FOTO FRIDAY: FERTILIZE

 FOTO FRIDAY: Obviously the amaryllis enjoyed being fertilized by Chanuka Harry...

Last week's FOTO FRIDAY was:REFLECTIONS

MIDWEEK MUSINGS: SILENCE

Sunday's most recent antisemitic attack at Bondi Beach has left me grappling with many emotions...

 I found a brief but helpful reel which explains the three most common reactions, which include: 

*Empathy: due to the need to dig deep and create an emotional link to    the event. 

*Solidarity: to create a global sense of community since there are only   15 million Jews left in the world and what happens to one of us,   happens to all of us.

*Anger:when silence abounds and we feel alone due to the silence around us.

Personally, these emotions definitely manifested themselves...

After the Bondi Beach attack, uncertainty reigned as to whether folks would attend the Jewish communities' planned Chanuka events due to safety issues. People, we have had police presence at our places of worship for years but especially since the Israeli attack on Oct 7th, 2023.

 Let me tell you what happened at my synagogue Sunday. Forty-four reservations had been made and 105 people showed up. See, we needed to be together. As tradition mandates, we ate fried food, lit the menorah's candles,  played dreidel and sang songs of freedom.

As far as the general silence, our brazen leaders would definitely act differently if they felt their families and friends were in danger.  

I received a most appreciated text from a neighbor expressing sorrow and apologizing for the actions of others. And yes, friends shared similar sentiments. We as a society need to not condone this antisemitic violence. 

Let us not be silent and speak up when you hear hatred.

TUESDAY TUNES: BE A LIGHT - TI ERON

Our guest musician, Cantor Neal Katz from Tyler, Texas, graced our synagogue's Chanuka party Sunday night.  Little did I know he was the songwriter of a song I posted last year. What a treat for all of us present.  

We learned the back story of his song Be A Light as Cantor Katz  had asked Yonina, a popular musical Israeli duo, if they would translate his song into Hebrew. Cantor Katz accompanied them in the video and the song went viral. 

 (I have also posted the English lyrics for those who would like them.) Cantor Katz wants to have the song translated into other languages too. 

Enjoy...  Click on the link: BE A LIGHT TI ERON

MONDAY MUSINGS: PURE EVIL

 MONDAY MUSINGS:  The terrible news of shootings on Australia's Bondi Beach was rattling to say the least. You see Sunday night was the first night of the 8-day Jewish holiday of Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, commemorating not only a miracle, but more importantly, the first fight for religious freedom.

During the Australian Jewish community's Chanuka by the Sea, gunfire rang out leaving 16 dead and 40 injured. The youngest of the fatalities was 10 and the oldest 87. The shooters, a 50 yo father, died on the scene and his 24 yo son is in the hospital seriously injured. Their vehicle was found to have explosive devices. 

The Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declared the incident "an act of pure evil, an act of antisemitism, an act of terrorism on our shores in an iconic Australian location, Bondi Beach, indeed a dark day in our nation's history. But we as a nation are stronger than the cowards who did this," he continued. "Australia will never submit to division, violence, or hatred, and we will come through this together. We refuse to let them divide us as a nation." 

Flags will be flown at half-mast across the country. 

Besides tears for the lives changed forever at what was to be a gathering of peace, my tears also acknowledge our country's elected leader only spews words of hatred and derision... Pure evil.

FOTO FRIDAY: REFLECTIONS

FOTO FRIDAY is reflecting on last Sunday's Interfaith meditation presentation... the room's circular light fixtures did the work taking us out into Mother Nature before we even walked to the meditation building... 

TBT: B-DAY BOY 6 YRS AGO

TBT  2019  when my son-in- law, the Atlanta Bday Guy Evan,  spent that b-day in the End of the Rainbow Valley chopping wood. 

Have a great 2025 birthday and may all future birthdays be less labor intensive!

MIDWEEK MUSINGS: MINDSET & INTENTIONS

I made sure yesterday was a full day to compensate for not being in Nashville as preplanned a month ago. Life happens and we have to flow with it. Is there a higher power changing our cards? Wasn't it Steinbeck who commented on the best laid plans of mice and men?

                     

Look for the positives instead of dwelling on the negatives.

What a relief to have this year's mammogram visit moved up and a good report of the two previously inserted markers showing clear fields and no possibility for misinterpretation. 'Gotta love modern medical technology, although women should definitely invent an apparatus for a less painful way than squashing our breasts to pancakes for X-rays.

Opting for less stress, I plopped down in the waiting room to use my laptop to register for the next quarter's LifeQuest classes. Classes won't begin until late January, some of which I will do online and I'm looking forward to being with other lifelong learners for the other classes...

Running a couple of errands would alleviate some of the stuff in the car before going home- dropped off requested dried zinnia seed for my brother and also a bag of juicy tangelos as a thank you for him detaching my new hose from the spicket before the next cold freeze. 

Walgreens was next, followed by filling an empty gas tank, and home to change for the Master Gardener's Holiday Party. In the last 4 years, I have never been able to attend. Now, I could go visit with new and older gardening friends. 

I returned home to watch a new Netflix series and dozed off on the couch while I alphabetised donation envelopes. It's that time of the year... 

The day wasn't the day I had foreseen a month ago, but I made the most of it. I think today will just be a pajama day as sometimes those are needed too..

tUESDAY tUNES: A NEW DAY

tUESDAY tUNES with two of my faves belting it out like nobody else can.  Soooo very talented individuals. Now I would have loved to have been personally at this Holiday concert but the next best thing is turning up the volume and watching it at home on the big screen...

A NEW DAY  Jon Batiste & Alicia Keys 

MONDAY MUSINGS: HOLIDAY BLUES/ SHARING SEASONAL JOYS?

 MONDAY MUSINGS: Are you experiencing the holiday blues due to missing those who used to share holidays with you? 

This year, I decided to fill my calendar, and it has been a game changer. Whether you grab a friend/ go solo, you'll be surrounded by others enjoying the festivities too. Plenty is happening in our communities at this time of the year,

In the last month my days have been enriched by company, musical presentations including a play, a Japanese restaurant menu tasting, holiday dinners & parties, some classes, and even an introduction yesterday to an interfaith spiritual meditation space.                        

Couchsurfer Lincoln
 from Canada

Missee from Charleston

Mt Fuji omikase

Interfaith Meditation
L to R: Buddhist, Episcopalian, Muslim & Jewish

Remembering to make time for real quiet is also a choice and you'll thank yourself.

FOTO FRIDAY: THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE...

FOTO FRIDAY: As is custom, since it's the anniversary since my Dad died, a special light, a yahrzeit candle, is lit.  The memorial prayer that is recited holds no mention of death, but rather words of praise to G-d. 

Dad was raised Reform so  I use the solar calendar date of his passing which was December 1st. 

May his light make this world a little brighter...

2 years since his passing...

Last week's FOTO FRIDAY was A NEW MONTH

TBT: EASY PEASY

 TBT is from 13 years ago when I used to do a recipe  per week this is a dish I think all of you will appreciate as it only takes about 20 minutes to prepare. No complaints from the peanut gallery. 

Take a look and try EASY PEASY

MIDWEEK MUSINGS: THELMA & LOUISE

 MIDWEEK MUSINGS this week are due to a visit from a friend from my late 70's,1976, that is. We met working as waterfront staff at the Charleston JCC way back when. 

We became fast friends and after that summer, I helped her with her Hebrew as she would be marrying into a conservative old Charlestonian Jewish family. I'll never forget my first Shabbos meal at her future in-laws and me cracking a joke after washing hands before the blessing of the challah (bread). OOPS, A big no-no.  I was still allowed to be her matron of honor. :)

Missee visited me over the last years in Colorado, Wisconsin, and this was her second visit here to Arkansas. Missee had vowed last year to return to help me clear another closet. That's just the kind of friend she is...  22 evening dresses, long and short were purged and will find new homes.  She documented all our doings to not forget our 4 days together ... the Fine Arts Center, tackling leaves -playing in the pile she made, helping our Turkey Day hostess set up tables, arrrange flowers,  Turkey Day cleanup of china and silver for 30 alongside me, keeping me focused with daily errand lists, fixing meals together, walks, going to Temple, and even going on a short convertible ride all bundled up as the temps dropped to winter during her stay.

Everyone needs a buddy like Missee. 

This Thelma & Louise duo slept well knowing we made the most of our short time together... Can't wait to create havoc again!

COMBO MONDAY MUSINGS & tUESDAY tUNES: FEELING ALONE

Holiday's can bring out all kinds of emotions.  I belong to a group on FaceBook called Cool Retired Women where all sorts of news/ issues are posted and readers comment on them.  Yesterday I read a very emotional entry by a Senior whose children are all grown up and out of the house and it's holiday time. I thought maybe you might relate/ like to comment. 

"My heart did not break the day the doctors told me my husband, Raymond, had passed away. It did not break when I sold the little brick house we lived in for more than forty years because the stairs felt like a mountain.

No. My heart broke on a quiet Tuesday afternoon when I stared at a single text message on my phone.

My name is Eleanor. I am seventy six years old and I live alone in a small condo outside Minneapolis. I want to tell you about the Christmas that almost crushed me. Not because of something dramatic, but because of a sentence that many older people hear today.

"You can stop by later for dessert if you want."

There was no anger in it. No shouting. Just a short message from my daughter, Melissa. She is a busy mother of two teenagers, balancing a demanding job and endless responsibilities.

But those words hit me harder than winter ice.

For decades, Christmas at our home was wild in the best way. Wrapping paper everywhere. Raymond carving a turkey that was always a little too dry. Kids running around. Laughter mixing with the smell of cinnamon.

I was the one who kept everything moving. I was the center of it all.

But time changes things. It takes away the noise. Then it takes away your purpose.

Raymond passed away. The kids grew up and moved away. The grandkids became teenagers who talk mostly through screens. My home became perfectly clean.

Quiet.

Too quiet.

This year, I waited for the holiday plans. Checking my phone again and again. Not just hoping to be invited, but hoping to feel needed.

Finally, I asked Melissa, "What time should I come on the twenty fifth? Do you want me to bring my holiday casserole?"

Three dots appeared. Then her reply came:

"Hi Mom! We are keeping the morning very simple. Just me, Tom, and the kids relaxing and opening gifts. We are really tired. But you can come later for dessert if you want! Maybe around four. No pressure!"

I sat in my kitchen with that message glowing on the screen.

Simple morning. Just us. If you want.

Sometimes in America, everything becomes about the small, tight family. The parents. The kids. And everyone else becomes extra. Even the people who raised you.

I felt like a second thought. Like a visitor.

But I typed back, "Sounds wonderful. See you at four."

Because that is what mothers do. We pretend we are fine because we do not want to be the parent who needs too much. We add exclamation marks to hide the hurt.

Christmas morning arrived. I woke up early out of habit. My hands remembered the feeling of hanging stockings. My body remembered the rush of preparing food.

But none of it was needed.

I made one cup of coffee. I watched the Parade on TV. I saw families waving signs saying "Hi Grandma."

I looked around my clean, quiet living room, filled with decorations no one would see, and tears rolled down my face.

I was not crying because I was alone. I cried because I felt optional.

Around noon, I could not handle the silence anymore. I put on my coat and went for a drive. I passed houses with crowded driveways. I saw grandmothers holding babies through glowing windows.

I realized something heartbreaking about growing old here: we trade community for independence, and end up with loneliness.

I stopped at a gas station just to hear another person speak. The cashier said, "Merry Christmas."

I almost hugged him. "Merry Christmas. I am seeing my grandkids later," I said, mostly to convince myself.

At four, I knocked on Melissa’s door.

Warm air and noise rushed out. Food cooking. A football game blaring.

"Grandma!" The kids looked up for one moment, then returned to their screens.

Melissa hugged me. "Mom, you made it! There are leftovers on the counter. Help yourself."

I smiled. I ate the cold turkey. I watched them laugh at jokes I did not understand.

I was there, but not really part of it.

I felt like a visitor in a life I once built.

Driving home on icy roads, the truth settled inside me. A hard truth, but one that needs to be said.

Being loved is not the same as being included.

My daughter loves me. I know she does. But she forgot that I am still a person who wants to belong. Not just someone to check on when needed.

So here is my message to younger families:

Your parents know you are busy. We know your life is stressful. We know you want simple holidays.

But we are disappearing a little each year. We lose friends. We lose energy. We lose our place in the world.

The only thing that keeps us connected is you.

When you say, "Come later," we hear, "You are not part of the whole day."

We do not need fancy gifts or perfect dinners.

We want the messy moments. We want to be there when the wrapping paper flies everywhere. We want the chaos because it reminds us we are still part of something.

So please, do not just squeeze us in. Do not put us between naps and errands.

Invite us early. Let us be there. Let us belong.

Because one day the house will be empty, and you will realize the greatest gift was not the presents.

It was the person sitting quietly on the couch, happy just to watch your life unfold.

Do not wait until we are gone to make us a priority.

 Everyone can use  A SHOULDER TO CRY ON... sometime. Take a listen to Alan Walker and Ava Max's ALONE Part 2.

FOTO FRIDAY: TUrKEY DAY 2025's A Memory...

 

FOTO FRIDAY: ONWARD TO DECEMBER... the fridge's shelves have more room, leaves have been raked again, Thanksgiving decorations are back in their bin and the house is so quiet...

TBT::CHERISHING THE MEMORIES OF TURKEY BREAK 2017

Turkey Break beautiful Fall Day for the family to visit Pinnacle Mountain ...  8 years later,  that little baby now has a brother, the couple on the end (2nd & 3rd row) married and has an 18-month-old little girl now, my nephew(top R) tied the knot, and my Natureman has left his earthly existence almost 5 years ago. 

May we always cherish our memories together...