Summer Half Time

    Yesterday we observed the Tisha BÁv fast in memory of the destruction of the ancient Holy Temple.  It is a very somber day, one of self-reflection, of abstinence, and of repent. As I prayed, and fasted, I began to reflect upon the timing of the fast.
     This year, the fast was pushed off a day, because the 9th day of Av actually was on Shabbat, the Sabbath day.  According to Jewish law, this fast was therefore pushed off a day, so we could properly observe the Sabbath, and the fast in their own merit, and at their own proper times.
      The timing of this mourning period during the Gregorian calendar this year is quite unique.  It is exactly a month since the last days of the school year.  Exactly a month ago we began summer vacation. (Yes, I can hardly believe it myself!)
      As my mind began to wander through my list of summer to-do's-that-were-not-done in July, I stopped myself and said "What have I done, and what can I still do this month?" And, once I spun it in this light, it all made sense.  I have spent time with family visiting from abroad.  I have stopped to do fun arts and crafts projects with the kids.  I have baked cookies, cakes and other concoctions with the kids.  I have just taken a few minutes of each day for myself to stop, think, and reflect about my day.
      So, as we began this new part of summer, I decided to take a nature walk in our neighborhood with my youngest daughter.  She in her jammies, me in my sneakers and workout clothing.  I skipped running to the gym, and just enjoyed spending a few precious minutes of walking and enjoying my daughter's company. Soon, we began to listen to the various sounds around us.  We found birds chirping in a palm tree, cicadas singing in a tree trunk, we heard crickets singing a song, children laughing, neighbors eating dinner, and everyone enjoying a peaceful summer eve.
     It was a perfect way to enjoy the new month ahead.  A perfect way to stop, reflect, and look forward to another month of family, good times, and summer bliss.  And, I only realized this as I held onto my daughter's hand, and watched her delight at the simple pleasures of summer.This was a Half-Time show that rocked my world more than any concert could do.  I am looking forward to the second half of the season!

Fall Pain

I woke up this morning to hearing my kids getting ready for school, arguing about what cartoon they would be watching if they get ready for school on time, and the usual kitchen banter.  I randomly checked my facebook feed. Bad idea.  My friend posted the most recent tragedy...a Har Nof synagogue had been attacked by terrorists.  She was shaken by the tragedy.  It was minutes from her own parents' home.  Although her parents were not there, it means that the tragedy came awfully close to loved ones.

Entering a house of worship brings the terror to a different level.  These victims were praying; they were not protesting, rioting, or raising politically charged ideas.  They were merely praying to G-d.  Where is the logic in attacking them?  How does this help the terrorists' cause?  Is it a message that "even when you pray you are not safe?"  How have we come to this?

Are we all supposed to fear going to houses of worship now?  I hope that the terrorists realize that it is an unlikely scenario.  Most religious men and women pray three times a day.  And, most attend synagogues, shtiblach, or makeshift quorums for those prayer times.  Terror cannot end prayer.  If anything, it will only increase the need for prayer.

The Fall rainy season has just begun here.  Fall in the US or Europe is a time of leaves changing colors, and trees baring their empty branches. Here, in Israel, the Fall is a time of rain, and new growth.  The fields, mountains, and hills are full of greenery, new flowers, and fauna.  It is actually a time for change and rebirth.

Perhaps, during this painful Fall season, we can reflect upon our surroundings and realize that we need to make a change.  We need to stop the violence. We need to be reborn.  This country cannot remain a hot-bed of terror and violence. We owe it to our children, and to future generations, to end the pain.  It is time to begin to heal.  Now, it is up to us to figure out how to make this dream a reality.

A Time to Dance

As the Sukkot holiday came to an end, many Israelis attended the traditional Hakafot Shniot (Second Hakafot).  At these Hakafot, Torahs are brought out, hakafot are read/sung before a crowd with a live band, and hundreds of people who are ready to dance the night away.  It is truly a breathtaking sight...Hundreds of men, women, and children dancing the night away...yet again, to the tunes of old, as well as new tunes.

In my home town, we have an eight piece band.  Local musicians, and musicans from other nearby locales all conjoin to create a Band of the Ages.  Kids and adults dance their hearts out to the thumping Judaic beats.  Israelis, Americans, South Africans, Canadians, Ethiopians, Yeminites, Moroccans...we are ALL represented in the throngs of dancing madness.

It is truly a KIbbutz Galiot (Ingathering of the Nations) on our home town basketball court.  Old, and young...everyone is up and dancing their hearts to the beat.

Why do we do it? Why do we want to dance, isn't there tons of cleaning to do after the holiday? Wouldn't we rather go out to a movie, or chill at home with the TV?

I think we all partake in the madness because it is a celebration.  The end of Sukkot is the end of the time of Teshuva that we began from the month of Elul.  We have officially closed the door to the New Year.  Now, we can officially celebrate the New Year in style...with song, dance, good food, and terrific friends.  As it says in Kolelet (Ecclesiastes 3:4)

עֵת לִבְכּוֹת          וְעֵת לִשְׂחוֹק,
עֵת סְפוֹד         וְעֵת רְקוֹד.

There is a time to cry, and a time to laugh, A time to wail, and a time to dance!

We will enter this New Year with the knowledge that there will be both good times and bad times, but we must always put our best foot forward, and try to be as positive as we can. No life is ever perfect, but if we dance, we can make it all much more manageable!  So, put on those dancing shoes and dance your hearts out this year!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4ga_M5Zdn4

Time for Change

It is traditional for one to use the time between Yom Kippur and Sukkot as a time of reflection.  It is a time for contemplating the sins atoned for, and hoping towards a New Year, bereft of such sins.  I find this one of the hardest times of the year.  It is a time of limbo...where we can suddenly move forward, full-speed ahead. Or, we can lapse into the mundane life of banality of the past year.

The Misrad Hahinuch (Israel Board of Education) declared that children must go to school during this period of time this year. Usually, children have off from the Yom Kippur holiday, through Sukkot. But, alas, the children are now in school...giving us a bit more time for reflection and introspection.

I keep wondering...what can I do to make this year better for me, for my family, for the country, and for the world? I guess it is best that I start with myself...improving all of the little things that I need to work on. But, it needs to be more global, as well.  I think it is time for all of us to chose something of value, which is close to our hearts, and actually DO IT.  It must be something that affects others in a way that is outside of our own comfort zones.  If we each take the time to choose a particular mitzvah (good deed), then perhaps we have all collectively made this world a bit of a better place for us all to inhabit.

There was once a local business in our area called "Time for Change." It was a cash exchanging place that exchanged dollars for shekels, Euros for shekels, etc.  The moniker was brilliant.  Whenever I passed by the business, I wondered to myself "What can I change today? What midah (internal characteristic) can I work on today?"  Eventually the business changed their name. But, the message still remains with me.  We ALWAYS have time to change.  We just have to make the time to do it.

Patience is the key.  And so, I am here making new choices during this "gesher" (bridge of days between the Yom Kippur and Sukkot holiday). And, I hope others are doing the same...patiently making the new destiny of a time for change.

Waiting

Waiting...Do you ever feel like you are constantly waiting for something? We wait on the telephone as the cell phone provider puts you on hold. We wait endlessly at the post office. We wait for the fix-it guy to show up at our door.  We wait for blood work results from our doctor....We are always waiting for something.

One of my kids recently said to me, "Mom, when is the cease fire going to be over?" I answered, "It is not going to be over, it is a CEASE FIRE, that means that Hamas stopped shooting rockets." My son quickly replied, "Mom, it never lasts long...it always ends." This just broke my heart. I tried to convince my son that this time it is REAL, and we do not have to worry, but he would not budge.  He is waiting for the next rocket, just like we wait for a delivery at the door.

How has this happened?  Our US brethren are now waiting with bated breath for the news about the new developments against ISIS. And, we in Israel wonder what the ramifications will be on our soil.  The unknown is such a hard concept to process.  With all of our technology, and know-how...we still cannot predict what the next terror crisis will be, or where it will be committed.  And, thus, we are just waiting...hoping it is not going to be here, or anywhere near loved ones and friends.

Is this a way to live? Have we gone mad?  How can we change ourselves so we are not living this anxiety filled process all of the time? Is this why will fill our lives with facebook messages, whatsapps, instagrams, and more?  Are we trying to avoid the inevitable, or the inconceivable?

John Mayer is so poignant in his song "Waiting for the World to Change." While it was written years ago, it is a perfect take on our world today:

It's not that we don't care

We just know that the fight ain't fair

So, we keep waiting,

Waiting on the world to change.

(Click on the link below to hear the song)

Waiting on the World to Change by John Mayer

At this time before Rosh Hashana, maybe we need to all make an effort to make the world change.  Somehow, we need to STOP waiting. We need to actively do something different.  There have been moments in our history, when we all joined together and actually made a difference to our society, to our culture, and to our lives.  Now, more than ever, it is time to make the world change.  I think we all need to take some small good deed, and make it our "project." Get others involved in your deed, and actually make a difference in this world. For, this world is not going to change by itself. It is time to stop waiting. It is time to act.

L'Shana Tova! Have a Happy and Healthy New Year! May it be a year of growth, peace, and understanding!

Full Circle

Anyone who is connected to social media networks knows that today is the first day of school in Israel. Over 2,000,000 children started school today in this country.  Parents are thrilled by the new school year's commencement. August is not the easiest of times to entertain children. Many children end up going to work with their parents, and add a special twist to the term "work."

Yesterday began my family's procession towards school. My recent High School grad began her first day at a midrasha (women's seminary) called Midreshet Lindenbaum.  The premise of this midrasha is that the girls learn for a year, and then they choose a particular area of the army in which they will attend with other girls from the midrasha.  Together, they will give each other strength religiously, as they give their national service time to the IDF.

My daughter proudly took me throughout the school, on a tour of the Beit Midrash , the library, and the dorms.  It felt like a mini-college of sorts.  I had sudden flashbacks to my first days of seminary, and college.  And, then it hit me, I realized that my first born is actually on her own this year...beginning a new journey of learning new texts, meeting new people, and living away from home.

As I kissed her, and hugged her before I left, I began to cry.  "I am so proud of you honey, I am so, so proud of you!" I said, as the tears flowed.  And, I truly am...my daughter chose this path for herself. She could have gone to many other National Service options, but she chose this wonderful bastion of learning so she could strengthen herself before she gives back to the country via the IDF.

I slowly walked myself to the car, and cried a bit, and then I had a flashback.  When we were first married, we subscribed to the Jerusalem Report magazine. It is a publication from the Jerusalem Post that has various newsworthy articles about Israel, and its environs.  Reading the magazine helped us keep tabs on the pulse of Israel, and it was very helpful to keep our Zionist spark alive.

One day, when we received the magazine, I noticed an ad, it was an ad for donations to a seminary that prepares women for the army.  I looked at the pictures of random young female soldiers, smiling out at the readers, and I thought "Wow! This is incredible!" As I scrolled down the page, I realized it was Midreshet Lindenbaum, a product of Ohr Torah Stone (Rabbi Riskin's yeshiva in Efrat).  I remember, wondering to myself...will our children ever be able to do that? I showed the picture to my husband, and we contemplated the possibility, which seemed so far away....

And, now, our first-born daughter, Carmi is fulfilling the dream of so long ago. Now, she is attending that very seminary from the ad I saw so long ago. Our lives have come full-circle.  She is essentially living the dream we barely imagined possible.  Right before our very eyes, she is making the ultimate sacrifice...to Torah, and to Israel.  I pray that she has a meaningful year, and that she is prepared for whatever the IDF has in store for her.

Carmi Blacher and a friend at the Midreshet Lindenbaum Bet Midrash

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I have been a very busy mother this summer.  As most Israeli mothers, I was scared that this year would be remembered by my children as the "year of the WAR." So, I decided to change that thought process.  I managed to snag a good friend, Leiah Jaffe, an amazing American- Israeli tour guide who managed to give me two days of her busy week, for day tours around Israel. I managed to wrangle six other families to join us on each trip, in order to make the trip feel more like a  group tour, vs. a private tour. Leiah would give us an itinerary, directions to go to the location of the tour, and we would caravan up to the site in our cars together.  We made sure to pack plenty of drinks and snacks for the way, and we were off to our adventures!

It was not easy to rile my kids out of bed on trip day.  The kids wanted to sleep, watch TV, or play computer games. But, I managed to push them out the door each time.  And, each time, we were more surprised by the wonders this country has to offer.

Our trips were to places including the Tel Aviv Eretz Israel museum, the Israel Museum, the Big Bambu exhibit, the Qumran Caves, Lido Junction, Ein Zukim, the Old City of Jerusalem, and Bet Shearim.  At each stop, Leiah entertained our children with tales of old, and tales of new. She gave the kids workbooks to answer questions, and asked them questions as they were walking through the exhibits and grounds, as well.

At times the kids complained, but it was fleeting.  At times, parents were non-compliant, too, but that was a fleeting moment as well. Overall, our days were filled with exploration and a new love for our country and its many nooks and crannies.

As these trips ended, my kids were reflecting upon the summer, and said "Mom, thank you for the best summer EVER!" That statement warmed my heart! It meant that I succeeded, I managed to turn a possibly scary summer into one of adventure, exploration, and new-found appreciation for Israel.

I love this country with my heart, my soul, and my entire being.  I live and breathe it daily with utmost appreciation to our Maker for giving our family the ability to live, love, and laugh here daily.  Yet, I was unsure as to whether my kids appreciated their existence here.  But, now it is affirmed.  Even in time of war, we live in the best place in the world, hands-down.  As it says in Psalms,

מָה רַבּוּ מַעֲשֶיךָ ה' כֻּלָּם בְּחָכְמָה עָשִיתָ מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ קִנְיָנֶךָ

.תהילים ק"ד

 How abundant are Your works, G-d, with wisdom You made them all!(Psalms 104:24)

We witnessed many wonders this past summer.  Many miracles, many natural wonders, and many wonderful acts of bravery by our IDF.  May G-d continue to bless us with His grace.  And, as we approach the new Jewish year, I look forward to the "best year EVER!"

Dead Sea Environs Trip