For all of the creative souls who thrive on crafting clever packages and coordinating themes,  Purim is their time to shine! In the middle of Adar, these individuals take their place atop the pedestal of wonder, arranging gorgeous shalach manos, orchestrating a stunning seudah, and wearing the ultimate badge of creativity: a home-made costume.

Do-it-yourself costumes range from something simple, like running a ribbon through the top of a fabric curtain to make a cape, to such clever creations as tying a dozen men’s ties around your arms and claiming you are a tie rack. There are funny costumes, such as writing on a T-shirt “ERROR 404 – COSTUME NOT FOUND,” and “punny” costumes, like taping numbers to yourself and telling people that you are someone they can really “count on.”

When the editor of WWW asked if I’d like to write an article about shalach manos, also known as mishlach manos, I smiled, and I haven’t stopped smiling. In fact, every time I am worrying about something, if I start thinking shalach manos, I stop worrying (except about getting this article done on time). Why do I smile thinking about, preparing, delivering, and receiving shalach manos on Purim, when it’s such a busy day? I guess because shalach manos is a time of giving. 

When I moved to Baltimore, almost five years ago, I met so many wonderful people and discovered a network of chesed organizations, frum magazines, and well-stocked kosher stores and restaurants. I also found my favorite spot in our house: the window by the kitchen table. It faces the backyard and acts like a camera capturing the changing seasons, animal visits, and other scenes throughout the year.

This morning, as I sit down to a breakfast of a Goldberg’s blueberry gluten-free bagel with cream cheese, I roll up the blinds to the top of the window and breathe in the beauty of the fall foliage. A massive tree with orange and golden leaves rises above my neighbor’s fence and reaches almost to the azure sky. When the sun comes out behind a puffy, white cloud, the leaves of that tree sparkle and dance, holding on for dear life. Other, smaller trees shared by several neighbors still have their colorful leaves, but not the one tree in our own backyard.

Where What When: We are getting so much conflicting information about Omicron. Do we know anything yet about how dangerous it is? To whom? How do you know if you have Delta or Omicron? Does it matter?

Dr. Yosef Levenbrown: As of January 1, in the region of the United States that includes Maryland, the CDC was reporting that the current strains of COVID were 93.8% Omicron and 6.2% Delta. The numbers in Maryland reflected these percentages. However, in other regions, such as New York, it was 88% Omicron and 12% Delta. In order to determine the subtype of a COVID virus, one has to run a special test, which is not a commercial test that is available to the public. These tests that subtype the virus to determine which variant it is are often run in state labs or in hospitals on behalf of the state. So, when someone is positive for COVID, there is no easy way to determine which variant he or she has.

Recent data that has been reported on Omicron seems to indicate that it is more contagious than earlier variants and has resulted in more breakthrough cases in vaccinated people as well as people who have had prior COVID infections, compared with prior variants. In both lab studies and real world studies, the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) have been shown to be effective against Omicron, not in terms of preventing someone from getting COVID but in terms of protecting one from severe symptoms of COVID. Getting three vaccines (the primary series plus a booster shot) has been shown in both lab and real world studies to be more effective than two vaccines. However, most of the people who have been getting severe COVID symptoms, including hospitalization and death from Omicron, have been unvaccinated.

WWW: We are here today with Donny Ankri, architect extraordinaire for the frum community. Our discussion today will focus on what a person should look for when doing a small addition. We’ll get into specifics and talk about the process. Donny, if somebody’s thinking about making an addition, who’s the first person they should call?

Donny Ankri: Definitely call an architect. Although you might typically think of calling a builder or a loan officer, they don’t have the vision that the architect does. Architects are really good at giving you a good understanding of the big picture. We take the bucket list of what you’re trying to achieve and show you how it can best fit your house. Once you have the general framework, you can reach out to other people involved.

As we drive up the main road of Mitzpe Yericho, with olive trees surrounding us on both sides, I am full of hope. Searching for a community can be daunting, and at last my husband Eliyahu and I agree that this yishuv we are visiting feels like home. Perhaps we are coming full circle as we got married in Mitzpe Yericho’s wedding hall, Nof HaYarden. Funny, though – at the time, we did not even consider living in Mitzpe, as it is fondly called.

Eliyahu points out the significance of Mitzpe Yericho. A mitzpe is a lookout; this yishuv lies on top of a mountain overlooking the ancient city of Yericho a few kilometers away. Nowadays, Yericho is an Arab city known for its casino, and Jews are not allowed to live there. But its history goes back to the times of Yehoshua, when Bnei Yisrael entered Eretz Yisrael and miraculously conquered the city.

After dinner last week, my wife Arleeta suggested that we have a cup of tea. Out came the tea chest filled with every imaginable tea choice. I’m not a tea connoisseur; for me traditional black (orange pekoe) tea is almost always my choice. As I removed the tea bag from my cup, I had a flashback to my grandparents’ table. When I was a child, it was unheard of to use a tea bag only once! My grandma would always give my grandpa the first cup, then she used the tea bag for her cup, then the third cup went to the next-oldest uncle or aunt – and if you were next in line, you got the fourth cup. In my own home, my mom only stretched three cups out of one bag! In those days, tea meant two choices: Lipton or Swee-Touch-Nee.

It was about a half-hour into a marriage mediation session when the challenge became very apparent to me. In all areas of life – for both husband and wife – it was all or nothing. There was considerable need for a vacation, but only a fully planned vacation would do. There was need for increased communication, but only a full-fledged DMC (Deep Meaningful Conversation) would be sufficient.

I asked their permission to introduce a new model by which to judge their marriage, a model I like to call “coloring in the picture.” You see, sometimes things might be progressing in a good direction, but we won’t notice that if we are judging things as black-and-white, pass-or-fail, all-or-nothing.

One of the most difficult aspects of daily life in the winter is the darkness that quickly overwhelms. It seems like before we turn around, the sun is setting and we are driving home from work or school in the dark! Halfway through Shabbos dinner, we feel like it’s almost midnight, but the clock insists it’s only 7:15! During the winter months, people tend to lack energy and motivation, and fail to work on their long-term goals, “saving their strength” to just make it through the day, short as it is. And the night seems to paralyze us as we struggle to take shelter from the shadows.

As many of our brethren in chutz la’aretz (outside Eretz Yisrael) are aware, we in Israel are currently in the middle of a shmitah year, the once-in-seven-years time when we are commanded to allow the Land to rest. Hearing the word “shmitah,” many immediately think about the farmers. They are the true heroes of this incredible mitzvah, of course. They are the ones who put their livelihood on hold for close to two years! That is because, even after shmitah is over, it takes a very long time to get the farm back in working condition. The land was neglected for a year, and needs to be put back in order. Idled machinery requires service. Many employees have taken jobs elsewhere during shmitah, so a new team must be hired. Some customers have gotten new suppliers, so the farmers may need to find new sales outlets, and negotiate new contracts. And of course, there is the wait for the new crops to be planted and harvested. For the farmers, there are so many details to put together before, during, and after shmitah.

Yet farmers are not the only ones who are affected by shmitah. Seven years ago, in these same pages, I wrote an article interviewing housewives about their shmitah experiences. This time I would like to share with you my interviews with a few local caterers about how shmitah is affecting their businesses.