I logged onto my personal email today. There were 93 new messages, very few junk. One message needed an answer three days ago. This is a problem. No matter how many times I tell people "If you need to reach me now, please call" they don't. Yes, I am connected. I have multiple emails at work and at home. I do have a cell phone. I have a profile on Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace. I have not checked MySpace in three years. LinkedIn sends me an email if I get a message, and I try to log into Facebook two-three times a week. I check my work email three days a week. Those are the days I am at the office. If I miss a day of work I miss a day of email. I try to check my personal email on the other days. I work a full day followed by running children here, there, and everywhere. At night, the choices are chores & housework, spending real time with my children or husband, catching up on my tv shows, or checking email/etc. Email rarely wins.
My cell is an old flip phone. I like it. It's like a Star Trek communicator. I can't check email on it. I especially like that. I don't know how to check my work email from home. I like that. It all helps my part-time position stay part-time, and my full-time parenting stay manageable. Yet people who have known me for years persist in sending emails that need to be answered NOW.
My dictionary defines "now" as "at the present moment. I guess NOW will have to be when I catch up to the world, but that certainly isn't now.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
End of Pesach- Witnessing History
Vayikach Moshe et atzmot Yosef imo ki hashbei’a hishbi’a et b’nei Yisrael leimor pakod yifkod Ehlohim etchem v’ha’alitem et atzmotai mizeh etchem.
And Moshe took the bones of Joseph with him for he had surely sworn the children of Israel saying, “God will surely remember you and you shall carry my bones from here with you.”
Dor l’dor. Judaism is a religion of connection from generation to generation. Even after 400 years in Egypt, even after Joseph had been forgotten by the Egyptians, we remembered. Serach bat Asher was one of the girls among those who entered Egypt with Jacob and his family. Serach bat Asher was also among the women who left Egypt. Midrash tells us this was the same woman. It was Serach who came to Moshe while the Israelites were preparing for their departure to tell him where to find the bones of Joseph and the incantation to raise them. Later Serach visits the great yeshiva in Babylon. She listens outside the window to the lessons, but upon hearing the teaching she enters the yeshiva and describes to the Rabbis and students what she saw leaving Egypt. We are taught that even today, Serach bat Asher roams the earth to teach us what we have forgotten.
In Egypt, when a new ruler arose, it was the custom to erase the previous history and rewrite it as if the new ruler had always been in power. Judaism does not erase its history. Judaism does not rewrite its truth. We are taught to learn, to study, and to seek the truth. There must be a continuity from generation to generation, and our elders stand for us as witnesses to what came before. Like generations of women from Sarah, Rivka, and Rachel and Leah to the righteous women in Egypt, Serach stood to witness and to teach.
The Hunger Games
I don't usually jump on the bandwagon. I like to be sure it's worth my time. Sometimes it works. I bought a three book Harry Potter set to keep for when Jesse was ready to read them (He was two at the time). Within a month of them being on the shelf I had read Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and was hooked. That was okay since I had two more and Goblet of Fire was due out in a few months.
Sometimes it's harder. I started watching Lost in season three. (What is it about threes?) It's Ezra Moses' fault. I was staying with the Moses family while visiting Montreal when I was ECRUSY director and Ezra was the president. Ezra refused to work while Lost was on, and I spent the whole episode looking the show up on ABC's website so I could figure out what was happening. There were two episodes back to back and I was hooked. Not all was lost. The SciFi channel ran seasons 1-3 over the hiatus, and by season 4 I was up to date.
On to the Hunger Games. I was textbook shopping at Batner Books in August, and I decided to ask the clerk at the store to recommend books for my kids. I wanted something "worthwhile." At first everything he recommended we already owned, but finally he suggested The Hunger Games. According to him, they were worth the read (and the hype). I came home and read it myself first (on the clerk's suggestion). It was worth every bit of hype. I was drawn in and cared about the characters as I was with Harry Potter (although the comparison ends there). Jesse read it in a matter of days, and spent weeks begging for the next. I quickly ordered Catching Fire and Mocking Jay.
When they arrived I selfishly made Jesse wait as I inhaled the text. We were sad to see the series end. Recently Gavriel and Keren discovered the series. It's not a series I'd recommend for 10-12 year olds, but the books are in the house. Gavi was into book two and Keren almost finished with The Hunger Games when I discovered what they were reading. It's sparked a lot of discussions at the table, in the car, when they should be in bed, and almost anywhere else. Never has a book (or series) held Gavi's attention and devotion like the Hunger Games series has. He generally reads a bit, goes on to something else, comes back for more- maybe. Gavi read The Hunger Games in less than a week, Catching Fire in three days, and Mocking Jay in the same time. Keren was slightly faster, although she did have to wait for Gavi to finish.
Today the four of us went to the movie. (Sean had a funeral.) I agonized over whether to take Gavi and Keren, but on the strength of our discussions (and reviews stating the violence was intense, but not graphic) I decided to take them. We watched an early matinee. It was an excellent film adaptation. Once out of the theater discussion began... "They changed this..." "They left that out, but I think it was important." "That's not how I pictured Cinna." "Really, that was exactly how I pictured Cinna." Conversation continued until we got home, then Jesse had a friend over, and Gavi and Keren had karate, but I imagine the discussion will continue over the next few weeks. As for me, I reread the series last month in anticipation of the movie. Now that I've seen it, I plan on reading it again. That'll be three times in a year. I guess this bandwagon was worth the ride.
Sometimes it's harder. I started watching Lost in season three. (What is it about threes?) It's Ezra Moses' fault. I was staying with the Moses family while visiting Montreal when I was ECRUSY director and Ezra was the president. Ezra refused to work while Lost was on, and I spent the whole episode looking the show up on ABC's website so I could figure out what was happening. There were two episodes back to back and I was hooked. Not all was lost. The SciFi channel ran seasons 1-3 over the hiatus, and by season 4 I was up to date.
On to the Hunger Games. I was textbook shopping at Batner Books in August, and I decided to ask the clerk at the store to recommend books for my kids. I wanted something "worthwhile." At first everything he recommended we already owned, but finally he suggested The Hunger Games. According to him, they were worth the read (and the hype). I came home and read it myself first (on the clerk's suggestion). It was worth every bit of hype. I was drawn in and cared about the characters as I was with Harry Potter (although the comparison ends there). Jesse read it in a matter of days, and spent weeks begging for the next. I quickly ordered Catching Fire and Mocking Jay.
When they arrived I selfishly made Jesse wait as I inhaled the text. We were sad to see the series end. Recently Gavriel and Keren discovered the series. It's not a series I'd recommend for 10-12 year olds, but the books are in the house. Gavi was into book two and Keren almost finished with The Hunger Games when I discovered what they were reading. It's sparked a lot of discussions at the table, in the car, when they should be in bed, and almost anywhere else. Never has a book (or series) held Gavi's attention and devotion like the Hunger Games series has. He generally reads a bit, goes on to something else, comes back for more- maybe. Gavi read The Hunger Games in less than a week, Catching Fire in three days, and Mocking Jay in the same time. Keren was slightly faster, although she did have to wait for Gavi to finish.
Today the four of us went to the movie. (Sean had a funeral.) I agonized over whether to take Gavi and Keren, but on the strength of our discussions (and reviews stating the violence was intense, but not graphic) I decided to take them. We watched an early matinee. It was an excellent film adaptation. Once out of the theater discussion began... "They changed this..." "They left that out, but I think it was important." "That's not how I pictured Cinna." "Really, that was exactly how I pictured Cinna." Conversation continued until we got home, then Jesse had a friend over, and Gavi and Keren had karate, but I imagine the discussion will continue over the next few weeks. As for me, I reread the series last month in anticipation of the movie. Now that I've seen it, I plan on reading it again. That'll be three times in a year. I guess this bandwagon was worth the ride.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Catching Up
So I've caught up with my drashot, with the exception of Vayikra, which I can't find. I still have much to do. My time in Israel was wonderful. I wanted to transcribe the notes I kept, but after all this time it's unlikely. It's hard to believe that it was three months ago. History was made, although only time will tell if it made an impact. The trip left me in amazement of how far tnua Masorti has come in a short time. The amazing piece is the energy with which they approach everything. We must have been that way coming out of seminary, but it's hard to know when it's you.
Very special during my time in Israel was the time I spent with my cousins. With love to all my cousins, Wayne, as the oldest, was somehow special. I treasured the time I spent with him and Lilach in Boston. We wandered through Harvard Square, ate David's Cookies, and visited Brandeis and Tufts. Being back with them it's like we haven't been apart. We spent a lot of time laughing and sharing stories. It's always wonderful to share memories and perceptions of our grandparents who are no longer with us. It was also wonderful meeting Roi. His energy is amazing, and exhausting. It never seems to end. We hit it off, and enjoyed each other's company. It's wonderful knowing Wayne & Lilach are changing his life, making it better. It's an amazing mitzvah, but there's also love and concern. He's come so far, and they'll help him go as far as he can. It made me appreciate the safe place we create for out children to explore and wander and dream in an open yet protected environment. Even now, my eldest cousin is still teaching me.
Very special during my time in Israel was the time I spent with my cousins. With love to all my cousins, Wayne, as the oldest, was somehow special. I treasured the time I spent with him and Lilach in Boston. We wandered through Harvard Square, ate David's Cookies, and visited Brandeis and Tufts. Being back with them it's like we haven't been apart. We spent a lot of time laughing and sharing stories. It's always wonderful to share memories and perceptions of our grandparents who are no longer with us. It was also wonderful meeting Roi. His energy is amazing, and exhausting. It never seems to end. We hit it off, and enjoyed each other's company. It's wonderful knowing Wayne & Lilach are changing his life, making it better. It's an amazing mitzvah, but there's also love and concern. He's come so far, and they'll help him go as far as he can. It made me appreciate the safe place we create for out children to explore and wander and dream in an open yet protected environment. Even now, my eldest cousin is still teaching me.
You Can't Scare Us We're Stickin' With The Union
U’shmartem et hadavar hazeh l’hok l’cha ulvanecha ad olam.
And you shall observe this thing as an edict for you and your children forever.
V’haya ki yomru aleichem b’neichem ma ha’avodah hazot lachem.
And it shall happen that your children shall say to you, “What is this service to you?”
Pesach is my favourite holiday. How can it not be? It is the holiday of freedom. It is the day on which b’nei Yaakov became Am Yisrael. It is the day most deeply embedded in the Jewish psyche.
I hail from good Socialist Zionist stock; raised on the music of the labour movement in English and Hebrew. Holidays were a connection to generations of freedom fighters, to the union leaders of my grandparents’ and parents’ generation, and to those generations of Jews willing to stand up to oppression from the time of Mitzraiyim until today. Pesach was the greatest of all. We sang slave spirituals and labour songs. We recited a poem called “The Greatest Walkout Ever Known.”
These ideals were thoroughly embedded by the time my own children were born. They learned Woody Guthrie lyrics alongside the Shema. We smiled every time Jesse sang out “You can’t scare me I’m stickin’ with the union!”
Over time Keren moved on from Woody Guthrie’s “Songs to Grow By” to Alice Cooper. The Beatles are a huge favourite of Gavi’s, and Jesse has discovered classical music. Still, Pesach is the time we return to our roots. We are again singing “When Israel was in Egypt land- let my people go…” and “For the old man is a comin’ for to carry you to freedom, follow the drinking gourd.
We do this because God took us out of Egypt saying to us that we shall follow the mitzvot, especially those regarding the treatment of others, because we were once slaves in Egypt. This is the meaning of this service to us. We understand. We’re not afraid to stand up to tyranny and injustices, and we’re sticking with the union that binds us as a community and a nation throughout history and into the future.
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