It’s a tale of twos, a story of firsts and of seconds. This Shabbos, two days ago, was the first of two Shabbosim during the Nine Days, during which we mourn the loss of the two Temples. Shabbos morning, in Daf Yomi, Temura 15, we learned about the Jews who came up to the Land of Israel with Ezra the Scribe following 70 years of exile. Some of those men were old enough to recall the idolatry the led to that exile, and the gemarIt’s a says they wept over it.

If those men could weep over the idolatry they witnessed in their childhood, idolatry that led to their 70-year exile, I can weep over the political missteps taken 27 years ago during the 1992 Israeli elections, political missteps in which I took a modest part.

The advent of a wedding creates a whirlwind of excitement. After months of careful planning and preparation, not to mention stress and anxiety, the wedding flies by in the blink of an eye. A flurry of friends and relatives celebrate with the happy couple for hours on end. As the final dance winds down and tables are cleared, the chassan and kallah bid their guests adieu. The young couple, flying high on the stream of good wishes, feels ready to face the world. Having already discussed their hashkofos, chosen their future home, and settled on where they will spend their first Yom Tov, they feel like they are ahead of the game. They don’t realize that their first real-life dilemma is less than 24 hours away.

The circumstances that eventually brought my Syrian grandfather to the U.S. in the 1920s go back to the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. This great technological feat that tremendously expedited trade all over the world was the beginning of the end of Syria’s status as the trading crossroads of the world. Suddenly, commerce shifted to boats instead of passing through the famed Damascus and Aleppo trading centers. 

A bunch of children were playing tag outside on a long summer Shabbos afternoon. Suddenly, one of the boys started yelling, “No girls allowed.” Other boys joined the battle cry, and the girls stopped in their tracks, not sure whether to go on with the game. Some of them were close to tears. One boy called out loudly, “Why can’t the girls play?! He stopped the whole “revolution” in its tracks, and the game proceeded until dusk.

A high school girl made a nasty comment about her teacher’s clothing to her friend. She was trying to rile up the class to join her in making fun of the teacher. To her surprise, her friend refused to be horrified and instead said, “So what?” catching the instigator off guard. That comment stopped the joke and saved the teacher from an embarrassing situation.

Wouldn’t we all like to be able to claim these children as our own? Don’t we want to raise a child who is strong enough to do the right thing even when overruled by the majority? How can we teach ourselves and our children to be firm in their beliefs? To be kind when everyone else is being mean? This article will not answer these questions definitively but will give us food for thought.

As usual I started exploring this topic by asking friends, family, and acquaintances what they thought about peer pressure.

The summer is a very expensive time of year. Between camp, supplies for camp, and requests for special treats, I and my wallet feel drained. I was excited when a friend suggested that I write about teaching teenagers how to budget as I reasoned that would give me an impetus to get a handle on the topic (keeping in mind my husband’s reminder that I should only write about what I know!).

Fortunately, our community is blessed to have the wonderful organization Mesila, which counsels families on how to stay fiscally responsible. I will leave it to them to provide the practical tips on managing the finances in our lives. Many of our local schools also teach financial management during middle and high school, and these programs should be encouraged and expanded. What I can do is provide some additional ideas that can help frame this important topic.

Watching the sunset from a lookout near Bat Ayin, a small yishuv in Gush Etzion, I was overcome by the sheer beauty of the landscape. Below me, the red-roofed homes of the yishuv were arrayed against the colorful hues of the sky, and in the distance, other yishuvim lay scattered among the brush-covered hilltops. On the horizon, the waters of the Mediterranean Sea sparkled.

I was on an outing in Gush Etzion, sweet memories floating in my mind of when I had called this place home. What an incredible zechut (privilege) it is to live and breathe the air of our holy land. In fact, in this week’s parsha, Va’etchanan, the tremendous importance of Eretz Yisrael is conveyed by the 515 prayers of Moshe Rabbeinu as he pleaded with Hashem to enter the Land. Now, having finished the Three Weeks of mourning over the Beit Hamikdash’s destruction and our national exile, let’s take its message to heart. The initial cause that led to this catastrophic period was the negative reports of the Spies upon their return from Eretz Yisrael. Let us correct that disastrous mistake by sharing some holy highlights of real life in Israel in our times.

Oh, summer, you flew by, and school is starting soon. I know because I got my huge list of supplies, and I’m hoping to find all the required colored binders and composition books (and maybe some fun #2 pencils)! As the mother, though, I’d like to add to the list what to feed the kids when they come home from school “starving.” There are two “schools” of thought on that one: serve healthy snacks until a later dinner time or feed them supper the minute they walk in the door. Let’s try out both options.

Grazing Boards

Having a healthy snack ready when the kids walk in that door has been a game changer for us. Some days, I just put out hummus with carrots and peppers. Some days, I do a larger spread. I have been doing a host of “grazing” boards lately, like the charcuterie boards I described in my last column, as well as shalashudes and dessert boards. I’ve found these grazing boards perfect for after-school snacks as well. After the huge amount of energy children expend at school – including trying not to fidget during class or run in the hallways – when they come home, it’s as though their bodies and minds take a huge cleansing breath that says, “Hooray, I’m home.” And the very first thing their bodies are telling them (whether they know it or not) is that they’re hungry. A healthy, delicious snack recharges their energy before homework, playtime, or chores begin.

It was my first day in camp, and as I sat on the floor davening with my little campers, I couldn’t help but laugh along with Country Yossi’s Modeh Ani song. It’s a cheerful ditty, one that thanks Hashem for our neshamos and giving us the gift of another day. And then it continues in a humorous way, expressing gratitude for Noskes and for Paskesz and, of course, for snow storms that keep us home from school. Obviously, yummy snacks rank high on the scale of importance for kids, and students of all ages anxiously await snow days. But does that mean that kids dread the end of these last drops of summer sunshine and the imminent start of school? Does even the deluge of crisp new notebooks, spanking new school bags, and colorful new shoes not tempt them?

Personally, I always looked forward to school. As the last weeks of summer vacation faded ever so slowly into oblivion, I spent much time peering excitedly at my school supplies, dreaming of that very first day with friends and teachers and learning. Was I alone in my excitement?

South America was on my “bucket list” of places I wanted to visit. I saw a kosher tour organized by Zvi Lapian to the Amazon rainforests, Galapagos Islands, and Peru, including the legendary Machu Picchu, Lost City of the Incas. It sounded exotic and exciting, so I decided to sign up. Little did I realize how strenuous this trip would be. If you’re looking to relax, don’t look here! But if you are seeking to explore the world and learn a lot, by all means go ahead! The remote Galapagos Islands, in particular, are fascinating not only because of the unusual and abundant wildlife but also because of their connection to Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, which has had such profound effects on Western civilization.

I flew from Tel Aviv to Madrid with Air Europa. The flight from Madrid to Ecuador was delayed by five hours, which meant that I had to spend the whole night at the Madrid airport. There were long lines waiting at all the eateries and food stands, and I had to wait a long time just to drink some cold water. (On the way back to Madrid, they had no kosher meal for me to keep me going for the 11-hour flight – even though it was confirmed weeks before by the travel agent. Traveler, beware!)

At 5:30 in the morning, a huge line of angry people was waiting to board the plane. There was a shouting match with the staff of Air Europa. I guess the Spanish, like the South American Latinos, are emotional people.

We frequently hear that America is experiencing an opioid crisis, an opioid epidemic, or even a public health emergency. These terms generally refer to the sharp increase in opioid-related overdose deaths over the past five years. As most people know, opioids are a class of analgesic drugs that provide pain relief and euphoria. These drugs include commonly prescribed painkillers (Codeine, Percocet, Vicodin), heroin, and synthetic variations (Fentanyl). Last year, about 70,000 Americans died from a drug overdose, and about two thirds of these cases involved the use of opioids (often mixed with other drugs or alcohol). The rate of opioid-related overdose deaths in 2017 was six times higher than what was observed in 1999. In Maryland, about 2,000 deaths over the past year were attributed to opioids.

Arizonan Robin Meyerson jokes that her husband Charles saves bodies while she tries to save souls. He is an electrical engineer who creates pacemakers and other lifesaving medical products. She, the mother of their five children (and a grandmother), is a former corporate marketing whiz and, most recently, a motivational speaker, teacher, and author, who has made raising awareness about Jewish burial her life’s mission. How did she make that drastic leap? Robin shared her inspirational story of Divine Providence when she came to town to be a featured speaker for Project Inspire.