Promises, Promises

Dedicated to the memory of my father Dovid ben Eliezer (yahrzeit candle this coming Monday night)
To dedicate a future Table Talk, send an email.

[NB – speaking schedule below]


Someone who studies with me via telephone asked this week how to explain the fact that some people seem so careful about some mitzvot – such as keeping kosher – yet so lax about others, such as not gossiping or embarrassing others.

That reminds me of an old yeshiva joke...

So this student brings a small bottle of milk to enjoy with his coffee. He writes on the bottle, “Use but please save some at the bottom” and places it in the coffee area.

When he goes for his 10:30 cup of java, to his dismay, the bottle is empty.

The next day, he brings a new bottle, and writes more specific directions:

“Use – but please don’t use the last 1/2-inch of milk.”

At 10:30, once again, he finds an empty bottle.

(Between you and me, I don’t much see the point of milk in coffee. All that it does is cool it down faster. If it’s bitter coffee, a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down. My 2-bits, as my grandfather would have said.)

The next day, he comes with a new bottle, this time he writes in large bold letters:

“PRIVATE MILK – YOU MAY USE

ONLY

IF YOU LEAVE ENOUGH FOR ONE CUP IN THE BOTTLE!”

Guess what? At 10:30, the bottle is completely empty.

Now, this is a yeshiva, where boys are taught to think logically and creatively and to control their base emotions. Our hero does not get angry, nor upset, nor even frustrated. The next day, he shows up with a bottle of milk with a new sign that reads:

“Caution - milk from unsupervised source”

At 10:30, he comes to get his coffee and, sure enough, the bottle is full.

+ + +

The reason that the joke is funny is because this problem is real (albeit somewhat exaggerated in our minds).

(It also reveals that yeshiva students who tell it are aware of the problem.)

The fact is, some of us excel at some mitzvas, some of us excel at others. Some of us are contented to do the mitzvas that we are doing well, and some of us are trying to improve our shortcomings.

Some of the time.

Do you know anyone who is consistent in the mitzvos they are doing well, all of the time?

Next Tuesday is the 3rd anniversary of my father Dennis Seinfeld’s petira. That’s the Talmudic word for “passing’. It literally means “exemption” - because when a person passes away, he becomes instantly exempt from all mitzvot.

During this past year, after the second yahrzeit, the flood (not an exaggeration) of accolades for my dad started to trickle down. Looking back at the past three years, I see that the common denominator to what everyone remembers about him is that anyone who knew my father was struck by his integrity. He was good for his word, period. If he made a promise, and forgot about it but was reminded later, he never challenged it – he never claimed, “I never said I would do that!”

Rather, he would reply, “Did I say that? OK, then I’ll do it!”


Shabbat Shalom


PS – here’s one my dad would have liked:


Speaking schedule:
July 28 – Baltimore – Judaism & Hinduism: Hidden Connections?
Aug 4 – Baltimore – A Jewish View of Buddhism
August 11-12 - Vermont (CAJE Conference) - 2 sessions


For details, send an email.

Slipping and Sliding

Dedicated to Chaya bas Yehudis, may she have a speedy recovery from her recent surgery.
To the full speedy recovery of Koroush Eliezer Chaim ben Leah.
In memory of Daniel Levian.
In memory of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.
To dedicate a future Table Talk, send an email.


On Sunday I watched the kids enjoy an amazing toy that I never had as a kid.

Not a computer.

Not even electronic.

Not mechanical.

No rules or regulations.

It’s a long sheet of plastic with pin-holes down one side and that connects to a hose, creating a wet and slippery runway to race down again and again – a “Slip-and-Slide”.



You've never seen so much sustained glee.

Summertime. Who needs gadgets?

+++ end of the family section. +++
+++ Reader discretion advised for below +++


Summertime.

“Sami Kuntar was involved in the death of several Israelis.” - BBC News, broadcast worldwide Wednesday night this week.

Involved?? What kind of involvement, O dear BBC?

In the words of Zeev Bielski, Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, Samir Kuntar is “one of the most evil and abominable killers in the history of Islamic terror”.

On April 21, 1979, Kuntar headed a terrorist unit of the “Palestinian Liberation Front” which reached the shores of Naharya in a rubber boat, shot at a police patrol and killed an Israeli policeman. In the middle of the night, the unit broke into the home of the Haran family and took hostage Danny, the father of the family, and Einat his four-year old daughter while Smadar, Danny’s wife, her two-year old daughter Yael and a neighbor hid in a hiding place in the family bedroom. The terrorists took Danny and Einat to the shore. When they encountered IDF and police forces there, Samir Kuntar shot Danny at short range and smashed Einat’s head with the butt of his rifle against a rock. In the hiding place of the Haran family, baby Yael suffocated to death as her mother, Smadar, attempted to stifle her cries in order to prevent being discovered by the terrorists. Another Israeli policeman died in the course of the fighting on the beach.

Here is a recent article by Smadar (the surviving wife/mother).

This is the man whom the State of Israel freed today. A hero in the eyes of Lebanon. We witnessed the hero's welcome this man received in Beirut - not only from Hizbollah, but from the country's elected leadership, with fireworks and joyous speeches, who promised his people that he will return to Israel to continue his mission.

That's what the BBC means by "involved".

I will tell you the truth - all of these war drums and battle cries, and the consistent dishonest maligning of Israel by the BBC, NPR, CBC, inter alia, is distracting us from the real truth.

The real truth is that when they kidnapped those 2 soldiers 2 years ago, Hizbollah immediately called for the release of Smadar and friends in a swap. His release was always their aim.

Question for your table - how does this story make you feel?

Personally, it makes me feel three things:

1. We are alone
2. We'd better stick together.
3. We are our own worst enemy

I don't recall a time since coming to Baltimore when there were so many people sitting shiva. This is heavy times.

If you are enjoying your summer - and I hope you are - remember for a minute your cousins in Israel and elsewhere who are in anguish.

Question #2 - It's easy to have 20-20 hindsight, but let's be truthful - if you had been in the driver's seat, would you have released Kuntar?

Here's an article that provides one perspective of the facts and repercussions of this story.

And here are the only heroes of this story:

Shabbat Shalom

Travel/speaking schedule
July 21 – San Francisco
July 22 - Los Angeles - on Finding Meaning in Tragedy and Suffering
July 28 and Aug 4 - Baltimore - on Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism
August 11-12 - Vermont (CAJE Conference)

For details, send an email.

PS -

(Dad showing the kids not what to do)

Plan Ahead

Dedicated to Stuart Rudick, one of the most forward-thinking people I know.

This week I started to fill up at $3.95 but had to stop when the total got to $75.00. That's my current ceiling of comfort.

And our friends in California have already proven their tolerance for far more pain than that.

How much pain til we cry uncle?

A quick story and them some good news.

The story - One dark night, an acquaintance of mine was riding with Rabbi Matisyahu Glazerson from Tsefat to give a lecture in Haifa. They followed the signs to Haifa, yet somehow after ten minutes, they found themselves heading back to Tsefat!

R. Glazerson U-turned and tried again. Once again, after ten minutes, they found themselves heading back to Tsefat! They couldn't figure out how that happened.

"Let's pay attention very carefully," R. Glazerson told his companion. If we do our best to go to Haifa, then we will know if HaKadosh Baruch-Hu wants us to go there or not."

Very carefully they watched the signs and drove well below the speed limit. This was not their first trip to Haifa, and they were certain that they were taking the right road.

Nonetheless, the same thing happened a third time - they found themselves turned around and heading back into the city.

"I guess we were not meant to go to Haifa tonight!" R. Glazerson said, smiling.

+ + + +

The good news is humanity's driving in circles may be getting some direction, because some people already are thinking for the rest of us.

This month's issue of Popular Science has a titillating article called "10 Audacious Ideas to Save the Planet". (click there to see their interactive graphics).

Here are some of my favorites:

The Pod Car - developed at MIT

Highway wind turbines - using the wind from passing cars

The Skytran developed by Unimodal in California - could carry the equivalent of a 6-lane highway at 1/10 the construction cost of light rail.

A sidewalk that generates electricity from walkers' footsteps.


The organic 30-story farm (Orgitech, Israel) that could provide produce for 50,000 people year-round - put a dozen of these in an average American city and everyone eats fresh produce sans transportation costs and bugs.

Do you remember the hydroponic garden that I mentioned a few weeks ago (aerogarden)? One couple reading this blog suprised us by sending us our own. We have harvested the first crop of organic, bug-free basil and all I can tell you is it is fabulous going green.

Question for your table - How many times would you have tried to get to Haifa?



Shabbat Shalom


Travel/speaking schedule
July 21-23 – San Francisco & Los Angeles
July 28 and Aug 4 - Baltimore

For details, send an email.

A Tale of 2 Tykes

In memory of my grandmother Yehudis bas Alexander, whose second yahrzeit was this week.
(to dedicate a future Table Talk, send an email)


A short story, a question, and a famous poem.

When I returned home on Monday afternoon, Yoseph, our 4-year-old Baltimore boy, ran up to me eagerly. “Abba, would you take off the raining wheels from off of my bike? I want to ride without training wheels!”

“It’s pretty hard to ride without training wheels. Do you think you’re ready?”

“I’m ready, I’m ready! I want to ride without training wheels!”

“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t we first raise the training wheels. If you can ride without them touching the ground, then you’re ready.”

“OK, but could you raise them right now?”

He waited ever so patiently while I changed my clothes and fetched the wrench. Then he didn’t waste a second in showing me how he could ride. “See Abba? The training wheels didn’t touch the ground.”

I wasn’t convinced. “I’ll tell you what. Why don’t we take off one wheel first, and see how that goes?”

But even that experiment wasn’t conclusive, and he seemed so determined, so....off came the second wheel.

I’ve never seen a child more determined to do learn a new skill. Without hesitation he was pedaling furiously, falling, then trying again. I wasn’t the only one he impressed – all the children became very excited...

Meanwhile, inside, Yoseph’s little sister Devorah – 2.5 years – decided with equal determination that she was going to stop wearing diapers. We weren’t sure she was ready, but she was positive. She would hear nothing of diapers nor even child toilet seats. She wanted the real McCoy. She’s old enough to tell us her preferences but not old enough to reason with.

(that translates into a week of 90 percent potty success rate. Ie., 10 percent failure...)

Emuna comes running in - “Abba! He’s really doing it! Yosephi’s riding his bike!”

I look out the window to see him pedal about twenty feet before crashing into the fence.

Emuna harbors no resentment that her younger brother learned to ride before she. But stay tuned....

Question for your table – What is a greater quality in a person: zeal or perseverence?

OK, now the famous poem....did you ever notice that the “Star-Spangled Banner” ends with a question? What’s the answer?

You have to read Francis Key's entire poem to find out:

“The Star-Spangled Banner”

Oh! say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro’ the night that our flag was still there.
Oh! say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen thro’ the mist of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep.
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream
‘Tis the star-spangled banner. Oh! long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation,
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n - rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, for our cause is just,
And this be our motto–”In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.



Shabbat Shalom and Happy 4th

A Tale of 2 Tykes

In memory of my grandmother Yehudis bas Alexander, whose second yahrzeit was this week.
(to dedicate a future Table Talk, send an email)



A short story, a question, and a famous poem.

When I returned home on Monday afternoon, Yoseph, our 4-year-old Baltimore boy, ran up to me eagerly. “Abba, would you take off the raining wheels from off of my bike? I want to ride without training wheels!”

“It’s pretty hard to ride without training wheels. Do you think you’re ready?”

“I’m ready, I’m ready! I want to ride without training wheels!”

“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t we first raise the training wheels. If you can ride without them touching the ground, then you’re ready.”

“OK, but could you raise them right now?”

He waited ever so patiently while I changed my clothes and fetched the wrench. Then he didn’t waste a second in showing me how he could ride. “See Abba? The training wheels didn’t touch the ground.”

I wasn’t convinced. “I’ll tell you what. Why don’t we take off one wheel first, and see how that goes?”

But even that experiment wasn’t conclusive, and he seemed so determined, so....off came the second wheel.

I’ve never seen a child more determined to do learn a new skill. Without hesitation he was pedaling furiously, falling, then trying again. I wasn’t the only one he impressed – all the children became very excited...

Meanwhile, inside, Yoseph’s little sister Devorah – 2.5 years – decided with equal determination that she was going to stop wearing diapers. We weren’t sure she was ready, but she was positive. She would hear nothing of diapers nor even child toilet seats. She wanted the real McCoy. She’s old enough to tell us her preferences but not old enough to reason with.

(that translates into a week of 90 percent potty success rate. Ie., 10 percent failure...)

Emuna comes running in - “Abba! He’s really doing it! Yosephi’s riding his bike!”

I look out the window to see him pedal about twenty feet before crashing into the fence.

Emuna harbors no resentment that her younger brother learned to ride before she. But stay tuned....

Question for your table – What is a greater quality in a person: zeal or perseverence?

OK, now the famous poem....did you ever notice that the “Star-Spangled Banner” ends with a question? What’s the answer?

You have to read Francis Key's entire poem to find out:

“The Star-Spangled Banner”

Oh! say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro’ the night that our flag was still there.
Oh! say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen thro’ the mist of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep.
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream
‘Tis the star-spangled banner. Oh! long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation,
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n - rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, for our cause is just,
And this be our motto–”In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.



Shabbat Shalom and Happy 4th