Tikkun Olam

I saw this posted by a friend on Facebook, and would have missed it completely had she not posted it.  It brought tears to my eyes.  I am re-posting it, especially for my daughter, who has raised my beloved grandson to be a wonderful young man, who just had his Bar-Mitzvah.  Oh, and by the way, he has Down Syndrome.  The coach, and both teams--including the opposing one--should be applauded, for their compassion, and inclusiveness.  And thank you, Michal, for raising such a terrific kid!

My oldest grandson's Bar-Mitzvah was a truly special event.  He is a wonderful boy.  He is loving.  He is kind.  He has a sense of humor.  And he has Down Syndrome.  My eldest daughter is a wonderful mother, who raised him to be the kind, loving young man he is today.  He has a wonderful Rabbi and Rebbetzin, who understand his situation, and show him love and kindness, gently moving him forward in Judaism, in small steps, so that he can feel the accomplishments; all the time, gently. The 'theme' for today's NaBloPoMo (which, in case you haven't a clue to what that word is, stands for "National Blog Posting Month" by BlogHer ) is, "Which daily tasks take up the most of your energy (does getting out of bed count?)?" So I am posting instead, what energizes me the most: being with the people I love.  Here are some photos of the milestone of Yaakov Yehoshua's Bar-Mitzvah.  Obviously, we can't show you photos of the Shabbat service when h...

(I wrote this the day we returned from Florida, December f24th, 2012. I just published it today, 1 January 2013). It has been over a month since I have posted on this blog. So many things have happened.  We just yesterday returned from our "vacation" to Florida, for our biggest family event since my eldest daughter's wedding.  My only sister, my niece and her new husband, also flew down from New York for this event.  What was the occasion? Our eldest grandson, who has Down Syndrome, became a Bar-Mitzvah.  But this was only the tail end of the entire three months of family activities. First, I don't even remember if I wrote about my daughter's visit to the States.  I might have mentioned it in a previous post, but now, let me elaborate: my daughter was invited by the JDC ( Joint Distribution Committee ) to speak at their board meeting in New York.  They bought her ticket to the States, with a return to Israel in January, in their kindness, allowing her t...

Apparently Judge Richard Goldstone is persona non grata, at least to some of his family members, which prompted his decision not to attend his grandson's bar-mitzvah . Judge Richard Goldstone, who headed a war crimes probe that has infuriated Israel and Jewish communities around the world, will not be attending his grandson’s bar mitzva in Johannesburg next month, according to a South African newspaper. Goldstone will not be present when his grandson performs the religious rite, following an agreement between the family, the South African Zionist Organization (SAZF) and the Beith Hamedrash Hagadol synagogue in Sandton, where the event will take place, the South African Jewish Report said.  I mean, would you want him in your family?