mundane?

I met my Rabbi at the supermarket a little while ago. He was going in with his son and I was coming out. We both smiled at each other and I said "back to the mundane." He replied "preparing for Shabbos, mundane?" I replied that his wonderful comment reminded me of a friend and colleague who taught me that when she peels vegetables she thinks on each stroke (HKBH please let this be like my aveirot and the aveirot of my family and loved ones peeling away). That had a great impact on me and I usually do have those thoughts when I am peeling. Bringing Kedushah into the mundane, I suppose, really means that if you try hard enough there is no mundane just K'doshim Tihyu, in a beautiful "ki tov" world that HKBH created.

Speaking of B'reishit, my husband was Chasson B'reishit in my shul. Many guys got together and bought him the kibbud. It was a surprise and such an honor for him. I was so happy for his honor and was very proud of him. If your husband has to go under the chuppah with someone else who better than the Torah? I hope that everyone had a meaningful chag and are enjoying getting ready for Shabbos as much as I am ;)

Haazinu

My Rabbi explained that whenever there is a Shabbos between Yom Kippur and Sukkot Haazinu is read.

Many months ago there was an article in the Wall Street Journal about Heavy Metal music. One of the fans complained that the new way that it was recorded was too loud:) This was the idea behind the speech. If everything is loud and there is no quiet then even loud isn't good. You can't have quiet without loud, just as you can't have loud without quiet.

The shir of Haazinu is one that used to be memorized by children in all of the yeshivot. Why is that? It isn't a child's poem or song. It is very depressing. The answer lies in the above. The ending is positive!

The Shabbat of Haazinu is the bridge between two opposite times. Tisha B'Av through Yom Kippur is a mournful and then somber time. However, it goes into Sukkot which is the epitome of happiness!

That is Haazinu and our lives as Jews. We can't give up when we are down. We need to have the emunah in Ha-shem that things will come up again. We are the proof of it. The shoah was the worst of times and look at us now.

The end of Haazinu is positive. That it what we always have to look at. We can't let hard times wreck us. We only need to turn to Ha-shem and ask for his help and he will always be there for us! Gut Vuch!

Seats

I have written about my Yamim Noraim seats before, but this year I realized another reason why I love my Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur seat. In the old days, I was always wary when a date would want to sit in the back row of a movie theater. I mean...near sighted...my eyeball....:). But on the Yamim Noraim that is exactly the seat that I have and love. I think that it gives me that intimacy with HKBH without worrying about anyone else observing me. Of course that does not include my wonderful daughter who sits next to me. From her I get immense nachat from sharing the experience together!

They're Playing Our Song

Wow! My Rabbi gave such beautiful speeches before Tekiat hashofar both days. The first day he said that it was okay to ask...that we shouldn't feel overwhelmed and depressed to the point of not thinking that we are worthy to ask. The second day he gave a mashal and nimshal which I really took to heart and it really spoke to me. He said that if a wife smacks up a car, there is a good likelihood that instead of just telling her husband, she might set up a nice dinner and then play the special music that the couple walked down to at their wedding or that they heard on their first date. By the time she gets around to telling him about the car it will be unimportant. The love will conquer the otherwise upsetting news. The nimshal is that this is how it is in our relationship with HKBH. When else was the shofar blown? At Maamad Har Sinai, when we married HKBH. Now before aseret y'mei t'shuvah and Yom Hakippurim we are playing our song. Yes, we will have negative things to talk to HKBH about and we will want forgiveness, but now we are playing our beautiful wedding music and that is Rosh Hashanah, and IY"H HKBH will accept our wrongdoings and forgive us fully!