Tikkun Olam

                                                                                  After those awful stories below I wanted to bring in the Shabbat on a positive, holy, spiritual note.  Shabbat is a beautiful mitzvah (commandment). It is actually the Fourth Commandment (emphasis mine): " Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto the Lord your G-d . On it you shall not do any manner of work -- you, your son, your daughter, your man-servant, your maid-servant, your cattle, and your stranger that...

I had been thinking about posting since October 4th, about so many different things--the U.S. government-closed for business, and the consequently dropping value of the dollar vis a vis the NIS (New Israeli Shekel), Israel's new medical inventions (artificial cartilage-see next post), etc. But I haven't felt up to par this week (was sick last Shabbat, and it dragged on), so instead I'm posting the next Maccabeat video, of--what else?--the Cup Song! Great beat, lyrics fit--our new zemer * for Shabbat afternoon zmirot ?...don't know if it's as good as singing Dror Yikra to The Sloop John B , but--learn the harmony, we'll sing it together! Here is a so-so rendition of Dror Yikra to 'Sloop John B,' without the harmony; but you can figure it out (my kids and I do it much better...). Shabbat shalom. * zemer: liturgical poems, religious songs and psalms traditionally sung Friday night and Shabbat afternoons *zmirot: plural of "ze...

No matter what we encounter in our lives, events and happenings not of our choosing, we still have a choice: how to react to them.  Victor Frankel, in his book Man's Search for Meaning, expresses this very concept: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” What do happy people do that ordinary, grumpy people don't?  Take a look at this and see... 22 Things Happy People Do Differently This article is from Chiara Fucarino. Enjoy! Disclaimer: This article is not intended to address those with clinical depression or other mental illnesses. Photo by Rosie Hardy There are two types of people in the world: those who choose to be happy, and those who choose to be unhappy. Contrary to popular belief, happiness doesn’t come from fame, fortune, other people, or material possessions. Rather, it comes from within. The richest...

It should be the other way around, right? The mother is active, involved and encourages her daughter to DO stuff--to be outgoing, committed to a cause or a passion, to help others.  With me and my daughter--the one with RSD/CRPS who's in a wheelchair for a year and a half, it's the other way around. My daughter influences me .  You see, I'm lazy by nature.  My favorite activity is doing nothing .  What I mean by that is, my favorite activities are more sedentary; like reading, or singing, or playing Words with Friends and Scrabble, or watching a movie.  For example, I love a well-kept and cultivated garden.  I love the colors of the flowers, the order they are in, the straight edges of the flower beds (or curved-they just have to be clean-cut, and neat), the rich grass around them, deep green, evenly mowed and beautiful.  I love plants: the various varieties in their little pots, or in the ground, well taken care of, watered regularly, and fed, like...

Well, Shabbat is over. I made havdalah around 9:00 p.m., not especially in a rush to end a day apart from all others. I made a delicious salad (if I do say so myself) and my friend's daughter brought me back the leftover, after they incorporated it into their second se'udah, as I told them to.  Might have some tonight, even; although it's late (almost 10) and I should get to bed at a decent hour, not having had such a good night last night (leg muscle cramps and aches). That was actually the only thing that marred my day: extremely painful feet in my metatarsal area.  I basically limped (with my cane) to my friend's house Friday night, and was in so much pain that I couldn't walk back, even with a cane, until she offered me her husband's walker.  You can only imagine how I felt: like an invalid.  Overcoming my (false) pride, I leaned on that walker and slowly limped home, accompanied by my friend.  I will ask my physician to refer me to a podiatrist, but I rea...

For the first time in a long time, I will be "alone" for Shabbat.  My D.H. is off with the Boy Scouts on a camping trip in the cold, cold, snowy North of Colorado.  The location was almost cancelled because of the amount of snow, but apparently it eased up and was rescheduled at the original location.  This will be the first time he's gone camping, relatively "roughing it," with anyone, let alone the Boy Scouts, in over nine years.  We've both gotten a little older since then, and somewhat more decrepit.  It goes with the territory, as they say.  So this will be a very, very interesting awakening-er-trip, for my D.H.  We Skyped today, and he actually said to me that 'he's too old for his -20 degree 2 person tent, you know-the kind you have to crawl into.  I (almost) could not believe my ears.  He actually said that.  And he continued on, saying that maybe my idea that I've expressed for a very long time now, of acquiring a tent with a...

I have ordered all my meals for Shabbat, this morning, from the only kosher retaurant/catering/deli in town.  Had my "airline food" breakfast of rubbery omelette (yum) with potatoes, o.j. and coffee, and a chef salad from the Deli for lunch. Will be getting my hot food a little after 4 pm, or just before 'candle-lighting.' I use that term loosely, as when I asked if I could light candles in my room (tongue in cheek: wanted to see their reaction) while hooked up to oxygen (not to mention IV drip and heart telemetry monitor), they said, uh, no. So my D.H. is lighting for me at home, and I will be doing the following activities on Shabbat, not in any definite order (bli neder): 1) davening (D.H. brought my siddur and a chumash) 2) Making kiddush (grape juice today. I'm a good girl) 3) Making hamotzi and eating roast chicken, couscous and vegie.  And oh, also chicken soup with matzah ball--if they got my order right. 4) Daven, and 5) Read, read, read.  6) Slee...

...And yet I had to write about...fennel!  Or by the Hebrew name we know it: Shumar.  We never knew what fennel was, until this trip to Israel.  Everybody served it.  Clean it, cut it up, sprinkle a little lemon juice and salt--and it's ready to eat straight from the bowl, as an appetizer. So guess what? My D.H. went out today to finish shopping for Shabbat, and for the first time ever (I know, we're deprived) bought one.  He fell in love with it in Israel, and got it all ready to go.  Gotta light candles.  This is what's called 'living on the edge' for a frummie.  Shabbat shalom.

My friend Ethel is staying over by us for Shabbat.  We walked to shul today (a tad late...) in a blowing wind, that the meteorologists said could increase up to 40 mph.  Leaves were blowing in our faces, our heads were down, leaning into the wind.  Fun.  But the temperature was over 60 degrees, on November 12th.  Imagine.  And everyone gasps when I say I live in D-----.  "It's really cold there in the winter, right?", they ask. Our winters here are actually quite varied; sometimes they are extremely cold, for a period of time. And then, after a week or two--if that long--we suddenly have mild 45-65 degree days.  When it snows, generally in several days the snow is gone--not so much even melted, but sublimates into air.  Just plain evaporates.  It's really nice, living in a dry climate. Not like the East Coast where I grew up, where New York snow in biting cold, wet winters turns into muddy, filthy slush and lasts for weeks.  The...

No more daylight savings time--back to mountain standard, now with 2.5 hours left to run around like chickens without heads before candlelighting, facing the first early Shabbat of the season (they don't call it "short Fridays" for nothing).  We got little to no sleep last night because of 1) my cold, and insomnia, and 2) my D. H.'s extremely painful tooth--he was on antibiotics and hydrocodone since 10:30 p.m. Thursday night. So I figured, what the hey--I'm already UP at 3:54 a.m., might as well call Israel.  So I called my older son (who just had the baby) to find out how his wife was: there had been a complication, the doctors found a blood clot in her fallopian tube, and she was in the hospital.  He said she was on medication and blood thinners, the doctors were monitoring her, and she will have to be hospitalized for a few more days, over Shabbat for sure, and also probably Sunday.  He himself had gotten little to no sleep the night before, being up with th...

This week has been a bit difficult because I came down with a cold at the beginning of the week.  Not sick, mind you, but a cold: sniffling, runny nose, tired--you know the deal.  The last time I was sick, I was really sick, with head cold, fever of 101 degrees (F), aches.  Was in bed, and didn't work for about a week.  It happened during the chagim , so our school was closed for the Yom Tovim.  I missed the first two days of the week, Monday and Tuesday, and part of Wednesday (Wed. night was the chag).  My D. H. did all - and I mean all - of the work, including the cooking. Thank G-d his hobby is cooking, or we would have starved (or eaten tuna fish out of cans for the seudah). What I have now is nothing compared to that, and I'm in a great mood throughout, because of my son and daughter-in-law's new baby, Yael.  So I'm going to work feeling sick, but high!  Nevertheless, I am looking forward to Shabbat.  We are having an elderly friend...

Well, not really. But to someone who hasn't driven on the "open road" (and I don't count driving into Talpiot for Gabapentin) for awhile, driving for 2.5 hours into the mountains sure feels like a road trip! Hopefully we'll get to our ya'ad in time for  D.H. to do some fishing before Shabbat.  If not, we go to "plan B" (see previous post ). Shabbat shalom .

Ok, just posted yesterday about Israel/Florida trip, but this is a new month (Gregorian), and I am going to try to post daily-another Nablopomo attempt, which may or may not make it.  So here goes, at least for the first day of September, 2011.  Our trip isn't over yet.  Nope.  After not having done anything of significance trip-wise for at least a year or two (I think I did get to Florida on a gift ticket last summer, for one week only), we are flying out today heading home--for one night--and leaving early (yeah, right) Friday morning for a 'last fling' mountain vacation in a little cabin near Rocky Mountain National Park.  From the Tropics to the Tundra, as it were.  We will be staying in a lovely place which has some personal meaning for us, as when our kids were little we used to take them there, and sometimes rent a boat, or go fishing and hiking.  As a matter of fact, trout IS on the menu for this weekend, if my D. H. will actually catch anythi...

I haven't had time to post for ten days--we were in the process of a forced move--better known as hell week --difficult enough and tiring for younger people; kal va-chomer for... older people ('physically challenging' is putting it mildly), and are just now getting settled in our new temporary apartment for a month, while our townhome is being renovated.  Then, in about a month, we have to do the whole thing all over again back into the townhome.  This was not our choice, but the management's, with an excuse of fulfilling their purchase contract in a timely fashion ("lender compliance"). What do we get out of this? New paint, carpeting, light fixtures, kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets and fixtures, and $200 more in rent.  There is not enough time to express my feelings on this...Shabbat is in two minutes so I have enough time to say. . . Shabbat Shalom! *Copyright alert: No infringement of any text or graphic copyright is ever intended o...

(Just a quick notice that HH #279 has been up all week, here .) In my previous post I presented a short synopsis of some events in the news, and I wanted to end the week with a bit more spiritual depth upon which to reflect, today, on the approach of Shabbat. Here is a video, the fifth in a series on the Israeli settlers (who are considered by some to be right-wing extremists and Arab-haters) called The Other Side (hat tip Daled Amos ), which tells their story, of why they settled in Judea and Samaria (the so-called "West Bank") and about what they go through in order to live there.  It also shows the resilience of these citizens of Israel, their unshaken faith, and their desire to create good from evil--in this case, helping the traumatized Jewish children of terrorist attacks. Shabbat Shalom (h/t Rafi for the video).

 (nablopomo, day the last: 31) I am feeling very strange this motzei Shabbat.  Again, we had a pleasant Shabbat, with friends, in our beautiful setting here, right outside of our townhome.  It was a very hot day: in the 90s, but actually felt even hotter, as there was no cloud cover at all. I had been sitting outside with my friend's mother (who lives with her, and is also a friend)--in the 90 degree sun; we were trying to get in our daily dose of vitamin D, but I think we over did it.  After twenty minutes or so, I felt as if I was going to melt, and we called it quits.  This was after 1:00 p.m. but before lunch (seudah sheniyah).  Believe it or not, my D. H. comes home late from shul, (Chabad) and I myself haven't been going to shul lately, enjoying my peace and quiet alone in the house, davening or reading the parsha. Or a book. Or the Wall Street Journal. Good thing I didn't go today.  I would have had heatstroke, chas ve-shalom .  My D....

(nablopomo day 24) I am posting today for yesterday, which was Shabbat, and which I explained in a previous post, here --why it is difficult for me to post Nablopomo (National Blog Posting Month) daily, for Shabbat, as I am not permitted, as an observant Jew, to use electrical devices or even write or type on the Sabbath, as they are mundane, workaday devices and activities and also related to the prohibition of creating fire (or a spark) on this day. Saturday night I was too exhausted to post, because we had a very full, "social" day yesterday.  It started Friday night with a lovely first festive meal outside in the beautiful, cooler night air, a joint seudah with our friends and neighbors, right in front of their front door, on the grass.  It was wonderful (although their young daughter didn't agree with her parents about what time is bedtime.  So she stayed up, first with us; and then, just UP). During the day, after davening (praying in synagogue, for you uninit...

 (nablopomo day 16) After that value-debased video and parody which I previously posted, I am returning to good, Jewish values.  This video below is not so new (I had seen it previously on a blog, don't remember which one, or I would have linked it), but it expresses, in a civilized, dignified manner, what is wrong with the world's attitude towards Israel.  It also expresses Israel's goodness, which can be attributed to the high morals and ethics of Judaism as taught us in the Torah, written and oral, which even if unbeknownst to them, have also been embraced by so-called 'secular' Jews. I want you to understand something.  There are unfortunately, many corrupt Jews, some even outwardly "religious."  I do not, nor would anyone with intelligence call these driminals "religious." In my book, they have missed the whole point of piety, and whatever religion they "practice" is just that: an outward show of religiosity, for mar'eet ay...

(nablopomo day 10) Had a wonderful Shabbat with family on the beach, walked a mile on the broad-walk to shul--blisters to prove it! And when we got there, they had already finished davening--talk about fast!   Later, on a walk, saw a GIANT crab (anyway, it looked giganto to me), walking sideways as they do, searching for a big toe to grab.  Almost grabbed my son-in-law's (he was actually egging it on!) Getting ready to get picked up by friends whom I haven't seen since the last time I was here a year ago,  in a few minutes, so posting mainly for Nablopomo.  Enjoy your Saturday night!

(nabloppmo day 9) I am writing this post erev Shabbat* from sunny south_______, where I am (suddenly!) here visiting two of my kids, my son-in-law, and three of my grandkids.  This is a last-minute gift from someone (thank you, D.!) who has a heart of gold.  So on 3 days notice I packed, called old friends to see if we can get together, and--arrived today, around 4:00 p.m. local time.  It is a very, very short visit: five full days, two half-days of travel.  Better a short visit, than no visit, I say.  I will get to see my mom-in-law whom I haven't seen in at least a year and who is approaching her 89th birthday ( ad me'ah ve-esrim shanah *), and although these two daughters came with the grandkids for Pesach *, I was pretty sick then with a bout of bronchitis, didn't go with them to the mountains on their sledding trip on chol ha-mo'ed *, and didn't have much energy for anything (let alone "making Pesach," which my husband did almost entirely by himsel...