Comfort Food
Menu-writing is a comforting exercise I often turn to around Yom Tov time. Note that I seldom actually cook (eek).
Category: Yomim Tovim
Yom Tov Planning, Green Eggs and Ham-Style
I’m pleased to share that I have plans for Rosh Hashana. I am going to my cousin with one of my other cousins. BH, so grateful this fell into place. I think I’ll be at my parents for the rest of the Yomim Tovim and that’s fine as it was mostly Rosh Hashana that I worried about. However, I did cycle …
The Zone of Sadness and Anxiety
It’s two months to Rosh Hashanah and this is the time of year that I find most challenging. It’s when I start to look at what has (and hasn’t) transpired this year, when I start to feel a creeping desperation for something to change soon because I can’t face another Rosh Hashanah like this. When I start worrying about where …
Sap Rising
Hey, all, and happy Tu B’Shvat. I don’t have much to write about today but wanted to check in. I chose the theme word Seeds for 5784 as a reminder to myself to practice patience and let things take their own time, and b”H recently I’ve been in that headspace. I don’t know how this lands for people, but making …
The Forest and the Trees
Every year around Tu B’Shvat, I open up The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben for a bit of inspiration. Did you know that trees form social safety networks underground? Trees share nutrients with one another and care for elderly or sick members of their communities.
Yom Tov Planning
I can’t believe Rosh Hashana is in under six weeks. The Yomim Noraim always catch me by surprise; the summer seems to come to an abrupt end every year. Figuring out where I want to be for the Yomim Noraim is hard. I truly can’t believe it’s another year that I’m still having to figure this out. I was so …
Tu B’Av History
I read this absolutely fascinating piece about Tu B’Av during the time of Sarah Schenirer and the original Bais Yaakov students.
Tisha B’Av
Recently I dealt with a difficult situation and tried to stay detached and unemotional about it to help me cope. That worked for a time, but then something else happened on top of everything else, and that’s when I started to cry.
Have an Easy and Meaningful Fast
A year ago on Tisha B’Av I had my egg retrieval. It was a special experience — an act of building, of moving towards geulah on a day we mourn destruction and golus. We don’t know when the golus will end but we do know that each day and each mitzvah brings us closer. We don’t know when our personal …
Bonfire
My neighbors made a little bonfire for their kids (technically on the 32nd day of the Omer as it was about 6 pm) and I joined with a bunch of neighbors roasting marshmallows around the fire. Later I read this article with my Partner in Torah about the significance of Lag B’Omer and bonfires. It’s a beautiful article and I …