One Torah for All

 SO here we are, almost Pesach time and hardly keeping up with reporting what we have done.  Did we have a great Chanukah party?  You betcha...

Was Purim yummy with both gluten free and regular hamantaschen, holiday silliness, and other great food?  Oh, yeh!  And this even despite a bit of icy roads ...

A couple morning Shabbat services had to be cancelled due to winter weather warnings [not to mention actual winter weather].  However Kabbalat Shabbat and Seudat Shlishi/Havdalah services have not been affected.  An amazing thing happened this mid-March.  We were having a Havdalah service and talking about opposing oppression and honoring righteous gentiles.  Unanimously we decided to all stay and see Argo after Havdalah.  WOW!  A really enjoyable evening that is now making us think to do such once a month after Havdalah...  our own 'movie night'!

First though... Passover seder just a week from now!

Holy Days Season 5773 – What We Did

         What a wonderful Holy Day Season filled with such loving, caring, giving people!  Many thanks to all the people who shared their experiences in wonderful kernels of wisdom and who made it possible including among others in no special order:

·         Cory                                 fruit

·         Ellie                                  drinks, egg salad

·         Candy                               challah baking and vegetables

·         Leah                                 challah baking, salads, desserts

·         Mattetyahu                       salad, vegetables, fruits

·         Merle                                cucumber salad, transportation

·         Raina                                borekas

·         Adele                                soup, main dishes, sukkah building

·         Oryan                               apples

·         Jerry                                 vegetables, Sukkah building

·         John                                 drinks, roof work

·         Heather                            all around help

·         Rut                                   clean up, set up

·         Cheryl                              transportation

        The Rosh HaShanah dinners were educational about the many foods associated with the Rosh HaShanah seder and fun, especially on the 2^nd night when punning was taken to new heights.  Once started it didn’t stop all evening.

        Rosh HaShanah days were also lovely.  First day had lovely weather for an enjoyable taschlich with excited fish and fat ducks.  This was followed by a great lunch in the park.  The comfort of the Stepping Stones meeting room only enhanced the enjoyment of the Holy Days.  We are fortunate to have found such pleasant accommodations.

        Kabbalat Shabbat Shuva at Leah’s had such a spread that the 8 of us [10 counting the cats] barely made a dent in the spread.  Not surprisingly, leftovers somehow found their way to the break-the-fast!

        Kol Nidre, led by Leah and Adele, started the Day of Atonement out with less cacophony than last year.  No duets were attempted this year – probably to everyone’s relief!  Yom Kippur went smoothly, on time, and with an interesting afternoon discussion on translations and interpretations of the liturgy.  While the Shofar blowing was not the best, the break-the-fast more than made up for it. 

        With help from a couple of the guys, the Beit Torah Sukkah was put up in a timely fashion and survived intact the entire week despite the winds.  JR took some pictures which should be posted shortly if not already.  Lulavim and etrogim were beautiful and also survived the week well even with the daily handling.  Visitors to the Sukkah all helped decorate it.  First night of Sukkot had dinner conversation that traipsed off into science fiction!  Second night turned more serious with discussions about Sukkah traditions , services decorum, and special foods for the season.

        These discussions were continued on Thursday at the open Sukkah hop day visits which lasted about four hours and included breakfast and snacks.  It was rather like a preview for Shabbat Sukkot that had a theme of Ushpizim, Honored Guests. Hoshanah Rabah was the ideal time for JR and his wife to take sukkah pictures which will be posted soon.  Not only was Shmini Atzeret a day for remembering our loved ones no longer with us, but also we reflected on other difficulties that plague our daily lives such as insurance problems, auto wrecks, recent losses of friends, and prayers for healing for the survivors of tragedies including Leah's friend's daughter, Tori Wheat, who has a long road to recovery unlike her uncle who did not survive the wreck the previous week.

        Then there was a marvelously lovely day with a brisk breeze and ideal temperature for Simchat Torah in the Park!  One could have complained that the breeze challenged the table cloths and the flags, but the pushke charity box was full enough to keep the flags from flying away and there were many lovely things on the tablecloths to keep them from flying off.  More importantly, it was a miracle breeze preventing the smoke from the one nearby smoker in the park from bothering anyone!

        Two Torah scrolls were re-rolled back to the beginning: one adult and one child’s.  While the end of D’varim and then the Genesis creation story were chanted in Hebrew, English was added in intermittently for the creation story, giving practice in reading to the volunteer child.   Of course the highlight was the food.  Especially liked were the milk chocolate coins, the apples, and the orange juice.  The cranberry nut bread apparently was an adult acquired taste…and prunes…well, prunes are prunes.  Conversation was less spiritual and was mostly about animal rescue [maybe a preview for when we get to Noach in a couple weeks?].  Doris entertained with heart-warming stories of dog and cat rescues, including that of her five month old puppy who distracted the kids with his antics.  Cat rescue was also the topic for Adele, including the latest stories about Ilan, the special needs kitten who at 8 months is already a healthy 7.5 pounds!

        Who knows what the future holds for us?  One thing is certain:  we will all be rather exhausted from so many services and looking forward to quieter times until the renewed joy that will come with Chanukah.

p.s.  Not only are we filled up with holiday goodies, but also the pushka is much fatter now, with special thanks in particular to JR.