Uncle Murray, the Kushite King

My father’s best friend was born into a family with the last name of Kuchlowitz. I’m sure he was grateful when the name was changed to something more melifluous. But, still he spent the rest of his life known as “Kush” by any of the friends who knew him way back when.

In Yiddish, “kush” means “kiss.” My telling you about Kush is only slightly related to this post. We adored him. My sister, Dale, and I knew him as “Uncle Murray” — to the eternal frustration of his wonderful wife, Selma. “Why is he always “Uncle” and I’m just “Selma”? I never knew why. We loved her, too. Kush had probably simply told us to call him “Uncle.” (When I was 6, I asked my mother if Uncle Murray was her brother or my father’s brother.) But back to Madrid… While visiting Madrid’s ancient Egyptian Temple of Debod, I thought of Kush. Read on and you’ll understand why.

TEMPLE OF DEBOD.
(CLICK ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE.)

The construction of the Temple of Debod began (as a single-roomed chapel) in southern Egypt in the 2nd century B.C. by Adikhalamani, the “Kushite” king (and there you have it… why I thought of Kush). The Kushite kingdom was established around 1000 B.C. and existed until around 350 A.D.

BEFORE IT WAS MOVED FROM EGYPT.

In 1960, when the Aswan Dam was built, several ancient sites were threatened by flooding. As a “thank you” to Spain for its response to UNESCO’s call for aid, Egypt donated and moved the Temple of Debod to its current site in Madrid in 1968.

End of history lesson. On to Kush and the Kushite temple.

GUADALUPE, AFTER LEAVING KUSH’s THE KUSHITE’s TEMPLE.
(ALWAYS TEXTING OR TALKING WITH ONE OF HER TWO DELIGHTFUL DAUGHTERS.)
KUSH THE KING (PRE-SELMA) WITH THE DOWAGER DUCHESS.
CONEY ISLAND, SUMMER 1947.  ANY 12 RIDES, $1.00!!!
My father serving his 2nd stint in the Army, Kush (back from the Navy) “looked after” my mother.
My grandmother told me: “It wasn’t nice the way those two fooled around.”