Chilul Hashem. The Desecration of G-d's name. I see it everywhere. It's all over the news, both National and International. The small sect of Sikrikim who call themselves Haredim (G-d fearing Jews)are walking the streets of Bet Shemesh(very close to where I live), terrorizing young girls and women. Subhuman animals are molesting innocent children in Nachlaot, Jerusalem and not getting caught. Young hooligans are actively involved in Tag Mechir (vandalizing Arab property)...How can it be that people who claim to love G-d, His Torah and His Mitzvot(commandments) can commit the gravest of crimes by desecrating His Holy Name??
My heart aches. I stay up at night wondering why this is happening within my people and what I can do to stop it. The Torah states very clearly "Lo Ta'amod Al Dam Re'echa"....Literally, this means do not stand idly by and watch your brother bleed....In other words, do not let your brother/sister suffer without trying to help him/her.
Every minute of every day, we all have opportunities to do a Kiddush Hashem...To sanctify His Holy Name, rather than ,heaven forbid, desecrate it. A heartfelt compliment and expression of gratitude to our spouse. Fun and quality time spent with the kids. A visit to an elderly and lonely person. A smile and a "Good Morning" to the street cleaner. An "I'm sorry" to someone we've wronged. I truly believe that Hakadosh Baruch Hu smiles at us when He sees us treating our loved ones and even perfect strangers with love and respect. On the flipside, I think that He cries bitter tears when He sees His children behaving in ways that hurt their fellow brothers and sisters.
I wish I could single handedly make the Sikrikim stop terrorizing my holy sisters. I wish I could catch all the evil molesters and throw them in jail for life. I wish I could put an end to Tag Mechir. I can't. But that doesn't mean that I can't do anything. I'm not helpless.
I can look for my own meaningful opportunities to do a Kiddush Hashem( a sanctification of G-d's name). I can give up my seat on the bus for the older gentleman without a kippa (skullcap). I can express my love and appreciation to my husband and my kids on a daily basis. I can buy a warm drink and a sandwich for a person begging for money on the street. I can connect with people who are very different than I am. I can cook meals for new moms. I can invite random new people I meet in the supermarket to my home for Shabbat.
We can all do these things. Every small act of chessed (kindness) counts.
With Love,
Cigal
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Priceless
I am a strong believer in "teachable moments". Maybe it's the former teacher in me speaking, but I like finding golden opportunities to teach my kids important life lessons.
My little boy and I generally sit together in the early am before my daughter wakes up and we eat a bowl of cereal together. It's our special time together before I bring him to preschool. The other day, he decided not to wait for me and to get his own cereal. He got the cereal and the milk, a bowl and a spoon. He sat down at his very own special table and poured himself some cereal. I was in the kitchen finishing up making his lunch. When I went in to see him, he had unfortunately poured the entire jug of milk into his little bowl and the inevitable result was spilled milk all over the table and all over him. Here was a perfect teachable moment. I could have gotten annoyed at him. I could have raised my voice. But in a case such as this, I knew that it must have been an accident and that he must have lost his grasp on the jug. In Judaism, there's an important concept of Dan L'Kaf Zchut, judging your fellow Jew favorably. I said to my little boy" It's okay my sweet boy. This was an accident. You were being an independent big boy, getting your breakfast by yourself. Maybe the milk jug was a little too heavy for you. Maybe next time, call Ema to pour the milk". Right after this lesson, I found the little guy unrolling an entire roll of toilet paper, cutting the paper into tiny shreds and throwing it ll over the floor. This time I said to him" Honey, this is NOT an accident. It's not nice to give Ema more cleaning work." As soon as I said that, the little guy got down on the floor, picked up all the pieces and threw them in the trash can. I was so proud of him :)
Today, I went shopping with my little girl. I was looking for winter hats for her, my boy and for myself. We were in a busy store filled with customers. I took two different children's hats off the rack to have a look at. Suddenly the place got so overcrowded and my little girl was getting antsy and hungry, so we left. A few minutes later, I looked on the top of the stroller and saw the two hats on there. Those hats had come with me out of the store without being paid for. When I realized what had happened, I told my little girl" Ema made a big mistake. Let's go fix it". We went back to the store and I returned the hats to their proper shelves. I told the saleswoman what had happened and apologized profusely. I was grateful that my daughter had witnessed it all.
My daughter is almost 8 months old and my son is 2 years old, but I don't believe that children are ever too young to learn from their environment. I talk to my kids. I admit and take responsibility when I've made a mistake. I look for opportunities to teach them things that might help them in the future.
Teachable moments are priceless.
With Love,
Cigal
My little boy and I generally sit together in the early am before my daughter wakes up and we eat a bowl of cereal together. It's our special time together before I bring him to preschool. The other day, he decided not to wait for me and to get his own cereal. He got the cereal and the milk, a bowl and a spoon. He sat down at his very own special table and poured himself some cereal. I was in the kitchen finishing up making his lunch. When I went in to see him, he had unfortunately poured the entire jug of milk into his little bowl and the inevitable result was spilled milk all over the table and all over him. Here was a perfect teachable moment. I could have gotten annoyed at him. I could have raised my voice. But in a case such as this, I knew that it must have been an accident and that he must have lost his grasp on the jug. In Judaism, there's an important concept of Dan L'Kaf Zchut, judging your fellow Jew favorably. I said to my little boy" It's okay my sweet boy. This was an accident. You were being an independent big boy, getting your breakfast by yourself. Maybe the milk jug was a little too heavy for you. Maybe next time, call Ema to pour the milk". Right after this lesson, I found the little guy unrolling an entire roll of toilet paper, cutting the paper into tiny shreds and throwing it ll over the floor. This time I said to him" Honey, this is NOT an accident. It's not nice to give Ema more cleaning work." As soon as I said that, the little guy got down on the floor, picked up all the pieces and threw them in the trash can. I was so proud of him :)
Today, I went shopping with my little girl. I was looking for winter hats for her, my boy and for myself. We were in a busy store filled with customers. I took two different children's hats off the rack to have a look at. Suddenly the place got so overcrowded and my little girl was getting antsy and hungry, so we left. A few minutes later, I looked on the top of the stroller and saw the two hats on there. Those hats had come with me out of the store without being paid for. When I realized what had happened, I told my little girl" Ema made a big mistake. Let's go fix it". We went back to the store and I returned the hats to their proper shelves. I told the saleswoman what had happened and apologized profusely. I was grateful that my daughter had witnessed it all.
My daughter is almost 8 months old and my son is 2 years old, but I don't believe that children are ever too young to learn from their environment. I talk to my kids. I admit and take responsibility when I've made a mistake. I look for opportunities to teach them things that might help them in the future.
Teachable moments are priceless.
With Love,
Cigal
Thursday, November 10, 2011
An Attitude of Gratitude
Sometimes, life gets a little too comfortable. Sometimes, we begin to take things for granted. Sometimes we forget that every single detail in our life is a GIFT FROM G-D...Recently, I noticed that there were certain aspects of my life that I was taking for granted and not showing enough gratitude, either to G-d or his messengers that provide me with daily, if not hourly, reasons to be grateful. If I really sat and thought about it, I'm sure I could come up with hundreds more reasons to be grateful, but here is a shortened list:
1) I am grateful that I was born in Canada and that I was able to experience falls and winters there growing up. Playing in the beautiful changing/falling leaves, building snowmen and making snow angels as a child were very special and irreplaceable parts of my childhood.
2) I am grateful that I was born to the two parents I was blessed with. Through the years, being their daughter has taught me a lot about myself and the kind of woman I want(ed) to grow to become.
3) I am grateful to my parents for speaking to me in Hebrew and French while I was growing up, as now I am fluent in three languages.
4) I am grateful to my surrogate sisters in Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Atlanta and beyond, who have taught me the true value of real friendship.
5) I am grateful to my ex husband for loving me enough to let me go.
6) I am grateful to Rabbi Ross Singer and his wife Emily for helping me to connect with the deepest part of myself and encouraging me to begin my journey into the rich world of Yiddishkeit.
7) I am grateful to Rabbi Fass and Nefesh B'Nefesh (www.nbn.org.il) for helping me realize my dream of making Aliyah and then giving me a job as a Pre Aliyah Counselor for my first year and a half here.
8) I am grateful to Prof. Reuven Feuerstein (www.icelp.org) for giving me a job as a mediator in his holy center of miracles.
9) I am grateful to all the different guys I went on dates with before I met my husband, as every wrong date brought me closer to my soul mate.
10) I am grateful for Facebook as it allows me to stay connected to people I love and it serves as a great tool for educating the rest of the world and trying to change their misconceptions about the amazing place I live in.
11) I am grateful to live in a community full of people who do tremendous chessed (acts of loving kindness). One of the many examples is not allowing me to cook a single meal for my family for a whole month, after each time I gave birth.
12) I am grateful to G-d for bringing me my sweet, caring, loving and devoted Hubby at the perfect time.
13) I am grateful to G-d and to Hubby for making me an Ema (mother) to my two precious jewels.
14) I am grateful for the fantastic medical care I received during my pregnancy, during labour and during my stays in the hospital post deliveries.
15) I am grateful that Hubby's income allows for me to stay home with our kids and to be there for all of their important milestones.
16) I am grateful for Shabbat. To this day, I have no idea how I managed living a life without it.
17) I am grateful each morning I wake up to the sound of Hubby and our special little treasures.
18) I am grateful for cool and sunny days around this time of year.
19) I am grateful for my crockpot, which allows for me to make yummy and healthy meals without having to hang out for hours in the kitchen.
20) I am grateful for the shows "Law and Order" and "Glee", the two shows that Hubby and I enjoy watching together after the kiddies have gone to sleep.
21) I am grateful for SKYPE, as it allows for my kids to develop and maintain relationships with their grandparents who live on the other side of the world.
22) I am grateful for G-d's mitzvot, His Commandments, as they encourage me to live a rich life of striving to become the best Me that I can be.
23) I am grateful for Ben & Jerry's, as their sinfully decadent ice creams are wonderful treats, especially on a hot summer day (or any other day, for that matter).
24) I am grateful for good music and fun times dancing with my kids.
25) I am grateful for being able to see the good that comes from very painful events in my life and encouraging the people I love to do the same.
Dear reader, take a good and honest look at your life. There's no question in my mind, that you too, have many, many things to be grateful for. I truly believe that only good things can come from developing an attitude of gratitude.
With Love,
Cigal
1) I am grateful that I was born in Canada and that I was able to experience falls and winters there growing up. Playing in the beautiful changing/falling leaves, building snowmen and making snow angels as a child were very special and irreplaceable parts of my childhood.
2) I am grateful that I was born to the two parents I was blessed with. Through the years, being their daughter has taught me a lot about myself and the kind of woman I want(ed) to grow to become.
3) I am grateful to my parents for speaking to me in Hebrew and French while I was growing up, as now I am fluent in three languages.
4) I am grateful to my surrogate sisters in Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Atlanta and beyond, who have taught me the true value of real friendship.
5) I am grateful to my ex husband for loving me enough to let me go.
6) I am grateful to Rabbi Ross Singer and his wife Emily for helping me to connect with the deepest part of myself and encouraging me to begin my journey into the rich world of Yiddishkeit.
7) I am grateful to Rabbi Fass and Nefesh B'Nefesh (www.nbn.org.il) for helping me realize my dream of making Aliyah and then giving me a job as a Pre Aliyah Counselor for my first year and a half here.
8) I am grateful to Prof. Reuven Feuerstein (www.icelp.org) for giving me a job as a mediator in his holy center of miracles.
9) I am grateful to all the different guys I went on dates with before I met my husband, as every wrong date brought me closer to my soul mate.
10) I am grateful for Facebook as it allows me to stay connected to people I love and it serves as a great tool for educating the rest of the world and trying to change their misconceptions about the amazing place I live in.
11) I am grateful to live in a community full of people who do tremendous chessed (acts of loving kindness). One of the many examples is not allowing me to cook a single meal for my family for a whole month, after each time I gave birth.
12) I am grateful to G-d for bringing me my sweet, caring, loving and devoted Hubby at the perfect time.
13) I am grateful to G-d and to Hubby for making me an Ema (mother) to my two precious jewels.
14) I am grateful for the fantastic medical care I received during my pregnancy, during labour and during my stays in the hospital post deliveries.
15) I am grateful that Hubby's income allows for me to stay home with our kids and to be there for all of their important milestones.
16) I am grateful for Shabbat. To this day, I have no idea how I managed living a life without it.
17) I am grateful each morning I wake up to the sound of Hubby and our special little treasures.
18) I am grateful for cool and sunny days around this time of year.
19) I am grateful for my crockpot, which allows for me to make yummy and healthy meals without having to hang out for hours in the kitchen.
20) I am grateful for the shows "Law and Order" and "Glee", the two shows that Hubby and I enjoy watching together after the kiddies have gone to sleep.
21) I am grateful for SKYPE, as it allows for my kids to develop and maintain relationships with their grandparents who live on the other side of the world.
22) I am grateful for G-d's mitzvot, His Commandments, as they encourage me to live a rich life of striving to become the best Me that I can be.
23) I am grateful for Ben & Jerry's, as their sinfully decadent ice creams are wonderful treats, especially on a hot summer day (or any other day, for that matter).
24) I am grateful for good music and fun times dancing with my kids.
25) I am grateful for being able to see the good that comes from very painful events in my life and encouraging the people I love to do the same.
Dear reader, take a good and honest look at your life. There's no question in my mind, that you too, have many, many things to be grateful for. I truly believe that only good things can come from developing an attitude of gratitude.
With Love,
Cigal
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Don't Cry Over Spilled Smoothies
I've finally figured out a way for my little guy to ingest fruits and really enjoy them. Every day, I get my blender out and throw in a mix of some of the yummiest seasonal fruit, freshly squeezed OJ and vanilla flavored BIO yogurt. He gulps it down and then in his cutest possible voice, lifts the cup to me and says "Ama(aka Ema), Mo(aka More!)".
Yesterday morning we were all dressed and ready to go to preschool when he decided he wanted a little more "O juice" (that's what he calls most juices). The baby was dressed and waiting patiently in the double stroller and my sweet little boy went for the cup that was sitting on the table, saying "finish me!". I guess he must have tripped over something, because the cup went flying out of his hands, and the juice splashed all over him and all over the floor. Right then and there, I stopped in my tracks and thought" This is a perfect teachable moment, Cigal. Don't get annoyed. It was an accident. He didn't do it on purpose and the way you respond to him is SO important"...
"Oh, Oh", I said..."Your yummy juice spilled on the floor...I'm so sorry, honey. You must be disappointed because you really wanted to drink it. Ema is going to clean the floor up so no uninvited guests come over (aka ants). After I clean the floor, I will wash you up, change your clothes and give you more juice if you would like". And that's exactly what I did: I wiped the floor, washed him up, put on dry clothes and gave him more smoothie to drink. Even though he was covered in juice, he was giggling and clapping his sticky little hands as I sang silly songs to him while washing him up and changing his clothes. All the while, his little sister was waiting patiently in their stroller playing with her dolly. After gulping down his drink, we headed to preschool and got there a half hour late.
Fast forward to the late afternoon. The same exact thing happened with his smoothie. Somehow, the cup slipped out of his hands and splashed all over the floor, our couch and him. It felt like G-d was testing me to see how I would respond this time. I was determined to pass the test. Instead of getting annoyed or impatient, I said " My sweet little boy, you're just not having any luck with your drinks today, are you? It's not the end of the world, honey. Ema can always make you more, if you would like". I cleaned him, the couch, and the floor and gave my little guy a big hug and said "I love you, my sweet boy". He then led me to the kitchen by the hand, opened the fridge door, pointed to the blender with the juice in it and said "MO!".
What was the lesson I was to learn from this? What was the lesson I wanted to impart to my boy? That Life often throws us curve balls. Sometimes those curve balls are small annoyances and other times, they're big and seemingly insurmountable obstacles. I want to teach my kids how to roll with the punches. How to "go with the flow" and not sweat the small stuff. In this case, there was no use at all to cry over the spilled smoothies.
With Love,
Cigal
Yesterday morning we were all dressed and ready to go to preschool when he decided he wanted a little more "O juice" (that's what he calls most juices). The baby was dressed and waiting patiently in the double stroller and my sweet little boy went for the cup that was sitting on the table, saying "finish me!". I guess he must have tripped over something, because the cup went flying out of his hands, and the juice splashed all over him and all over the floor. Right then and there, I stopped in my tracks and thought" This is a perfect teachable moment, Cigal. Don't get annoyed. It was an accident. He didn't do it on purpose and the way you respond to him is SO important"...
"Oh, Oh", I said..."Your yummy juice spilled on the floor...I'm so sorry, honey. You must be disappointed because you really wanted to drink it. Ema is going to clean the floor up so no uninvited guests come over (aka ants). After I clean the floor, I will wash you up, change your clothes and give you more juice if you would like". And that's exactly what I did: I wiped the floor, washed him up, put on dry clothes and gave him more smoothie to drink. Even though he was covered in juice, he was giggling and clapping his sticky little hands as I sang silly songs to him while washing him up and changing his clothes. All the while, his little sister was waiting patiently in their stroller playing with her dolly. After gulping down his drink, we headed to preschool and got there a half hour late.
Fast forward to the late afternoon. The same exact thing happened with his smoothie. Somehow, the cup slipped out of his hands and splashed all over the floor, our couch and him. It felt like G-d was testing me to see how I would respond this time. I was determined to pass the test. Instead of getting annoyed or impatient, I said " My sweet little boy, you're just not having any luck with your drinks today, are you? It's not the end of the world, honey. Ema can always make you more, if you would like". I cleaned him, the couch, and the floor and gave my little guy a big hug and said "I love you, my sweet boy". He then led me to the kitchen by the hand, opened the fridge door, pointed to the blender with the juice in it and said "MO!".
What was the lesson I was to learn from this? What was the lesson I wanted to impart to my boy? That Life often throws us curve balls. Sometimes those curve balls are small annoyances and other times, they're big and seemingly insurmountable obstacles. I want to teach my kids how to roll with the punches. How to "go with the flow" and not sweat the small stuff. In this case, there was no use at all to cry over the spilled smoothies.
With Love,
Cigal
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Live Your Dreams
I hate fear. I hate the way it can take over one's life. Fear is what makes people stay in bad jobs, unhealthy friendships and bad marriages. Fear is what holds people back from taking that leap of faith and leaving the bad job, ending the friendship and leaving the marriage.
When I was planning my Aliyah, I was living in Vancouver, loving my warm, wonderful and close knit religious Jewish community. I was working as a school counselor at a couple of inner city schools and making a very nice and comfortable income. This allowed me to have my own very nice apartment, a new car and a nice savings account. And yet, my heart and soul were deeply yearning for more...
When I first brought up the idea of Aliyah, there were two camps: one camp that said" Wow, way to go, Cigal! You're so brave! Go live your dream!" and the other camp that said" Oh my G-d, Cigal! What are you, NUTS??? Look at you? You have the perfect job, a great apartment, a great community...Why the heck would you give all that up to move to a war zone??" Those naysayers, inevitably, instilled a sense of fear and doubt in me..."What if Israel really is nothing but a pipe dream? What if I go there and I don't find work? What if I struggle to find a community? What if I don't meet anyone I can build my life with?..."
"NO. I'm not gonna listen to them. I know that I have to do it. Israel is where I belong."
I remember repeating that phrase OVER and OVER again for months, like a mantra, until I got on that Nefesh B'Nefesh flight and stepped off the stairs onto the tarmac at Ben Gurion Airport. It was when my two feet touched the ground here that I was overcome by a tremendous sense of calm. I DID IT. I ignored the naysayers. I got inspired and fueled by my supporters and here I was, about to live my dream.
In my seven years here, I have done and accomplished so much more than I and my naysayers could ever have dreamed of. I try to imagine what would have happened had I listened to them and allowed fear to take over me...Hubby and I would still be walking around aimlessly, searching for each other...Our precious little jewels would still be waiting for their missions here on Earth...And I would probably still be in Vancouver, living a good life instead of in Israel, living an extraordinary one...
My dear readers, don't let fear trap you in a place where you'll never be able to spread your wings and fly. Never listen to the naysayers in your life who try talking you out of the voices in your heart and your soul that tell you that you want and need more.You deserve to live your dreams.
With Love,
Cigal
When I was planning my Aliyah, I was living in Vancouver, loving my warm, wonderful and close knit religious Jewish community. I was working as a school counselor at a couple of inner city schools and making a very nice and comfortable income. This allowed me to have my own very nice apartment, a new car and a nice savings account. And yet, my heart and soul were deeply yearning for more...
When I first brought up the idea of Aliyah, there were two camps: one camp that said" Wow, way to go, Cigal! You're so brave! Go live your dream!" and the other camp that said" Oh my G-d, Cigal! What are you, NUTS??? Look at you? You have the perfect job, a great apartment, a great community...Why the heck would you give all that up to move to a war zone??" Those naysayers, inevitably, instilled a sense of fear and doubt in me..."What if Israel really is nothing but a pipe dream? What if I go there and I don't find work? What if I struggle to find a community? What if I don't meet anyone I can build my life with?..."
"NO. I'm not gonna listen to them. I know that I have to do it. Israel is where I belong."
I remember repeating that phrase OVER and OVER again for months, like a mantra, until I got on that Nefesh B'Nefesh flight and stepped off the stairs onto the tarmac at Ben Gurion Airport. It was when my two feet touched the ground here that I was overcome by a tremendous sense of calm. I DID IT. I ignored the naysayers. I got inspired and fueled by my supporters and here I was, about to live my dream.
In my seven years here, I have done and accomplished so much more than I and my naysayers could ever have dreamed of. I try to imagine what would have happened had I listened to them and allowed fear to take over me...Hubby and I would still be walking around aimlessly, searching for each other...Our precious little jewels would still be waiting for their missions here on Earth...And I would probably still be in Vancouver, living a good life instead of in Israel, living an extraordinary one...
My dear readers, don't let fear trap you in a place where you'll never be able to spread your wings and fly. Never listen to the naysayers in your life who try talking you out of the voices in your heart and your soul that tell you that you want and need more.You deserve to live your dreams.
With Love,
Cigal
Monday, October 17, 2011
Free Love
No, I'm not talking about the 60's...I'm not talking about their motto of"Make Love, Not War".
I'm talking about the here and the now. I'm talking about left wing and right wing Jews. I'm talking about religious and not religious Jews. Chareidi (Ultra Orthodox) and Modern Orthodox. I'm talking about the scary, SCARY state of affairs our people are in. We are in danger. The world is looking at us through a magnifying glass. We are being watched by hawks. Our cousins want us out of our land. OUR land. The land that is rightfully ours. And the countries of the world are either bystanders who won't get involved or they're openly critical of every move we make.
We need to STOP in our tracks and look within. Forget the world for a minute. Look at your brothers and your sisters who have different political opinions than you. Look at your fellow Jews who are more or less observant than you are. How do you communicate with them? In your heart of hearts, in the depths of your soul, what do you feel about a Jew who does everything differently than you? We MUST do a cheshbon hanefesh, an accounting of the soul. We must swallow our pride and find the good in our brothers and our sisters, even if we don't agree with them...We need to unite as a people. As a nation. Our future is at stake and it's up to US, not the world, to stand up and be strong.
Tomorrow is going to be a very emotionally charged day, as our people welcome Gilad Shalit back home (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilad_Shalit). Israel and Hamas sealed a deal last week through Egyptian mediation that will see Shalit freed in exchange for 1,027 Arab prisoners, many of them involved in masterminding or carrying out terror attacks against Israelis. To say the least, the exchange is bittersweet. Speaking for myself, I am thrilled that Gilad will go home to his family, where he belongs. But the price is so hard to swallow. The people being freed are not in jail for parking or traffic violations. These are monsters. 905 life sentences and more than 4,400 years in jail for the ones who don't have life sentences. Our people are in grave danger, as these monsters go back to resume their lives and plan the next attacks to kill off as many of us as possible.
I'm talking about the here and the now. I'm talking about left wing and right wing Jews. I'm talking about religious and not religious Jews. Chareidi (Ultra Orthodox) and Modern Orthodox. I'm talking about the scary, SCARY state of affairs our people are in. We are in danger. The world is looking at us through a magnifying glass. We are being watched by hawks. Our cousins want us out of our land. OUR land. The land that is rightfully ours. And the countries of the world are either bystanders who won't get involved or they're openly critical of every move we make.
We need to STOP in our tracks and look within. Forget the world for a minute. Look at your brothers and your sisters who have different political opinions than you. Look at your fellow Jews who are more or less observant than you are. How do you communicate with them? In your heart of hearts, in the depths of your soul, what do you feel about a Jew who does everything differently than you? We MUST do a cheshbon hanefesh, an accounting of the soul. We must swallow our pride and find the good in our brothers and our sisters, even if we don't agree with them...We need to unite as a people. As a nation. Our future is at stake and it's up to US, not the world, to stand up and be strong.
Tomorrow is going to be a very emotionally charged day, as our people welcome Gilad Shalit back home (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilad_Shalit). Israel and Hamas sealed a deal last week through Egyptian mediation that will see Shalit freed in exchange for 1,027 Arab prisoners, many of them involved in masterminding or carrying out terror attacks against Israelis. To say the least, the exchange is bittersweet. Speaking for myself, I am thrilled that Gilad will go home to his family, where he belongs. But the price is so hard to swallow. The people being freed are not in jail for parking or traffic violations. These are monsters. 905 life sentences and more than 4,400 years in jail for the ones who don't have life sentences. Our people are in grave danger, as these monsters go back to resume their lives and plan the next attacks to kill off as many of us as possible.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Listen to your Soul
Most people generally love Chanukka or Passover. Some really go all out on Purim. Others love Rosh Hashana.
When someone asks me what my favorite Jewish holiday is, they are often quite perplexed by my answer. Yom Kippur is my favorite holiday. Let me explain.
My ex husband and I were high school sweethearts. We met when we were 16, were the best of friends and after a couple of years, something happened and our friendship blossomed into something more . I was not religious growing up but I always went to synagogue on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Every year on Yom Kippur, while in the sanctuary, I felt a small tug in my heart from all the beautiful tunes and words...Sometimes so much so that I would cry, even at age 8. At 18, we started dating and at 21 we broke up. At 24, we found our way back to each other and moved across the country together (from Montreal to Vancouver). We were essentially married in all ways...Except that we weren't really. At 28 we got married officially. My ex was not interested in Judaism or any religion for that matter. Little did I know what a central and core part of me I was giving away by marrying him...I remember a couple of months after our wedding, it was Yom Kippur and I was in synagogue without him. Except this time, it was no longer small tugs on my heart, it was a powerful and breath stopping pull that I had never ever felt before. I was moved to tears...As I looked over the mechitza(separation between men and women in an Orthodox synagogue), I was overcome with the most intense and overwhelming sense of clarity...I had married the wrong man. As I looked over the mechitza and saw all the little boys sitting on their Abas' laps, it hit me like a ton of bricks that my children would never experience Yom Kippur with their Aba if I stayed married to my husband...
My soul was screaming in pain, howling in agony and I listened to it. I listened to my Pintele Yid( my G-dly spark) and I followed it on a journey into the unknown. And for over a decade, I have experienced the true beauty and joy of Yom Kippur...The Day of Atonement...My time to reconnect with Abaleh, my Father in Heaven. My time for opportunity to renew my relationship with Him and the people I love and care about. The fasting can be challenging, but it serves as a really important and useful purpose in my opinion.
Yom Kippur is going to look very different this year than it has in past years, as I will be home with the little ones most of the time. I will likely not have many (or any) opportunities to be in synagogue, but I intend to find opportunities to steal some time to talk to Abaleh and thank Him yet again for pushing me to the place that I am at now: married to the perfect man for me, entrusted with raising two of His precious jewels.
My dear readers who observe Yom Kippur and to all my dear brothers and sisters who may be experiencing a screaming and crying soul like I was all those years ago, come back Home. Abaleh is right here, waiting to hear from you, waiting to shower you with an abundance of blessings. Listen to your soul. It knows best.
Gmar Chatima Tova with Love,
Cigal
When someone asks me what my favorite Jewish holiday is, they are often quite perplexed by my answer. Yom Kippur is my favorite holiday. Let me explain.
My ex husband and I were high school sweethearts. We met when we were 16, were the best of friends and after a couple of years, something happened and our friendship blossomed into something more . I was not religious growing up but I always went to synagogue on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Every year on Yom Kippur, while in the sanctuary, I felt a small tug in my heart from all the beautiful tunes and words...Sometimes so much so that I would cry, even at age 8. At 18, we started dating and at 21 we broke up. At 24, we found our way back to each other and moved across the country together (from Montreal to Vancouver). We were essentially married in all ways...Except that we weren't really. At 28 we got married officially. My ex was not interested in Judaism or any religion for that matter. Little did I know what a central and core part of me I was giving away by marrying him...I remember a couple of months after our wedding, it was Yom Kippur and I was in synagogue without him. Except this time, it was no longer small tugs on my heart, it was a powerful and breath stopping pull that I had never ever felt before. I was moved to tears...As I looked over the mechitza(separation between men and women in an Orthodox synagogue), I was overcome with the most intense and overwhelming sense of clarity...I had married the wrong man. As I looked over the mechitza and saw all the little boys sitting on their Abas' laps, it hit me like a ton of bricks that my children would never experience Yom Kippur with their Aba if I stayed married to my husband...
My soul was screaming in pain, howling in agony and I listened to it. I listened to my Pintele Yid( my G-dly spark) and I followed it on a journey into the unknown. And for over a decade, I have experienced the true beauty and joy of Yom Kippur...The Day of Atonement...My time to reconnect with Abaleh, my Father in Heaven. My time for opportunity to renew my relationship with Him and the people I love and care about. The fasting can be challenging, but it serves as a really important and useful purpose in my opinion.
Yom Kippur is going to look very different this year than it has in past years, as I will be home with the little ones most of the time. I will likely not have many (or any) opportunities to be in synagogue, but I intend to find opportunities to steal some time to talk to Abaleh and thank Him yet again for pushing me to the place that I am at now: married to the perfect man for me, entrusted with raising two of His precious jewels.
My dear readers who observe Yom Kippur and to all my dear brothers and sisters who may be experiencing a screaming and crying soul like I was all those years ago, come back Home. Abaleh is right here, waiting to hear from you, waiting to shower you with an abundance of blessings. Listen to your soul. It knows best.
Gmar Chatima Tova with Love,
Cigal
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)