It’s Our Story
Last week’s Torah reading was mostly the story of Noah and the Flood. One of the more curious elements of the tale is what happens when the earth dries out enough for the animals and their human tenders to exit the vessel.
Bee Juice
My recent posts...After havdala ended last week’s Galeem (“waves,” our Sunday school), the usual joyful mayhem erupted in the lobby: Kids running down halls for a water bottle, a work of art, a lollipop; parents calling after them “Remember your ________!”; brief...
Welcome to”chol”
A couple days of magnificent weather have been a welcome respite from the bounty of precipitation during Sukkot and the closing festival days. This morning, we stored away our sukkah — unscathed by the nor’easter — for next year.
Kol Nidre – All Vows
My recent posts...kol nidrei, all MY vows? Rabbi Jonathan Kremer kol nidrei, all vows. ALL vows? All my vows? How can I possibly remember them all? Those silent frustrations: I swear I could... I said what? Well, I didn't mean it that way! The thick-as-mud silent...
Leaving/Returning
Nearly nothing in our world now feels still, calm. People are yelling at one another (much easier than seeking solutions and making compromises) to the point that most seem to have stopped listening.
We are going to listen, to see, to join hearts with our people — family, friends and strangers. We will hug relatives; someone asked me to pass a hug on to a random person. Hmmm … a surprise “This is from Ben!” might not be well received. Then again….
I will be meeting the tour organizer with whom I worked on our canceled synagogue trip, aiming to reschedule for 2025, not so far away any more, really.
We look forward to our time in our homeland, we look forward to sharing our experiences with you. We encourage you to book a trip or plan to come with us next year.
The attached video is an adaptation of my benediction at our community Yom Hashoah program last week. It is adapted for the transition from yom hazikaron to yom ha’atzmaut, from Israel’s Memorial Day to Independence Day.