Posts Tagged ‘Holidays’

Chag Sameach (Happy Holidays)

Wednesday, October 12th, 2011

Our Friends:

Just a short note to wish all those who have been following the situation that they have a Chag Sameach. (Joyous holiday)

I am sure that the impending release of Gilad Shalit — despite the heavy price — is a reward for his family and friends who never gave up hope through all of the last five years. And it teaches all of us to never give up hope either. We must cling to our hope with every ounce of strength we have, whatever the situation.

Now, I want to make a simple request to everyone.

But first, I want to make sure that everyone knows how much we appreciate all the incredible support we receive from friends near and far on a daily basis. Chicken soup, foot massages, e-mails, Facebook comments, and prayers, prayers, prayers are all highly welcomed.

So now I have to be honest and make my request.

Please do not ask us directly for any details of Stella’s treatment. Do not ask about scans, tests, and how many chemo treatments she has had or will have. When we have news that we wish to share, believe me — we do not hesitate to share.

But should we encounter some news that is not what we wish for, we do not want to be placed in the uncomfortable position of discussing this news with everyone. It may be that we simply need to keep certain details private for our sake and that of our children.

By all means, ask about how Stella is feeling, if we need anything, or if you want to go for a run with me. That is more than welcomed. Don’t feel you need to keep your distance, we do need your support.

Just understand that we need to be “off the record” with certain news.

Thank you and Chag Sameach.

P.S. I am planning a one man bike-a-thon in the next few weeks. I don’t have time to go into details right now, but I will write about it after the holiday. Stay Tuned!

Still Weird!

Thursday, October 11th, 2007
Weirdos to the left of me...

Weirdos to the left of me...

Last year I wrote a column about Sukkot called “I’m not weird.” I wrote about how weird I felt to observe the holiday of Sukkot in the United States. In most “Jewish Orthodox” communities like Potomac, the reality is that the vast majority of people living there are neither Jewish, nor observant. So while you are sitting in a cold, damp hut eating your cereal for a week, your neighbors keep giving you strange looks. You just can’t explain the sukkah, the lulav, the $50 lemon!

So I wrote that in Israel, where we live surrounded by thousands of people building sukkot, where you can buy an etrog for just a few shekels, and where there are hundreds of restaurants that have kosher sukkot, that we felt normal, that we were no longer weird.

I was wrong. We are very weird. The difference is that, we are all weird together, so it seems normal. But as I realized during the special “fun” Simchat Torah davening, we actually are a really, really weird people!

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