak means. Geshmak is a Yiddish word that means that something is delicious. So is the song saying that Jews/Yids are delicious, or does it mean something else in the context of the song?

    I'm sure that the person who wrote this song never tried to eat a Jewish person, so I think that we can rule out that he meant to say that Jews are delicious. What he meant by saying that Jews are delicious I think is that Jews are full of flavor,, and very energetic and vibrant. But is that actually true?

    The short answer is obviously yes. If you've ever seen Jews on Simchat Torah, then you have your answer there, but for an outsider, it might be harder to prove. 

    To prove it to an outsider, I would tell them that Jews make up one of the smallest groups of the population, but then ask them if they've ever heard of the parties that Jews throw. Bar Mitzvahs, Weddings, Holidays, Brit Milahs, etc. Jews will find any way to throw a party about anything. 

    So, getting back to the question of are Yids Geshmak. The answer is undeniably yes. 

Maybe not every Jew is energetic, but Jews as a whole are super energetic, and I think that this song, "Geshmak to be a Yid", speaks volumes to that fact.

    Do you think that Jews are Geshmak?