Ahavat Chinam -- leave the politics aside

On the second day of yom tov, I attended a beautiful talk by the daughter of one of the rabbis who is part of the program here (who happens to be one of the rabbis affiliated with my shul and school, and one of my teachers in junior high. Irrelevant, though.) She is several years younger than me and made aliyah when she was 18, and her talk was entitled "Direct from Israel." She's vivacious and unpretentious, and she wasn't lecturing so much as sharing her understandings and appealing to ours.

She prefaced by assuring us this was not going to be a speech on why everyone should make aliyah, because she believes that's a truly personal decision, and that the only reason one should decide to move to Israel is if, to that person, the thought of living elsewhere simply cannot be tolerated.

Then she began with a verse-by-verse analysis of L'cha Dodi. I can't repeat the wording precisely here (and in fact I may be inadvertently overinterpreting/overdramatizing) but the theme as I understood it was as follows: First, we call out to the mourners of Israel, those who have lost what is dear to them, and tell them that if they come out to welcome the shabbat kallah, they will be able to rejoice once more. Then we reach out to the poor, and tell them we will provide them with the physical necessities and the ornaments to properly welcome the shabbat kallah, and through the process they will be made rich. Finally, we approach the unaffiliated, the spiritually unconnected, and persuade them to give their energies and attention to the shabbat kallah, and they will discover new meaning in their lives. When all are gathered, we proceed to the gates of the city together, and through each group's encouragement of one another, we all as a nation reach amazing heights.

She used this introduction to lead into her experiences with Israel as a place where, bottom line, the goal is to give to Klal Yisrael. She gave numerous examples of her own experiences with this attitude, and while I'll acknowledge that she's idealistic, I won't discount that kind of perspective because, well...I am too. Her stories were the kind that can give me goosebumps and only serve to reinforce my passion for the country. I won't repeat them here, though; they were only examples that supported her point.

As a climax to this portrayal, she told of sitting with a friend near the kotel and being approached by a red-headed young man. (She interjected her own narration by wondering aloud why she mentioned that he was red-headed, as it's completely irrelevant, but the fact made me able to picture the scene that much more vividly, so I brought it along). He was distraught, in tears, gesturing at the golden dome on Har Habayit, asking "What's that?" She told the story very expressively, showing her audience the pained glances she exchanged with her friend during this interchange.
"Err...uh...that's the mosque."
"But -- but -- where's the Beit Hamikdash?!"
How do they break this to him? But suddenly he understands.
"Oh...wait...I know...how could it be...this is because of sinat chinam, right?"
And they look at each other again, relieved and miserable at once.
"Yes. Yes, it is."

She didn't go into any detail about who he might have been, what might have been "up" with him or what happened after that. But the point was made, that even with all the illustrations she'd given of Jews helping other Jews, it's not enough. We need to work harder.

She insisted she didn't want to get into politics, and she tried. It's pretty impossible when talking about Israel, though, and she did address the evacuations tangentially. It was pretty clear from everything she didn't say how she felt about them -- she corrected all references to "giving back" the land to "giving it away," and she tried to give a picture of the people who live there and just what they will be leaving behind to be destroyed. But she was very careful not to state an opinion on what should or should not be done. She acknowledged that most of the Israeli public supports the move, and it was her attention to the nuances of the situation that stood out in my mind. In fact, she made a statement that I consider to be nothing less than profound:

"[Israeli] politics is like olam haba -- we just don't know." I believe she meant we don't know, at the end of all the arguments and the reasoning, what really should be done. We don't know what will get us to the ultimate success. We don't know exactly what's expected of us or how to implement it. So we keep pushing on, hoping that our understandings are guiding us correctly, realizing that there must only be one "right" path and not wanting to give up our confidence that it is our own, yet also not wanting to entirely cut down anyone else's for fear that theirs is actually the Derech.

May Hashem give us the strength to continue the search and find our way very, very soon.

(Posted on Pacific time)

Exodus

I finished Leon Uris's masterpiece* last week**, and I've wanted to say a bit about it. First, despite its being a novel, it is definitely, in my opinion, one of the pillars of Zionist ideology. It's pretty amazing how extensively he covers the historical background of Jews all over the world leading up to and through the creation of the State. It's just as fascinating how he manages to tie together the roles of characters from such diverse origins and mentalities in a way that is so vividly representative of reality in Israel, at least at the time when he was writing. I have some issues with his blanket dismissive treatment of religious Jews there, and with some inaccuracies (or at least lack of appropriate qualifications) in his description of religious practices themselves, but I'll put those aside. From a purely nationalistic perspective, he captured practically every breath of those who built the country.

My biggest difficulty, however, as very much of an elementary student myself of Israeli history, is with his seamless meshing of fact and fiction. See, I like historical fiction a lot, especially because I generally have very little patience or capacity for undiluted history, so I appreciate the "feel" of a certain time period or of a certain sequence of events that this type of literature provides. It doesn't usually trouble me that not everything stated in such a story happened exactly as described, because if I were to have read a documented account of the actual facts, my understanding and recollection of them later wouldn't give me much more accurate a picture than my clearer memory of fuzzier reality. (Got that?)

Anyway, I have a hangup with Israeli history. I don't necessarily retain much more of what I learn of it than I do of any other topic in the field, but that only frustrates me because of my interest. So when I read a book like Exodus, I find it incredibly aggravating to recognize many of the events as fact, knowing that obviously someone other than the book's fictional character played their key role in the event, but not knowing who it was. It's made even worse because Uris intermingles descriptions of such events in his narrative with accounts of purely imaginary occurences and with reports of other episodes that are fully accurate as to participants, location, etc.

I'm not sure this is a criticism of Uris's technique. I don't know that there's any solution to this problem besides somehow forcing the factual material into my brain and tying it there. (If you know the secret, let me in!) And I wouldn't want to give up the genre, even in the context of Israel and Judaism. But gee, it's annoying...

*I do not mean to imply by calling it a masterpiece that it is necessarily his best work, or that I would want to pass judgment on that question. I have read only one of his other books, Mila 18, which was extremely powerful, and I plan to read more. I just mean that it is A masterpiece.

**This is actually the second time I've read it, but the first was before I was mature enough, educated enough and interested enough in the related history to appreciate it properly.

(Posted on Pacific time)

Vacation Update

Several people have asked already, "How is it?" The basic answer is as follows:

The good stuff: The place is absolutely beautiful. The grounds are rustic and peaceful, there are bunny rabbits hopping and fountains trickling and staff are everywhere ready to serve. The food is ridiculously abundant and delicious, the weather has been only a little chilly but otherwise stupendous, there have been a number of interesting shiurim and lectures, and I won a fantastic prize. Oh, and there's a business center right here which is currently open long past its stated hours, so I can write about all this.

The not-as-great stuff: There aren't as many activities as I would have liked, there is a smaller group here than I expected, and even most of the people that are here tend to disappear somewhere whenever I'm wandering around looking for someone to meet. In short, I'm lonely, but as that's a condition endemic to my life at this point in general, there's no good reason it should be different on vacation.

Summary: I'm being spoiled and enjoying most of it. ;-)

(Posted on Pacific time)

BINGO!

I actually have lots and lots to write, because I've been accumulating thoughts with no time to put them down. But before I get started (and it may still come gradually because I'm doing stuff with my family during the day and the business center is only open until 8pm), I have to share some excitement.

Last night, after yom tov ended, they had bingo. When I saw the schedule, I thought..."Bingo? That's the best they could come up with for a motzei-yom-tov evening activity??" I decided that if my mom was going to drive somewhere I'd go with her, and if not I'd probably play...but just because it was there. Then I heard that they had really good prizes...so I decided it was definitely worth the time just to take my chances. After all, I can't win the lottery because I don't play. At least I could spend some relaxed vacation time, for free, just in case someone upstairs wanted to grace me with some good luck.

The prizes were all electronic items of various values and purposes. Most I wouldn't particularly care to have, with two exceptions: A digital camera and a mini ipod, the two toys I have been drooling over for a couple of years now.

We played. I was perfectly relaxed, unlike a lot of the kids around me moaning that they just had to win. Just to win. And then the game for the camera started, and I tensed up just a little bit. Listened carefully, marked my numbers. Got a little more tense as I noticed I only had one left to form the pattern for that game. "G51"..."BINGO!" Me and one other person. Almost every game so far had had 2-3 initial winners all at once, and they broke the tie by continuing to call numbers until one of the finalists had it on their winning board. They did so for us...three times...and..."BINGO!" The camera is mine!

YAY!!! :-D

I'll post pictures of the winning game piece when I get home and load the software on my computer...because I can. ;-)

(Posted on Pacific time)

If This Is a Profession, I'll Take a Job

When I was working as a mere "administrative assistant" at my old job, I was very happy. Now I'm an "intern" in "my field" and I'm bored to tears. Sure, I get a lot of administrative stuff to do also -- but that's the only part I can tolerate. As soon as they give me something they think I'll be interested in to "get me involved," I feel like I'm right back in school.

Am I the only person who sees a problem here?

Smart

A news item from the little TV screen in the elevator where I work: Governors of nine states are pushing for an overhaul of the senior year of high school. They say the way it is now, it's a waste of the kids' time and the taxpayers' money. Amazing how long it can take a bunch of politicians to affirm what any high school graduate knows.

A Reminder

I think this is a beautifully written reminder of one of life's important Lessons.

A most exciting way of meeting a new friend

...is to go to her wedding!

Thanks, Peninah, and mazal tov!!!

Alive

Yeah, I'm still here. Busy. Overdue assignment (some things never change). Sunday I was in Ithaca for the least amount of time I've ever been there (4-ish hours). Not my idea of a relaxing weekend, but it's better than wearing wool and corduroy into the spring and summer. Not that anyone would know that it's spring, by the temperature!

Grumble. Now back to work.

Got What I Asked For

I was desperately trying to think of a good enough excuse to skip work today. I get up (late, and slowly), take my shower, sit down on my bed, trying to figure out what to wear and whining to myself, and then I try to straighten up and realize the intense pain in my left shoulder.

I spent most of the day flat on my back. Good: Relaxing. Bad: Painful. Oh, well. It was a fair trade.

Disturbing

This is a very strange news item. I feel like I'm reading CNN in reverse. I'd really like to know, though, just how much of it is Arutz-7's slant.

Finally! Rail Returns to Yerushalayim

I know, I know, I should completely be in bed by now. But I just read Chayyei Sarah who referred to Elms in the Yard who announced that the Jerusalem train is (about to be) back in service! next week! COOL! :-D

Grrrr....

I've made the habit of doing my schoolwork in Starbucks. As I explained a while back, I find it good to have a designated work spot that has a relaxed atmosphere, where I can get a treat to urge myself to attend to my work.

Anyway, I went there this evening and ordered a small -- excuse me, tall -- frappuchino. The guy put the coffee and syrup and ice into the blender, closed the clear plastic box over it (I wonder how many times people got hit by flying blender-covers and sprayed by iced-coffee-mush before they came up with those), and then poured it into a cup. But he poured too much, and added too much whipped cream on top, so when he tried to put the domed cover on the cup...well, he couldn't quite figure out how to get it on over it all, and he kinda made a mess. So I figured he would finally just push the cover on, wipe off the cup with a napkin, and hand it to me.

No. That would have been too reasonable. Instead, he shrugged, mumbled something about trying again, and before I realized what he was going to do he picked the whole thing up and dropped it in the garbage. I was flipping. If you know me, you know how I feel about waste, particularly about wasting food, and particularly about wasting food that I like. And it absolutely boggles my mind that he thought nothing about throwing the whole thing out and starting over. When he gave me the next one (which he carefully filled not quite to the top -- we know where the rest of the stuff in the blender went), I gave him an unsolicited tip. Next time he runs into a situation like that, ask the customer if she minds that it's a little messy, or if she'd prefer a new one. Because he got me much more upset than I would have been over a little drippage. Somehow I doubt, although I can hope, that he got even an inkling of where I was coming from.

Grrrrrrr...

The Psychology of Showering

OK -- Random, pointless survey (just because I was wondering about it in my half-awake state in the shower this morning):

When you get ready to take a shower, do you:
a) Stand outside the tub/stall (dressed or undressed), start the water and test it with your hand to determine when to get in
b) Get into the tub/stall and turn on the water pointed away from you, or stand out of its reach, until it adjusts to your comfort level
c) Get in and turn it on full force over yourself immediately

I wonder what elements of a person's personality could be extracted from simple behaviors like these. Hmm.

Ah, for the days of stupid people...

Someone -- a-hem, a-hem -- got me into reading Waiter Rant. It's funny and rather enjoyable, but it makes me think back to the days of my old job when I got to exchange complaints with my colleagues all day about the Stupid People we had to deal with. I miss that comraderie, and I guess when it comes right down to it I'd rather be hassled in good company than bored on my own. I ought to have been keeping a blog then myself -- you would've gotten some great stories.

And yes, in reference to the previous post...sometimes I just give up and ignore the forest and the trees.

The Forest and the Trees

I can't seem to strike a balance between the forest and the trees.

When I concentrate on one thing at a time, I do each thing so slowly that I don't have much chance of getting through the lot before the deadlines strike.

But when I think about the bigger picture, the panic takes over and I can't even focus on each individual thing.

I know I'm probably talking about everyone's problem...but has anyone got a solution??

I LOVE DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME!!!!!

That's all. It just makes me feel so much more alive to see sunlight at 7pm...

Shalom, Chaver

I don't know much about his actions within Catholicism and in other spheres, but the late Pope, John Paul II z"l, was a good friend of the Jews. He made revolutionary strides in changing the attitude of the Church regarding Jews and anti-Semitism, and G-d willing his legacy in that area will be felt forever.

The New Wave of Technology -- Intelligent Beverages

Check out what I'm pretty sure is Google's April Fools' joke. Read all the way through -- it's hilarious!