Chanukah and winter update

It's been a while since out last post. B"H things have been real busy.

Since the last post both Elkies parents the Blumenreich's and my Mom came for a visit and returned to the states before Chanukah. We wanted to change a lightbulb that was real high up on the outside of the house and hard to reach. I asked Yosef how he would change it and he said he would climb up a rope and change the bulb. Well that got me thinking and I remembered we brought a fire latter with us. So I dug it out, brought to our bedroom Mirpeset and dropped it down to the ground. Then I went downstairs climed the latter and changed the bulb. What we do for our guests.

The Blumenreichs took the kids to the Safari and hung our here a lot, we went shopping for some new things and Mottie fixed some odds and ends in the house. When My Mother came, she took the kids to the Time elevator in Yerushalayim and had a good time in RBS. She took Yehuda to Gan and checked out Yosef in Yeshiva learning in the Zilberman method. For those of you who never heard of that, they basicly learn the entire "Tenach" (Torah) and Mishna by 8th grade. Quite an accomplishment!

Yosef in Talmud Toras Moshe (Click to Play)

Frimmy and Yitzchock Yehuda and Channah came over for Shabbos. We all had a good time. They can take a GREAT! Egged bus from their Apt. Straight to RBS to a bus stop thats about a 2 min walk from our house. There is a Bus to Jerusalem from RBS about every 20 min. That's very convinient and they did not even have to go to the "Sachono Merchozis" (תחנה מרכזית) 

Chanukah was Great! most people in our block light outside with the Chanukiya (Menora)  in a special enclosed glass box. We didn't have the setup yet B"H next year we will join the block lighting outside. One nice thing about lighting inside is that when we finished lighting we opened the Mirpeset door I played the piano and we all sang chanukah songs. Apparently the people on the block enjoy the free nightly concert. On the 24th I looked at Elkie and said isn't it X'mas??? she said "ooooh yeeeeah! I forgot about that thing". There are no trees and lights and santa clowns anywhere in sight. With that in mind and part of the exile still in us, I proceeded to play a bunch of Holiday season songs. Like the ones I've heard in Dunken Donuts the entire December for years in the US. As a musician I can tell you some of those songs are truly lovely although the lyrics may be coocoo. Being the considerate new olim on the block, I closed the door so that we don't Undue the "Persume Nisa" of Chanukah. After a good few minutes of plowing though some of the HOLIDAY songs, we hear a knock on the door. Ah Ow...! It's our neighbor Yitzchok Montal (Mickey Montal from Bagels and More's Brother). He said "Shlomo, your supposed to leave that stuff in the exile"  Trying to come up with some good excuse I said well most of those songs are written by Jews... He said "I'm lighting the Chanukiya and trying to concentrate and have Kavana on saying some tehillim but it not easy to when I hear Jingle Bells on the block" Elkie told him don't worry Shloime got it out of his system. We all had a good laugh. The funny thing is if we had Israeli neighbors they probably wouldn't have even know what those songs were! 

  

Sivivon Sov Sov Sov  סביבון סוב סוב סוב

 

Yehuda is always helping Abba & Mommy around the house. He wants to be Bob the builder and B"H is very mechanical  and handy. I can be on a later or under the sink and ask him to go to my Red tool box and get a wrench, he will go running and come back with a wrench in a minute. I just taught him the difference between a wrench and needle nose pliers. 

When the sink needs fixin, who you gona call? Yehuda the fixer

I just picked up a new Computer Keyboard at "Ace" for about 27NIS that's about $7 it has english and Hebrew on it so I can now type in Hebrew much easier. Perhaps that's one item that you want to bring from Israel to the US if you want to type in hebrew עברית.  I don't have spell check so expect spelling mistakes.

So many funny things happen all the time it's hard to keep track of them. We will try to remember to post some more often. Like the other day Elkie and I went to the מחלקת גביה "Machleket Gvia" the department for taking your money, in charge of "Arnona" Municipal taxes, B"H we worked things out, when we got out we saw a car blocking us and REALLY had to leave. Then I noticed a Nachman sticker on the back. 

That's a sticker that says   נ נח נחמ נחמן מאומן 

It's pretty much impossible to be in Israel for a few days and not notice it. It is a message from Rebbi Nachman of Breslav. There are thousands of cars with stickers of them, they are on phone booths, bus stops, buidings, Overpasses, Mountains, the street. It's holy graffiti. You can get the full scoop on its meaning here. So I told Elkie. She said she just saw a breslav guy walking into the building with a "Na Nach Nachman Meuman" Kippah on his head. So she ran in found the guy and asked if it's his car, he said yes without even asking how we figured out it was him, apologized and came out to move the car. Only in Israel.

200 years ago Rebbi Nachman said his light will be burning  when Mashiach comes. It's on fire in Israel and all over the world. Rebbi Nachman was truly unique. While most Mussar books focus on the bad things people have done, Rebbe Nachman gives specific advice and solutions on how to deal with just about everything. 

His big thing is  עבדו את השם בשמך "Serve Hashem with Joy" so much so, that he says being sad is worse then eating pork! since depression is a rejection that Hashem is running the events in your life and the world, and like Idol Worship. He claims that if someone can dig himself into the lowest place on earth, he can surly dig himself back out. For more on Rebbi Nachmans teaching I like to read R. Lazer Brody's daily blog. He is an AMAZING person, nick name Rabbi Rambo. since he served in the "Sayeret Mankal" Israel special forces. You can check out his blog at www.lazerbrody.net He lives in Ashdod and is under daily missle attack it is amazing to see how he responds to it with Emunah.

As you all know there is a war going on here. Even though nothing has happened in RBS or most of Israel B"H, everyone knows what's going on and know soldiers who are risking their lives to protect us. Rabbi Avi Weiss says Israeli Soldiers are the holiest Jews we have. I believe he is right without them there couldn't be all the torah learning in Israel as well as a normal and safe life for Millions of Jews. The Medrash states that Yisochor learned and Zevulan supported him, but Zevulan is greater for if it weren't for his support Yisocher could not learn freely. I think we can apply that Medrash to the holy Chayalim.

When driving around every now and then they announce on the radio "Azhara" warning in Ashdod or some other town in the south literally as a Missile is launched. Even though Most people in the country don't have to run to a מקלת Bomb Shelter B"H you feel connected to the people of those towns who you know ARE running to the Bomb Shelter. There are miracles every day both when these missiles land and for the Chayalim in Gaza. Hashem should continue to protect Am Yisrel. What you can do is say Teffila and have us in mind. I was playing at Reuvane Speigle's now Shefi-Gal (שפי-גל) daughters Sheva Brachot last week, when the choson got a call in the middle that his good friend Dvir Emanueloff was just killed in Gaza, he was the 1st soldier to fall in this war HY"D

This past Friday Elkie was inspired to do something for the חיילים (soldiers), so we planed to go visit some of them on an Army Base and give them some home cooked food. Arriella had her class make some nice colorful letters Yosef and Yehuda made one as well. When the kids were all home from school we went to the Army Base at the Check point of Gush Ezion, about an 18 min drive from us. We went with some neighbors  and had lots of food. After checking us out, they told us to park outside the base and let us in. It was a small base we went to a room that they were hanging out. They were happy to see us, and loved all the food. They were reading the letters we handed them from the children and you can tell it meant a lot to them. We asked then if they want to go to Gaza and they all said Yes. Amazing! they actually want to Kick some A...@#$%^&*

I thought it was really cool when we stepped into the lunchroom and saw that they keep a Kosher Kitchen. But thats what things are like in Israel we have a Kosher and holy Army.

 

   

  This guy is the commander 24 years old

For all you single Girls in the US check out these guys (made in Israel). You'd have a hard time finding guys like this anywhere else! For all you Married woman your Married! send your single daughters here.

Yesterday I went to Herzliya to get a form for our car, Today I went to Cholon to get another form, then I went to Yerushlaim to get the process of registering the car, then they told me Elkie need to be there to sign. So Tomorrow it's back to Yerushalim. I'll try to make a post just on getting a license and getting the car.  It's a story.

Till next time.

Don't forget to pray for the soldiers.