And Talia Wanted a Piranha

בס''ד
Next week, our granddaughter Talia Bracha will G-D willing become a Bat- Mitzvah.

My husband and I asked her what she would like for a gift and she answered,“ a piranha in an aquarium”. After, shaking my head in amazement and asking why, she said “that’s what I want.”

Talk about strange requests from a bat-mitzvah girl.

Her mother, our daughter Devorah added, “she asked us for the same gift and we said no.”

And then I asked her if she wanted jewelry and Talia very politely, almost apologizing said “I have enough jewelry Safta.” “Would you like a watch, I asked, “I don’t need one. Safta, why don’t you just get me a surprise.”

And so, what to buy was back in our lap. We started to rack our brain as to what to buy our granddaughter who appreciates what she has and is not a princess.

Come September, Talia will be going to the Ulpana in Sedrot. The girls have many trips and spend some Shabbatot together. We decided to get her a suitcase and tote bag.

In Netivot, we have several stores that carry these bags, but I was looking for something special. Devorah told me that Talia likes pink and purple. I wanted a something youthful, in pink or purple and durable.

The last store we went to had just what we were looking for.

Mazal-Tov Talia! You are a very special young lady. May Hashem always be by your side and guide you all your life. We look forward to celebrating with you next week.

Mazal-Tov Devorah and Hagai. You have given us a beautiful family.

That’s all for now
Shabbat Shalom
Safta Miriam                 

Twenty Years........Where Has the Time Gone?

בס''ד
When we told our friends that we were making Aliyah, some were shocked and others said, “You will be back in six months. Life is very hard in Israel. You need a pile of money to survive" and we were broke... Well to all our friends who doubted us....  this week, we are celebrating our 20th year of Aliyah...but I’m getting ahead of myself.

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada: It’s Erev Rosh Hashana 1993 and we [my husband, and twelve year old son] had just gotten off the telephone after wishing our two married daughters, their husbands and our 3 Sabra grandchildren Shana Tova.

The girls were both married to Israeli husbands and had settled in Eretz Yisrael several years earlier. Our oldest daughter Naomi, lived with her family on a kibbutz in Gush Etzion. Our younger daughter Devorah, lived with her husband in the South on a Moshav.

Sitting around our Yom Tov table, the conversation once again was about Israel and us making aliyah. This was our dream.... a dream we had for many years.  Our son, who was going to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah the following year, wanted his Aliya at the Kotel.  His wish came true.

Making Aliyah is a major decision, one that can not be made on ‘one leg’. My husband and I had talked about making Aliyah for years. We visited the Aliyah office of The Jewish Agency and spoke several times to different shlichim. There always seemed to be a reason or maybe an excuse why this particular year was not right.

Time passed quickly, after high school, Naomi went to Israel to study in a women’s seminary. She planned to stay for one year and then return to Toronto to go to university. This was not meant to be.

Devorah followed two years later. Both girls fell in love with the country and decided that they didn’t want to come back to Canada. Israel was going to be their home.

The girls met their Israeli husbands, we made two weddings in Israel and the girls settled down. By the time our third grandchild was born, my husband and I knew that our place was in Israel.

Once the decision was made to make Aliyah, the process went rather quickly.

Right after Rosh Hashana, I called the Jewish Agency office in Toronto and was told by the secretary that she would mail us the application and all the other paper work but there wasn’t going to be a shaliach in Toronto until after all the chaggim.

The shaliach finally arrived in December. Our paperwork was ready to go. We met the shaliach, a very nice man who was a retired Navy Commander and we told him we were anxious to make aliyah as soon as possible.

There are many horror stories about the Jewish Agency, but our experience was wonderful.  Our shaliach worked very hard on our behalf.

Five months later, May 30th 1994, we boarded an EL Al airplane with nine big and heavy boxes, and so started our journey home. [Two weeks earlier we sent the few things I just couldn’t leave behind. The lift was ¼ full.] From the moment that we stepped off the airplane and took our first steps on Israeli soil, we knew we arrived home to new beginnings.

Living in Israel as new olim was an experience in its self. We were warned that the bureaucracy would be unbelievable. It was, but we took it in stride. Our first experience with bureaucracy was at the Passport Control Office at the airport.

As new Olim, we needed to receive a Teudat Olah [immigrant certificate] .  The clerk typed up our information, but instead of writing country of origin Canada, she wrote country of origin Soviet Union. When we pointed out her mistake, she refused to correct it, instead told us that we had to go to the ministry office in Jerusalem. We later found out that a plane load of Russian Jews had landed a couple of hours earlier and the clerk was just used to typing Soviet Union.

Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim, Gush Etzion: Coming from Canada, we exchanged our large hi-rise apartment for a small 55 meter two bedroom kibbutz house in Gush Etzion, near Jerusalem. Our daughter and son-in-law were and are chaverim [kibbutz members]. The kibbutz wanted to open a section of housing for parents of chaverim. And so, instead of going to a merkas klita [absorption center], we chose the kibbutz as our first Israeli home.  It was such a smart move.  We started living like Israelis from day one.

The girls and their husbands surprised us by cleaning and furnishing the house with kibbutz furniture so that we wouldn’t walk into an empty house.

Our three year old grandson, Yoni, drew a ‘welcome home’ picture that was hanging on the front door.  At first, it was a little difficult living in a small house. We were always under each others feet, but after a few days we each found our own space.

Although, we didn’t join the kibbutz, they invited us to use their facilities. We ate lunch in the communal dining room and used the kibbutz laundry service. The novelty of just throwing the laundry into the correct baskets and picking it up the next day, clean and pressed was exciting.

Once in while we celebrated Shabbat in the communal dining room with more than one hundred other people. Welcoming the Shabbat with the singing of Shalom Aleichem, Eishes Chayil and Kiddish, the sounds of young children laughing and running around, made the Shabbat meal a true kibbutz experience.

Each family had its own table. There was a rotation system and every Shabbat several members took turns setting the tables, serving and cleaning up.

As our young grandchildren became a little older, it was not unusual for them to bang on our door early Shabbat morning, looking for chocolate milk and Shabbat cake. For some reason, the milk and cake tasted better in Saba and Safta’s house than theirs.

Learning to speak Hebrew was another experience. We joined an ulpan for new olim in Jerusalem and for a few months went everyday. My husband learned to speak very quickly, I didn’t.  Even today, I speak in English whenever possible. Israelis love to speak English. After three months in school, our son was speaking Hebrew like a native.

It didn’t take us long to learn the ropes.  We found out quickly Israelis love to drink mud [Turkish coffee], their favorite expression, no matter the situation is “yehieh beseder” [it will be okay] and politics is definitely the topic of choice. All Israelis have an opinion on how to run the government and everyone is a backseat General in the army.

You can tour and visit many places that are mentioned in the Torah. Israel has the bluest sky and its national flower, Callanit is a beautiful red wild flower.

The country comes together, when the siren rings on Yom HaShoah [Holocaust remembrance day] and Yom Hazikron  [Memorial day for our chayalim and innocent victims of terrorism].

Cars and buses stop in the middle of the street. Drivers and passengers get out of their vehicles, pedestrians stop walking, everyone stands silently remembering the price the Jewish people have had to pay.  It is a breathtaking sight to see.

On Israel Independence day,Yom Ha’atzmaut, we fly our Israeli flag with pride, enjoy the traditional bar b’ que and watch the Tanach Bible contest on television. Our air force, the IAF does a flyover and we get to see a magnificent show of air power.

Today we live on a wonderful, warm, hamish Yishuv in the Western Negev. We have experienced joy, incoming missile siren, war, had Grad missiles exploding not far from where we live and have the sounds of jets, helicopters, loud booms, and the drone buzzing overhead protecting our precious land almost daily.

We have been blessed with 13 Sabra grandchildren, of which 6 are 10th generation Israeli.

Over the years so much has happened with in our family. We have watched our daughters become marvelous parents, experienced the joys of our grandchildren from newborns to toddlers, first steps, first words, first day at gan, [kindergarten], the excitement of kita aleph [grade 1] graduations, bar and bat mitzvot. Two grandsons became chayalim, one is in Hesdar and the other in a tank unit. Our granddaughter served our country doing Sherut Leumi and recently two other grandsons received their first draft notice. Our youngest grandson will G-D willing start gan [kindergarten] in September.

In our Yishuv like many other areas, ten or fifteen minutes before Shabbat, beautiful Shabbat music is played over the loudspeaker. When it is time to light the Shabbat candles a serene atmosphere takes over. For me, the moments before Shabbat are a special time to reflect.

For our family, living in Israel is an honor and a privilege. We are living in our Jewish homeland and full filling our dreams.

Come home...Every Jew has a place!!

Until next time....Feel free to comment and share.

Miriam         

What a Special Day................

בס''ד

This morning my husband Avraham and I left our home in the Negev to travel to the Holy city of Yerushalayim to meet our friends Selma and Lazar from Montreal, who are visiting Eretz Yisrael.

We were so excited... this trip was so special... I have known Selma since I was thirteen years old, more than fifty years from our growing up days in Chomedey. Our families were 'settlers' in this new community...

Avraham and Lazar were friends since high school and hung around together with for years.. 

Selma was my maid of honor and Lazar was Avraham's best man when we were married.

Unfortunately, we lost track of one another for years, but thanks to the invention of the internet, I was given Selma’s e-mail address and we started to correspond and catch-up.

After Avraham and I starting going out, I met his friend Lazar who didn’t have a girl friend. I told Avraham that I knew the perfect girl for him.. Lazar agreed to meet Selma but Selma was another story. I can’t tell you how much I begged and twisted Selma’s arm to get her to agree to go out with Lazar just once.

Finally she agreed if we double dated...

And so from the shidduch that I made, G-D willing, Selma and Lazar will celebrate their 47th wedding anniversary in December, Baruch Hashem.

Our friends were staying at the Dan Panorama and we agreed to meet at the hotel. Besides being a little older, they hardly changed at all. We greeted each other with hugs......

 









We sat in the lobby for sometime and talked, looked at pictures and then I showed them a piece of pottery from the time of Avraham Avinu that my grandchildren found in a National Forest, the original home of Avraham Avinu... that where we live is the same land that we read about in the Chumash in Sefer Bereishis, where Avraham Avinu walked, had his tents, his flock grazed and merchants passed. Our history comes alive everywhere you go.

And then we showed them a piece of metal and pictures of the rocket that exploded a couple of years ago, 2 minutes from my house.  They never saw anything like it. 

Lunch was in a small restaurant on Emek Ephraim in the German Colony. Once again, we took pictures, talked, laughed and just had a great time. 

Walking back to the hotel, we stopped at Blum Park near the hotel to take more pictures.

Since we are all not so young, when we got back to the hotel, we once again sat in the lobby, and again smoozed and took a picture of the four of us. A waiter took the picture and it came out blurred. :(

When it was time for us to leave, we said our goodbyes...I told them that on their next trip, they must come to the South and be our guests and meet our family...

 

This was a wonderful day that we will not forget...Selma and Lazar, thank-you for making it happen.

Tomorrow, our friends continue their touring of our precious country.

Miriam         

It is Rosh Chodesh Adar א and we Welcomed the New Month With a Boom!

בס''ד
It is now 2:30 a.m. and I am wide awake. As I sit down to blog, I can hear our jets roaring overhead.  They are going to answer for the missiles that were fired this evening.

Our neighbours 9 kms. away fired 2 or 3 Grad missiles at us. 

This is a Grad missile. It is filled with explosives, ball bearings, screws, nails and anything else that can fly. Its job is to explode and maim, kill and cause as much damage as possible.

At around 9:30p.m. the incoming warning siren wailed in our Yishuv, and the 2 moshavim that surround us. We have 15 seconds to seek safety. In those 15 seconds, parents have to wake up their sleeping children and take them from their warm beds to safety. Our dog is barking like crazy. The siren scares her. My husband has to put on her leash and get her to safety.

In our yishuv, most homes have a mamad, a reinforced security room.  The yishuv and moshav also have public mamads.

Our house doesn’t have a mamad or protective windows, but it is safe as it was built with reinforced cement. Because we do not have protective windows, we have to stay out of any room with windows.  We usually go to our shower room and wait until we hear the boom.

Tonight we heard 2 booms that seem to be far way. As we left the shower room, we heard a loud explosion. The house shook and the lights flickered. At first we thought it was the Iron Dome. It wasn’t. The missile exploded on a Moshav next to us.

The media reported no injuries or damage. This statement is not quite true. Although there weren’t any physical injuries,[except for a woman who fell running to a public shelter] there are always emotional injuries...Shock, children terrified and crying afraid to go back to sleep. Some of the elderly who live on the moshavim are in wheelchairs and can’t get to safety quickly....this fact scares them. 

The residents of the South are always on alert and know that as long as Hamas, Jihad and Fatah are our neighbours, the siren can wail at any time and a rocket will be fired.  

Our jets are now returning. I heard several booms.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/176931

Time to stop talking, clean up Aza and don’t stop until the job is finished! Our IDF knows what to do. Our chayalim are well trained. They need the government to give the order.

Rosh Chodesh Sameach
Shabbat Shalom
Feel free to comment and share.
Miriam   

Make-A-Wish Foundation....Making Dreams Come to Life......

בס''ד
Miles is 5 years old and like all 5 year old boys he likes super heroes, especially Batman. But Miles is not like other 5 year olds... he is a cancer patient suffering from Leukemia. Baruch Hashem, [thank-G-D] his father says Miles is now in remission.

I first heard about Miles, when reading the Facebook postings of an old friend of mine from Hamilton, Cheryll Jutan.

Miles wanted to be Batman and Cheryll was posting about her son Mike, who lives in San Francisco and his involvement to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation make Miles’s dream a reality.

And a reality it was when over 10,000 San Francisco city employees and residents volunteered to turn San Francisco into Gotham City and for a day Miles became Batkid, rescuing a damsel in distress, capturing the Riddler as he robbed a bank, and saving the city mascot from the clutches of the Penguin.

Batkid and his hero Batman had a police escort as officers on motorcycles blocked traffic and escorted their black Batmobile Lamborghini around the city.

http://mashable.com/2013/11/18/batkid-numbers/ 

My friend Cheryll’s son played the Penguin.

Mike told his hometown newspaper: “I had no idea it was going to be this big.” Mike who is 31 and a software engineer with Industrial Light and Magic in San Francisco was born in Hamilton but grew up in and still has ties to London Ontario. “When I was asked to do it, I thought we would just put on some costumes and romp around a playground for 10 minutes for a little kid.”  
http://metronews.ca/news/london/858224/batkid-baddie-is-london-hometown-hero/



Mike has a beautiful blog called Mike Jutan.com. Yesterday he posted his thoughts and some wonderful pictures. Enjoy!
http://jutanclan.blogspot.co.il/2013/11/the-day-batkid-defeated-me-and.html  

What is the Make-A-Wish Foundation? It is an organization that makes dreams come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions. Founded in the United States in 1980 Make-A-Wish operates in 47 countries around the world through 36 affiliate offices. In Israel Make-A-Wish can be contacted at:  
In English:  
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=iw&u=http://www.makeawish.org.il/&prev=/search%3Fq%3DMake%2Ba%2BWish%2BIsrael

In Hebrew:
http://www.makeawish.org.il/  

or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MakeawishIL

The work Make-A-Wish does is a mitzvah gadola...[a major good deed] The happiness it brings to sick children and the smiles on their faces is worth the thousands and thousands of dollars the dreams cost. May all the volunteers be blessed with good health.

This Wednesday evening, Nov. 27th /25th of Kislev, begins the eight day festival of Chanukah also known as the festival of lights. It marks the miraculous victory of the Jews, led by the Maccabees, against Greek persecution and religious oppression.

Chag Chanukah Sameach everyone!
Until next time..feel free to comment  and share.
Miriam      

Sisterhood,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

בס''ד
Sisterhood..........

On Tuesday, Coffee Talk, a woman’s Face book group had their fourth ‘face 2 face’ [f2f] get together in Jerusalem.

After a short walk around the famous shuk in Yerushalayim, Mahane Yehuda, the ladies grouped together and headed to the klal Building, where they were going to participate in a jewelry making workshop, headed by Hadassa, a member of our group. Unfortunately, I could not attend. My loss!

Paula very kindly opened her board room to hold the event.

A highlight of the gathering was a Skype call to one of our member-friend, who lives in Colorado. In her words...
http://lady-light.blogspot.co.il/2013/11/skyping-with-virtual-friendsreally.html

A wonderful, descriptive blog with pictures was posted by Batya.
http://me-ander.blogspot.co.il/2013/11/i-bead-like-i-cook.html

What is Coffee Talk you ask?  About two years ago, some of us early risers would virtually meet over coffee and catch up.

Chaya took our early meetings one step further, started a secret Facebook page, called it Coffee Talk and sent out invitations. And so our little group was born.

The goal was to keep the membership low, so that we keep the group informal and personal. We are all ‘sisters’. Thirty-seven women from Israel and the States enjoy each others company over a virtual cup of coffee and share each others news.

When Tehillim or any other davening needs to be said, all it takes is a quick posting and you know it will be done. Have a question...post it and you will get an answer.

We enjoy sending each other mazal-tov’s for smachot in our families and the posting pictures of children and grandchildren are always a pleasure to see.

Last year, we decided to meet in person, and we held our first ‘face 2 face, in Jerusalem meeting at Café Café. A wonderful time was had by all.

We introduced ourselves and each told a little about who we are.  Our second f2f was in the Negev city of Netivot. The ladies wanted to show solidarity with residents of the South who constantly live with the fear of a missile attack at a drop of the hat.

We shopped in Netivot and then had a wonderful sit down lunch at Gregg’s.

Our third meeting was in Shiloh, the site of the Mishkan. We toured the biblical city of Shiloh. Our tour guide made the Tanach come alive. We ended our tour davening [pray] minchah, at the same spot where Chana the wife of Elkanah, davened and pleaded with Hashem to grant her a child. (Samuel 1:10) Her tefillah was answered and Chana gave birth to a son, whom she named Samuel and later became the first king of Israel. 

And now back to the drawing board to plan our next face 2 face.

Until next time..feel free to comment and share.
Miriam                     

The IDF and the terrorists Who Want to Destroy Israel..........

בס''ד
As many you know, my family and I live in the South and have been recipients of many grad missile terror attacks from our neighbors who live in Gaza. The North too, is always on alert for terror attacks from Hezbollah and throw-over from Syria.

We are used to living with IDF helicopters and jets roaring overhead and the hum of the drone surveying the land.  We are thank-full for our army’s protection. Last Thursday, while our chayalim were fulfilling a mission in Gaza, terrorists attacked them and five IDF chayalim, one severely, were injured in an attack. Friday night, Erev Shabbat a mortar was fired at Eshkol. Fortunately there weren’t any physical injuries or damage to buildings.

http://www.idfblog.com/facts-figures/rocket-attacks-toward-israel/

And so the story continues...Israelis are not only attacked with missiles. Across the country, but especially in Yehuda and Shomron, arabs throw rocks at passing cars. Now please don’t think that the rocks are small pebbles that you find along the beach. The rocks they throw are boulders. Rock can and do maim and kill.

The world is watching our every move. All we need to announce is that we will build homes here, there and anywhere, and world leaders are condemning us.

Last week, Israel released terrorists as a ‘gesture’ for peace...and also announced homes will be built in Jerusalem. What did UN chief Secretary General Ban Ki-moon say...........?

Releasing Murderers is Good, Building is Bad.......
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/173422 


So who are these terrorists? The world calls them freedom fighters but we know the truth..they are cold blooded, murdering terrorists who place no value on human life, young men and women, who have so much hatred in their hearts for us the Jewish people and our homeland Israel. They grow up indoctrinated from the time they start nursery school, being dressed up in terrorist costumes, their ‘teachers’ paint their little hands red and makes posters saying Death to the Jews, Death to Israel. They sing and recite poems about destroying the Jewish nation.  In school is where they really get an ‘education’.
http://www.idfblog.com/hamas/2013/07/11/hamas-teaches-gaza-kids-to-be-terrorists-all-year-round/

Fortunately for us, we have the world’s most moral army, The Israel Defense Forces known as the IDF and in Hebrew as Tzahal.

Our chayalim and chayalot [soldiers] defend our land with the love of our homeland and the commitment and devotion. They know and understand what is at stake; our existence, our independence and our security.
 
May The Hand of Hashem guide and protect each soldier and keep them safe.

http://www.idfblog.com/
https://www.facebook.com/idfonline
http://www.flickr.com/photos/idfonline

Until next time, please feel free to comment and share.
Miriam               

It's My Birthday........

בס''ד

According to our teachings, the Jewish day starts at sunset and continue until sunset the following day. And so this evening, yud gimmel Cheshvan [13th] and all day tomorrow is my birthday. The secular date is in November.  

I am thankful Hashem has given me another full year of good health, happiness, parnass and nachas from my children and grandchildren. What more do I need? 

Our birthday date is a special day...after all we were born on this date... I often wonder if I’m fulfilling my purpose on earth. Am I the type of person Hashem created me to be? I hope so, but I don’t really know the answer.

 

The internet was a wonderful invention. It allows you to socialize, learn and connect. I have found some lost relatives and friends. I would never have been able to start writing as a hobby and get published without it. It gave me a new type of freedom.

When researching for this blog about Jewish birthdays, I came across this description of ‘What is a Jewish birthday’. 

One's Jewish birthday is, of course, the date upon which one was born according to the Jewish calendar. Far from considering it incidental, Jewish tradition regards one's Jewish birthday to be celebrated with meaning and relevance and, in some ways, even a mini-Rosh Hashanah!

The Talmud informs us that on our Jewish birthdays our mazal (good fortune) is dominant. 

The Jewish birthday is the perfect day for reflection about our lives as Jews and is an auspicious time to make new resolutions, to perform good deeds and to deepen our commitment to Torah and the role it plays in our lives. http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/144345/jewish/What-is-a-Jewish-Birthday.htm   

On Aish.com I found a page that tells you what your Hebrew name means.

http://www.aish.com/a/myhebrewbirthday/

If you don’t know your Jewish birthday date, Hebcal has a wonderful converter. 

http://www.hebcal.com/converter/  

Enjoy your special day...I know I will... be spending most of my day in the kitchen cooking for Shabbat..Baruch Hashem!

Until next time...feel free to comment and share!

Miriam   

Dedicated in Memory of my Dad

בס''ד
 

I would like to dedicate this blog to my father, Louis David Small [Eliezer David Ha Kohen] a”H, who left us and this world on September 9,1980 / 28^thElul 5740. 

My dad was a wonderful man. He was a great husband, a super father and a loving grandfather. He was kind. He was good natured and he really cared about the next person. He would give you the shirt off his back, if that was what you needed. Our family was the most important part of his life. 

When my brother and I were children, he was always there for us. No matter the situation. He would do anything for his children. 

My dad would speak softly, but directly to us, never down to us. When I had a problem we would go for a walk or a drive in the country and talk all the way. He made every problem seem not so bad. 

As a teenager, my dad and I washed the supper dishes every evening. He taught me how organize the kitchen and work clean....The few minutes it took to clean-up was my best part of the day. He always asked me how was my day? 

My dad would help me with my homework. One time, when I was ten years old, I had a geography project in school. I had to make a scrapbook about each province in Canada and say what it was known for. Now I had weeks to get this project done, but I procrastinated and before I knew it the project was due, and I had information only on one province. 

The night before the due date, I couldn’t sleep because I was so worried about the trouble I was in. At 10:00 in the evening, I finally told my parents my problem. My father was really upset with me, but gently he told me he would try and help me and that I should go to sleep.. 

A few minutes later he was out of the house and drove to the train station. Since we lived in Montreal, the Canadian National Railways had a very large station underneath the Queen Elizabeth Hotel that was opened all the time. My father was able to get great information on every province. 

Five o’clock in the morning, he woke me up and said to me “here is your information, now get to work.” I worked like I never worked in my life. By 8:30 when I had to go to school, my project was more than half finished. I told my teacher that I would bring my project after lunch. 

In those days, we came home for lunch. I finished the project while munching on a sandwich.  I couldn’t believe it. My project was completed.  I thanked my father a million times for getting the information for me and I promised that I would never procrastinate again. 

To this very day, many years later, I never procrastinate. 

Daddy, even though 33 years have passed, I remember our lasts days together as if it was just today. 

It was Moetzi Shabbos, the night of Selichot. For some reason, I couldn’t go to sleep. I just felt the need to cook for Rosh Hashana and I cooked up a storm until it was time to go to Selichot. When we came home, I went back to the kitchen to continue cooking. 

Eight o’clock Sunday morning my mother a”H called and said that my dad had a heart attack and that I should come to Montreal. I told her I would get the next flight out. I then understood what I was feeling. 

By Sunday afternoon I was his bedside. My brother Yitzchak arrived from Detroit a couple of hours later. We spent as much time as the hospital would allow visiting with and talking with the doctors. 

Tuesday morning, my dad said that he wanted to speak to me alone. He told me to go home to my family. When I protested and said that my family was in good hands he told me not to argue and said I could come back after Rosh Hashana. He then requested to speak to my brother and told him to go home. Yom Tov was the following evening. What I didn’t realize at the time was that he was saying good-bye. 

With a very heavy heart, we returned to our respective homes. I to Hamilton and Yitzchak to Detroit. 

From Montreal to Hamilton the flight is a little over an hour. I arrived in Hamilton in time to go and pick up my daughters from school. As we entered the hall of our apartment building, I could hear my telephone ringing. It was my mother, saying that my dad had just passed away. Two hours later, Yitzchak and I were on our way back to Montreal.   

Daddy, in your memory, I wrote these words to you......

Thirty-three years have passed,
where has the time gone.
Since you were taken from us 
to a better world above.

So many grandchildren do you have

and great-grandchildren too!

Oh how we miss your presence

in our daily lives,

to share in our simchas

or to comfort

when we need a good cry.

We know you are watching over us

from your resting place

and smiling down at us

happy we all live in Eretz Yisrael.

Fourteen years ago Mommy left us

to join you in paradise

we miss you both so very much

that no words can ever say.

The younger generation lost out
on knowing two special people. 
Oh how they would have loved to bounce
and sit and play upon your knee. 

And the nachas you both could have shepped
when they entertained.
Shomer Mitzvah Jews
so proudly they remain!

So many of the grandchildren 
And more than 40 great-grandchildren 
share your looks, your character and your talents. 

Daddy, now it is time to end my poem
two more lines to say 
we love and miss you everyday 
NEVER FORGOTTEN in any way.

A loving daughter....       

Growing Older..Do you regret or are you proud?

בס''ד

One day last week, as I was surfing my Face Book page, a poster appeared saying:
DO NOT REGRET GROWING OLDER. IT IS A PRIVILEGE DENIED TO MANY. 

I shared the poster and commented..I never understood why some people want to remain 39 forever...Guess they just don't see the Bracha that has been handed to them...

My friends wrote in the comment section: Yes it is. Volunteering my time for 15 years in the Chevra Kadisha back in Hamilton, taught me that very valuable lesson. I just enjoy growing old and becoming an 'old geezer', so far I've made it to 70... I'm with Miriam, Never was embarrassed of my age [48]. Have a friend less than a year older who will never say her age and gets upset if asked. Old school...An another way of looking at age..a friend commented: it depends on the goal. If you want to reach 120, you can't stay at any age. If you want to have children and the doctors say 38 is too old, then staying 35 or so makes a lot of sense to me.

Personally for me, I don't want to be 39 any more. When I was 39, I was living in Canada, working 2 jobs, raising my young family, and chief cook, cleaner and bottle washer at home. Life was tough.

As I have gotten older, I now realize age is just a number...it is the amount of years Hashem has already blessed me with. And, please don't get me wrong...I am truly blessed. My husband and I just celebrated our 46th wedding anniversary. I still work part-time, but I'm my boss and I choose my days and hours. I'm still chief cook, cleaner and bottle washer, but instead of raising a young family, I shep nachas from my 13 grandchildren and enjoy watching my children raise their families.

I joined a Face Book group called Sixty and Me. https://www.facebook.com/sixtyandme
Sixty and Me is about reinventing and celebrating the next amazing chapter of your life as a 60 year old woman. The group welcomes a community of like minded women who don't feel old, but who are passionate about living life, embracing change, trying new things, meeting new friends, and exploring new lifestyles. 

Today, the group administrator posted this poster and asks this question: When someone asks you how old you are, what do you say?

With permission, I am posting what my friend and columnist Yocheved Miriam Russo so eloquently answered:
Assuming that you're financially secure, once you get to be 60 or so, it's easy to admit how old you are -- you can even be proud of having reached that age, getting prouder as the years go by. But if you're still in the job market, competing against "young" people who allegedly are more energetic, more knowledgeable, more up on industry trends, easier to work with (not so set in their ways), who "fit in" with the other staff more easily -- not to mention that young people are generally more pleasant to look at, and who will work for less money -- then it's much, much harder. That's especially true for women -- men grow older, and they become more distinguished, more respected. Women grow older, and we become .... invisible. And in Israel, magnify those problems by a factor of ten -- here, employment ads unabashedly advertise for "young" men and women. If you're approaching 50 -- let alone be over that age -- it's generally conceded that it's going to be near-impossible for you to get a job as someone's employee. So yes, "being a senior is a blessing" -- of course it is. But not having to find a way to support yourself in your 50's, 60's and even 70's, is an even bigger blessing -- If you need to earn an income, then growing older isn't nearly so pleasant.

Smiling, I answer, "I am 67 and I am proud!" 

Until next time..feel free to answer the question and please share. 
Miriam        

Searching Our Hearts...

בס''ד

The long hot summer is almost over. Families are returning from vacations and children are preparing to go back to school. And we the Jewish people are also starting to prepare for our new year, not by partying, but by searching.  

Tonight starts Rosh Chodesh Elul, a month before Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. 

Why is this month so special to us?  According to Jewish tradition, the World was created by Hashem on the twenty-fifth of Elul. This is according to the opinion in the Talmud of Rabbi Eliezer. Elul is called the month of repentance, the month of mercy and the month of forgiveness. 
  

The word Elul also means search.The time of the year when we search our hearts. It is a time to take a good look in the mirror and see what we don’t like about ourselves and prepare to make changes. 

Elul is spelt in Hebrew אלול [alef lamed vav lamed] and is an acronym of Ani l’dodi v’dodi li..I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine.  Shir HaShirim 6:3.  My Beloved is Hashem and I is the Jewish people.   

We learn that from the beginning of Elul until Yom Kippur, Hashem is the closest to us. It is a time for us to do teshuva, to repent and ask Hashem and those we have hurt for forgiveness.   

Starting in Elul, Sephardic men wake up earlier in the morning to recite Selichot before Shacharit.  Ashkenazi Jews will gather to recite Selichot at midnight, the last Moetzi Shabbat before Rosh Hashana.  

We include Tehillim 27, in our davening,[prayers] from Elul until Hoshana Raba... One thing I ask of the Hashem, that I seek-that I may dwell in the House of the Hashem all the days of my life, to see the pleasantness of the Hashem and to visit His Temple every morning.   

The Shofar, the ram’s horn, is blown from the second day of Rosh Chodesh Elul, and until the day before Erev Rosh Hashana.  The custom is to blow four sounds from the Shofar every weekday morning. The Shofar is not blown on Shabbat.  

May the month of Elul prepare us to enter the Rosh Hashana with a new perspective in life and to meet our challenges. 


Wishing everyone a year filled with Brachot. May you be sealed in the Book of Life.   גמר חתימה טובה

Until next time...feel free to comment and share.

Miriam           

Tish B'Av...A Day of Sorrow.......

בס''ד
During the long hot days of summer, six weeks after Shavuot, is a mourning period known as the Three Weeks. A time of sorrow for the Jewish people. 

Tish B’Av starts on Monday evening July 15^th and ends Tuesday evening July 16^th. May this be our last sorrowful Tish B’Av. Waiting for Moshiach....when will we be ready for you to come?

For more information: Aish   The ninth of Av
                             Chabad The ninth of Av overview 

The day of sorrow,

the ninth of Av.

The blackest day,

we Jews know.

Hashem commanded us to fast

and to give up our comforts.

We read Megilla Eichah

And say kinot.

Why do we have this terrible day?

Is it because we cried for nothing so long ago?

Hashem said “you want to cry,

I’ll give you something to cry about.”

So many tragedies have struck

the Jewish people on the 9^th of Av.

Many were murdered on the 9^th of Av

in pogroms and the Holocaust

for no other reason than they were Jews.

Moshiach, Moshiach, where are you?

“Come now, come now,” the people beg.

For we suffered all our history.

And bring glory to this nation.

Wishing you an easy fast!

Miriam