WOMEN S LEAGUE FOR CONSERVATIVE JUDAISM SEABOARD REGION

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1 WOMEN S LEAGUE FOR CONSERVATIVE JUDAISM SEABOARD REGION Seaboard Soundings מדידות Volume XXIII Issue 2 Kislev 5769 December 2008 I have just returned from Dearborn, and our biennial convention. It was a wonderful 4 days of learning, inspiration and friendship, and I know that those who were there will echo my thanks to Carol Simon and the convention cabinet for all of their hard work in making sure that everything ran smoothly. It was also great to meet many of the women who regularly post to the Women's League discussion list--now I can put faces to names! Much of the information we got at Convention will be posted to the WLCJ web site ( by mid-december, so look for it there. And, so you can plan ahead, the 2010 Convention will be in Baltimore December, It will be great to h a v e S e a b o a r d h o s t t h i s e v e n t! Martha Katz-Hyman, Rodef Sholom Temple, Hampton, VA On Sunday, November 9, 2008, I attended the Convention for Women's League for Conservative Women held in Dearborn, Michigan held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. It was a most rewarding experience for me since I was a first time delegate. It enabled me to meet women all over the United States from various synagogues. We exchanged ideas about various projects and events that occurred in their individual synagogues, which were informative and helpful. I especially enjoyed the many speakers who spoke eloquently about various subjects relating to Judaism. Rabbi Bradley Artson, Dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, who discussed mitzvoth in a variety of areas and being able to observe mitzvoth into our lives was a powerful speaker. He left me feeling very spiritual. I must admit that I especially enjoyed seeing Maggie Anton, the author of Rashie's Daughters, who really captured my interest since I had read her first book and loved it. I plan to read the others, too. I look forward to her third book that will be appearing in bookstores this summer. Coming from a musical background, I especially enjoyed listening to the choir consisting of many of the delegates from various regions perform some beautiful Hebrew songs. I actually sang along with them. It warmed my hear to hear some of the songs which I hope to perform with my choral group when we perform for various Jewish organizations. I look forward to the next convention in two years that is being held in Baltimore, Maryland. Sandra Zaben, Beth Israel Owings Mills, MD

2 Dear Seaboard Region Sisterhood Members, Welcome to the second Medidot of the Sisterhood year. In November, 42 of your Region Sisterhood members attended the wonderful, exciting, inspiring, invigorating Women s League for Conservative Judaism International Convention in Detroit. The theme this year was Heart and Soul and Women s League celebrated its 90 Th Anniversary of enriching Jewish women worldwide. The women of Seaboard Region actively participated in the many activities offered from shopping, to studying, to learning, to networking, to eating, to rituals, to partying, to singing and much more. We were thrilled to hear the following speakers just to name a few: The chancellor of JTS, Dr. Arnold Eisen s presentation on Mitzvah With All our Hearts: Walking the Path of Conservative Judaism, from the Schechter Institute in Jerusalem, we heard Rabbi David Golinkin talk about A New Proposal on the Imahot: Discussion of the Teshuvah, Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies and vice president of the American Jewish University spoke about Soul Food and we learned about the new initiative of WL, Mitzvah Yomit, a Mitzvah A Day. Our Scholar in Residence, Dr Vanessa Ochs, of the University of Virginia s Department of Religious Studies, spoke about new Jewish rituals, practices and female figures in the Bible, while Maggie Anton, award-winning author of Rashi s Daughters offered her experiences in researching and writing her books. I have only mentioned a few of the speakers and sessions that took place from Sunday to Wednesday. The next international convention will be in Baltimore December 2010, please plan on attending and experiencing this wonderful event. Now to what is happening in our Region. I look forward to seeing many of you at the upcoming Education Day on January 11 at Agudas Achim Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia. Your Sisterhood should have received the flyer about Education Day, if not there is one enclosed. I hope to see you at this event with two well know women speakers, Lori Palatnik and Rabbi Sherre Hirsch. Two months later on March 15 th, we will have a wonderful Torah Fund event held at Adas Israel Congregation in Washington, DC. Lastly, we will hold our annual conference on May 3 at The Conference Center at Sheppard Pratt in Baltimore. Life is a journey not a destination. Happy Hanukah and a Happy New Year Gloria Canter President Anniversary Shabbat January 24, 2009, Parashat Va era With all your heart and with all your soul Material is now available online at Included: guidelines, greetings, divrei Torah, reading, service guide, reminder cards for participants, closing comments

3 In August, I attended the Women s League Leadership Institute in San Leandro, CA. I proudly represented Seaboard Region among participants hailing mainly from the new North by Northwest Region (spanning from northern California to Alberta). Beyond the formal training and making new friends, some of whom I was fortunate to see again at Convention 2008, my WLLI experience drove home three particular lessons. Lesson 1: The opportunity to do a mitzvah is out there at every turn, if only we choose to engage (hence the beauty of the Women s League Mitzvah Yomit initiative). I saw the mitzvah of hachnasat orchim (welcoming of guests) in action from the moment I arrived at Temple Beth Sholom where women were bringing in groceries from the car. After hearing only two hours before everyone s arrival about a fire the evening before that left the local kosher caterer out of commission, members of our host Sisterhood rushed to Costco and then ran to the synagogue to prepare lunch. They continued to cook every hearty and healthy meal and prepare every snack for the duration of the training. And after enjoying our meals, out came the recycling and compost bins. Beyond their acts of kindness, the TBS women created the environment for the rest of us to perform mitzvot while serving to remind us that even relegating food scraps to a bin can be elevated from an otherwise ordinary moment to an act of sanctity. This lesson was further underscored by our fabulous speaker, R. Bradley Artson, who discussed the power of mitzvot, frankly evaluated (as always!) the current state of Conservative Judaism, and shared his pride about the recent ordination of Ziegler graduate Gershom Sizumu, Chief Rabbi of Uganda. I was also very excited to meet and was uplifted by the incomparable TBS Cantor Linda Hirschhorn who performed for us in the historic Little Shul. It was there that we held our minyanim and where I served as Gabbai for Monday s Torah service. Lesson Two: There is a need to continue to reach out within our region as well as among regions to make sure we are helping and learning from each other in the pursuit of promulgating a meaningful and vibrant Conservative Jewish life. We in the Seaboard Region are so fortunate to live in an area that, in the aggregate and compared to some other regions, is home to active, knowledgeable, influential Jewish women and communities with an abundance of resources not always found elsewhere. A number of the women in my cohort represented Sisterhoods and congregations in areas they claimed have few affiliated Jews; where another Conservative synagogue is not close by; where getting kosher meat is not as easy as a hop, skip and a jump; and where the same volunteers are doing it all. Imagine the awe of a few women who wanted to know during the late night talks what it is like to go to a synagogue with 3 worship options, where my Sisterhood can take advantage of scores of well-known speakers, where keeping kosher is not such a big challenge, and where we walk up and down our neighborhood sidewalks to share in Shabbat lunches within an eruv. I was humbled and, at the same time, mindful that there are Sisterhoods in our region whose profiles share more in common with those in northern California than mine in Metro DC. In talking to women from such Seaboard Sisterhoods and hearing about their accomplishments, I know they have built models of success; and I believe they have much to share and teach other Sisterhoods about how to thrive and for which we should start partnering exchange activities. However, like most of us, they too need support. Lesson Three: While reiterated by our trainers, this is a lesson I learned from the great skill building sessions at the very first Seaboard Education Day that I ever attended: each of us has the skills necessary to excel as leaders. The key is learning how to apply those skills and Sisterhood s special approach in order to achieve Sisterhood s goals. I thank our wonderful trainers Margie Miller and Terri Winston for superb sessions and offers of ongoing assistance and to the impressive Sally Abbey who coordinated it all and travelled from Rhode Island to see it to fruition. I was grateful that Cory Schneider attended and for the personal time she shared with me. Most of all, I am forever appreciative to my Seaboard sisters who a few years ago welcomed me with open arms and are always so kind and supportive. I love you dearly and I hope Seaboard WLCJ will always be known as such a wonderful group of women! Reminder to all Sisterhoods:Please pay per capita dues by December 31st. If there are any questions...please call Pam Penner Seaboard Region Financial Secretary ppenner@comcast.net or

4 SEABOARD REGION WOMEN S LEAGUE FOR CONSERVATIVE JUDAISM 64 TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE Sunday, May 3, Iyar 5769 The Conference Center at Sheppard Pratt Baltimore, Maryland Sally Abbey, WLCJ Consultant Gloria Canter, Seaboard Region President Debra Weston, Region Conference Chair Next Leadership Institute January Houston, Texas Grow with us. You are cordially invited to attend an inspiring two day Leadership Institute that will expand your knowledge as a Jewish woman and as a leader in your community. The Leadership Institute s unique format allows you to build a personal program to expand your Jewish knowledge and leadership skills. Choose workshops and seminars most relevant to your interests, and meet and network with other Conservative Jewish women who share your passion for pursuing learning and personal growth. The Leadership Institute brings together prominent speakers, seminar facilitators, and promising Jewish leaders (including you). Register for an experience that will enhance your personal and spiritual growth by calling or ing rkessler@wlcj.org, or visiting our website at Click on About Women s League/Programs/Leadership Institute.

5 Leagrams are sent to members of Seaboard Region and Women s League by Linda Rosenberg, Corresponding Secretary September Mazal Tov Naomi & David Yadin-Mednick on Gabriela s Bat Mitzvah Matlee & Mort Yadin on Gabriela s Bat Mitzvah Welcome Rabbi David Greenspoon of Beth El, Baltimore Rabbi Benjamin Shalva of Olam Tikvah Rabbi Howard Mandell of Temple Emanuel Rabbi Fabian Werbin of Beth Israel, Roanoke Rabbi Elaine Schnee of Or Atid, Richmond Rabbi Michael Ragozin of Sh are Shalom, Leesburg R fuah Shlaymah Suzy Wheeler Harry Lipkind Lee Kirsh Shelly Goldin October Mazal Tov Linda & David Levine on the marriage of their son, Jeffrey to Theresa November Mazal Tov Eiron Diaz on the birth of a granddaughter, Kayleigh Isabella Rabbi & Mrs. Jeffrey Wohlberg on the marriage of their daughter, Rachel, to Curt Friedberg Vivian Weinstein on her 90th birthday Condolences Rabbi Charles Feinberg on the loss of his mother, Gertrude Feinberg Family of Bernice Oswald Debra Weston on the loss of her grandmother, Molly Tolin Estee Summers on the loss of her sister, Pamela Eisen R fuah Shlaymah Ina Leiderman Torah Fund Campaign is in full swing! By the end of November, all region Sisterhoods were notified of their goals and prompt our chairs to remit those donations as soon as possible. It is always a good idea to remind our Sisterhood members that their charitable contributions to promote and perpetuate Conservative Judaism is tax deductible and if paid before December 31, 2008 will, obviously, count on their itemized tax returns! Plans are being completed for our annual Seaboard Region Torah Fund Event. It will be held Sunday, March 15, 2009 at 1:30 PM at Adas Israel Congregation in Washington, DC. Our afternoon tea will feature a panel of Seaboard s finest Jewish Theological Seminary and Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies graduates discussing The Road Less Traveled, a background view of the Rabbis, Cantors and Educators and how they found their careers in the Conservative Movement. Invitations will be out in the beginning of Mark your calendars now and plan to attend a wonderful afternoon with Women s League Seaboard Region. Lynne Lichtig, Seaboard Region Torah Fund Vice President

6 And more about Convention, Wow!! I am still overwhelmed by the energy and overall experience of the WLCJ International Convention in Detroit! Thank you to my convention buddies, Linda Loggie and Pam Penner! Thank you to Sisterhood for making it possible for me to attend this event. It is exciting being a part of Women's League "Seaboard Region." The International Women's League President, Cory Schneider, is from our region too, so we got "special" treatment at the convention--and parties! I was invited to attend a special breakfast for Z'havah, the "younger" women's group of Sisterhood. We had breakfast in Cory's luxurious hotel suite and met with Chancellor Arnold Eisen of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York. We got to meet 650 other women from around the country, Israel, and Canada--hence the "International" title. We had tons of great food, music, singing and dancing, SHOPPING at the "Judaica Fair", inspiring seminars, a little praying, and lots of time to network and brainstorm with other Sisterhood leaders. We also had a session about Women's Health: go to mammacare.com for the proper self breast exam technique--it's new! I also had dinner--at my table--with famous female Jewish writers: Debra Band--author and illustrator of "The Honeybee in the Garden"--about the Song of Songs, and her new book about Psalms; Maggie Anton, author of the "Rashi's Daughters" Series; and Naomi Rosenblatt, author of "After the Apple: Women in the Bible-Stories of Love, Lust, and Longing." I went to special meetings for Sisterhood Presidents and discussed some new ideas for fundraisers and membership enhancing skills. The focus was also on picking our future leaders, getting younger women involved, and DELEGATION, or getting more people to help out with events, so not all the work is done by just a few of us!! It was a meaningful experience, and I hope we can raise enough funds for more Sisterhood members to attend future conventions. Marcie Lerner, Kehillat Shalom, Gaithersburg, Maryland I love convention. I go to see old and new friends, hear great speakers and get motivated. The theme of Lev b Nefesh, heart and soul, reminded us to take care of, and exercise our bodies as well as our souls. We are all excited about the new Torah Fund Initiative of building a fitness room at JTS so the students can exercise and take care of themselves during their years of study at JTS. Another theme was Kerev-Out reach to unaffiliated women. We need to be "go-to women" as President Cory Schneider told us at the installation. We need to *go to* the unaffiliated women in our community to get them involved in Sisterhood by providing programs of interest to them. With our regions now fewer and covering a wider area, it was good to be able to get together for the regional meetings to discuss business and brainstorm ideas. I also attended the Shabbaton this year, which gave me two more days to schmooze and catch up with everyone before the convention started on Sunday. Services were full of warmth and spirit. The Shabbaton was a relaxing way to get ready for the convention. Deborah Letow Mitzvah Yomit Cards Since Convention 2008, Women s League has been inundated with requests for the Mitzvah Yomit cards handed out after Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson s session on Soul Food. The cards, which slide into your Women s League calendar diary pocket, list over a dozen blessings and hundreds of mitzvot that you can recite and do every day. They are wonderful to include in new member kits, Hanukkah gift packages for college students, or Purim mishloach manot baskets, and as Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur handouts. Let us know other ways you have used them. The cards are available in sets of 25 for $ Call ext Exciting Incentives for Education Day and Conference... ***FOR ALL SISTERHOODS LARGER THAN 100 MEMBERS if you bring at least ten Sisterhood members to Education Day (and please feel free to bring more!) your Sisterhood will receive a CERTIFICATE FOR ONE FREE REGION CONFERENCE REGISTRATION (Scheduled for May details coming soon!).** **FOR ALL SISTERHOODS SMALLER THAN 100 MEMBERS - if you bring at least five Sisterhood members to Education Day (and please feel free to bring more!) your Sisterhood will receive a CERTIFICATE FOR ONE FREE REGION CONFERENCE REGISTRATION (Scheduled for May details coming soon!).**

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8 Hagim in Jerusalem This past August my husband and I made aliyah. We looked toward the holidays with much anticipation. Not only would it be the first time we spent the Hagim here, but we were to be joined with two friends from our Agudas Achim Congregation (AAC) in Alexandria, VA. They were joining us and another couple from AAC who made aliyah 18 months ago. Here are some reflections on our holidays: Selichot, Saturday, 20 September: The walk down to shul for Selichot services was very pleasant. It is about a 25 minute walk from our rental apartment to Kehillat Moreshet Avraham (KMA), the congregation we joined when we moved here. The weather is turning much cooler at night. It is definitely sweater weather now. Services were very moving. Whoever was leading had a low tenor voice. He prayed with compassion and sorrow in his voice throughout the service. Standing in the sanctuary, listening and singing the familiar tunes were comforting. The most remarkable thing was the familiarity although we were 7000 miles away from our usual spot at AAC. It s good to know that Jews are the same all over the world, but the best spot is right here. Rosh Hashanah, Monday, 29 September: Today we baked ten round loaves of holiday challah for the three meals we would share with our family here. We ve named our kitchen the Fierstein Bakery. We had a real production line going. Howie was doing the initial mixing of the batter while Alice did all the kneading and braiding. Howie finished up with painting the loaves and baking them. We tried the convection feature of the oven and find it superior to the regular baking cycle. The challot come out more evenly browned. However, it still takes ten minutes longer to bake to completeness than in Virginia. It has to be the altitude. Well, since the holidays start tonight, there won t be any form of work for at least the next two days. It has been a mixed week, but we are fortunate it ended on a positive note, also starting the New Year on a positive note. It is wonderful to have our long time friends from AAC here, and to be a part of a large, caring, religious community. We are very fortunate to have so many good friends back in the old country who sent us holiday greetings. We are also fortunate to be here in the land of our ancestors. This holiday season is going to be so much more meaningful than ever before. Tuesday and Wednesday, 30 September and 1 October Services were wonderful. We sat in our new congregation among our friends of many years, as well as our new friends and acquaintances. The chairs are rearranged and the room is opened up in two directions. Of course, it is not nearly as large as AAC, but it is cozy. Our new congregation is attended by many rabbis of the Conservative movement. Many of them traverse around the world for the holidays serving other congregations. Some of those who remained led the prayers for our congregation. But, it s hard to tell which congregants are rabbis and which are not. Everyone is just who they are. One in particular touched Alice. His name is Benjy Segal. He is the one who led Selichot services, too. For our first Rosh Hashanah in Israel, we are touched by the meaningfulness of the prayers. Somehow they all seem a little different, maybe a little more special, although the tunes were familiar. As we walked back to our apartment we see the walls of the Old City in the distance. We envision David s treks through the countryside. We are walking on the same land our ancestors of the twelve tribes walked. It is awesome. We are sure the lunches we attended were the same as yours, very FULL-filling. Judy made most of the food. We brought Howie s famous fruit salad and Alice s challah, which were a hit in Jerusalem! Lunch was the main meal of both days. No one was interested in dinner. Yom Kippur, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 7, 8, 9 October: Last night, Monday, we made pizza and watched a movie at our friends home. It was a quiet evening with long time friends. The movie was an old one called Shalah Shabaty starring Topol. It was about a Yemenite family that made aliyah in the 1950s. It was really a cultural lesson for us. The transit camp concept still exists today in the Absorption Centers throughout the country. Tuesday: As we sit here doing homework before services, we hear a variety of construction sounds from the neighborhood. People are tap-tapping with hammers, building their sukkoth all over the neighborhoods. Some are on their own balconies. Others are in the courtyards of the apartment complexes. Only in Israel can you hear a symphony of varying sukkah-building sounds. All the buses have signs/pictures that say Shanah Tovah! Everyone, we mean everyone, in this country is in the holiday spirit. From the taxis, to the streets, to the markets it s Chatima Tovah, Shana Tovah, Chag Sameach. What pride, what spirit, what a country! Wednesday: Today the traffic on six-lane Derech Hevron is very light. Right now it is early afternoon and the noise from the street is almost gone. We expect it to be silent by the time we leave for Kol Nidre. Today we are bringing all the break-the-fast food to our friends where we will feast tomorrow night. The traditional Fierstein break-fast food is prepared and ready for the drive down the hill. Because we decided to leave all our kitchen equipment in the storage rather than bringing it into our rental apartment, the lovely glass trifle

9 bowls are not available. Therefore, Alice made two trifles in the two smaller bowls available in this apartment. Judy offered her larger bowls, but they are opaque. A trifle really needs to be appreciated in a see-through glass bowl. Howie made his egg and tuna salads and we ordered bagels from Bagel Bite. The only thing really missing is inexpensive champagne for mimosas. We could not find sparkling white wine or grape juice of any sort, so we ll try to make do with still white wine to mix with the orange juice. It is time to clean up and prepare for the holiest day of the year. We hope everyone has an easy fast as written in the Book of Life for the next year. We are so glad to be here during these holy times. How eerie! As we walked to Kol Nidre services, there are no cars in sight. When we left services and walked home, the traffic lights were blinking yellow at all corners; there was no traffic, and multitudes of people were walking in the middle of all the streets! Hundreds of kids were riding their bikes on every road including the six lane Derech Hevron where we live. It was like The Day the Earth Stood Still. We marveled at how the non- Jews observed no driving this evening. Like all others, we walked down the middle of the streets and crossed kitty corner at major intersections. Howie related how walking down the deserted streets reminded him of the big snow in Chicago in Everyone walked down Devon Avenue in the street. Thursday: Services started at 8:30 am. They were powerful. The harmonies that floated from various parts of the sanctuary melded into a cloak of serenity that settled over us. The leaders of each service were spiritual and stoic. At the end, we missed the opportunity to be invited to the ark to say our own personal prayers as was the custom at AAC. We supposed we could have, since no one was standing in the way, but we didn t. We broke at 1345 hours and had an hour-and-a-half break when Alice, Judy and Sheila put the finishing touches on the food. Neilah ended promptly at 1745 hours. We all went back to Beit Sadeh and enjoyed dinner, prepared by the Fiersteins. It was a big hit! Howie said to Sheila, Since we always hosted 25 people at our home and you the same, I wonder where everyone is going this year back at AAC? After dinner, we went back to our place and sacked out immediately, although it was still early! Everything was cleaned up and gone by 1930 hours so we were home by 2000 hrs. The past two days were amazing. They spoke volumes to both of us. This is what it means to us to be Jews. We are at home here; we are the majority here. The country runs on our time. We don t have to explain to anyone why we do some things and not others. Sukkot: Sunday: This morning we walked down to our friends home to help install the sukkah. There will not be a Fierstein sukkah this year, so we are sharing with Jack and Judy. While Judy and Sheila shopped, Jack and Howie constructed the sukkah. Alice supervised and Donald took pictures. Monday: Well, here it is; yet another holiday to celebrate. From Rosh Hashanah to Simchas Torah, it is nonstop holiday, celebrating, and enjoying being a Jew. It seems that there are more sukkot built on every street than there are buses. Our apartment is on the second floor. The building is one of five buildings with a gorgeous courtyard. Looking down, all you see are sukkot roofs everywhere. Tonight is the night for dining in the sukkah. The weather is unbelievably beautiful. And, we are on our way to the Chesley s and shul Today we shopped and cooked for dinner tonight. The stores were not as crowded as before Rosh Hashanah, but they were full. We made something to eat with each of the seven species for Sukkot. We are taking it down to Beit Sadeh where we will eat in their sukkah and spend the night there in their guest suite. Hag Sameach, y all! Tuesday: When we left yesterday afternoon to bring dinner down the hill, families were carting piles of plastic chairs down the elevator to fill their sukkoth. As we walked, we caught glimpses of white tablecloths laid out on portable tables. We slept late in the guest suite and arrived at services at the beginning of the Torah service. It was a very hot day. After lunch we all decided the best course of action was dessert inside where it was cooler, followed by a nice nap. When we finally made it home after sundown, we saw many innovative ways of lighting Sukkoth in the courtyard. One heavy duty extension cord is running from a first floor apartment in our building, down the stairwell, out the lobby, across the front landing, into a sukkah, presumably for the occupants of the apartment that is supplying the electricity. One wonders how the common courtyard is assigned to occupants to construct their Sukkoth. Is it squatter s rights or are the pre-assigned by the housing committee? We won t have that problem when we move into our apartment as our balcony is offset for a sukkah. Shabbat: There was a small crowd at services this morning. Afterwards, as we walked home through the Tayelot, we took time to sit on a bench, and admire the gorgeous scenery of Mt. Scopus, the Old City, and Jerusalem. These sites are magnificent each time we see them. Monday: This is erev Shimini Atzeret (the closing festival) and Simcha Torah. The calendar shows each on a

10 separate day. In the US they are celebrated on two consecutive days, with Simcha Torah on Wednesday, but here in Israel it is celebrated all over on one day. Also observed on Shimini Atzeret is Yizkor. Alice lit three memorial candles last night, one for each parent she lost, along with two for the festival. The day was spent preparing for the festival. We went to the store and to the produce stand. Alice baked challah. We both cleaned the house. Tuesday: We arrived at services about 915am, in the middle of Shacharit. If they would start services here at 930am like in Alexandria, we would be on time! But we didn t miss too much. With everything that had to occur today, we really had no idea what to expect. We knew that somehow they would fit in: Services for Shimini Atzeret; Dancing to celebrate the reading of the end and the beginning of the Torah; Reading of the end and the beginning of the Torah; Honoring four congregants for the year; Yizkor; The prayer for rain; and, A congregational luncheon in honor of new members, like us. In addition, since Alice s mother s yahrzeit starts this evening, we stayed for evening services and didn t come home until 1800hrs. Before the torah service, we danced with the torah seven times. There were at least six torah scrolls in action, maybe more. It was hard to count. One must dance seven hakafot with all the torah scrolls in action. The first round was lead by all men. The second was lead by all women, with Alice carrying the biggest and heaviest scroll. She really showed how her weight training has paid off! The next five were lead by, who knows? The dancing and singing were phenomenal. There were rings and rings of dancers around the leaders of each round. The younger men were doing all kinds of Israeli and Russian dancing. Some dances involved stomping their feet in different stances. They put children on top of their shoulders who had smaller children on top of their shoulders who were dancing with each other. They must have sung every single Israeli song in existence. Not one song was repeated. The last hakafah was outside in the parking lot. No kidding, the singing and dancing lasted many hours! Finally we started reading the torah. They don t unroll an entire torah here like they do back at AAC. (We think it is kind of cool to see the whole thing unrolled.) Instead, our synagogue here calls every single family for an aliyah. They do this using four of the torah scrolls. Each one is positioned in a different spot on the grounds. One was in the lobby, one in the social hall, one in the sukkah and one in the main sanctuary. The congregation splits up among the different locales. Since we didn t really understand what was going on, we stayed put in our seats in the sanctuary and watched the organized chaos around us. They read the end of the torah where the twelve tribes are described, which consists of the first five portions. These are repeated over and over again until every family has had an honor. It took a very long time. Alice was trying to follow along in the book, but she kept getting lost because she didn t understand that they were going back to the beginning. She wanted to watch the reading of the end, and finally asked someone why they didn t read the last part. Once everyone had an honor the whole congregation reassembled in the sanctuary where the last three portions were read in proper order. This is when the first of the three congregant honorees were called to the torah. Each was presented under a chuppah held by four people. The last honoree was given the honor of the first portion at the beginning of the scroll. It was an interesting way to end and start the reading. After services were finished, the most amazing thing happened. In about 15 minutes, all the chairs in the building were stacked along the walls and tables were set up to seat and feed about 150 people. Lunch was very good. The children liked the chicken nuggets and the adults feasted on chicken, beef and veggie stuff for those who required it. At the end of the meal all the new members and visitors had to stand up and introduce themselves. There were about a dozen of us. When everything was over, and since we had to be back in 1½ hours for evening services, we crashed at Beit Sadeh for a little bit. While we were resting we heard singing down the hill. Alice went out to the balcony to see a group of Orthodox men dancing with the torah. We were later told that there is always a second round of singing and dancing all over town later in the evening on Simchat Torah. At the same time, we heard the call to prayer from the minaret in the Arab town across the wadi. Only here would you experience such a combination of cultures. After services and havdalah, we walked home in the dark. The evenings are turning quite cool. When we first attended AAC in Alexandria, Alice wondered how all this happiness could have been in the neighborhood all along without knowing about it. Now, we both feel the same way here. How could all this knowledge and spirituality be occurring in the world without us being aware of it? Really, every holiday and festival is a new experience and spiritually enlightening. After all, we are living in Eretz Yisrael.

11 An important note about Women's League s. The new program we're using for Convention on-line registration, Ba'Olam distribution and e-blasts from Women's League are ALL dependent on the same data base. When an individual gets from us, and chooses not to open or read that particular , you should all press "delete" and NOT SPAM. If you press SPAM it means that ALL correspondence from Women's League will be blocked because you've told your provider that Women's League is a spammer. We do not send capriciously; we're careful to limit the number of s we send out and if you no longer want to receive any from us, please do not mark us as a spam agent, but rather go to the bottom of the you've received and press "unsubscribe." This will feed back to our data base and disable your address. You won't hear from us again, but you won't be telling AOL, Yahoo, G-mail, Comcast or whoever else you use as your provider that we are a spam agent. Please share this with all of your sisterhood and Women's League friends. THE Z HAVAH PLANNER Would you like to know how to involve the younger women in your sisterhood? Would you like a userfriendly basic guide to programming and publicity, with guides you can use today? Order a copy of the new Z havah Planner, designed by and for women in their 20 s, 30 s, 40 s, and engage the women of your synagogue! Available to download at Zhavah DOMESTIC ABUSE CONFERENCE April 26-29, 2009 Washington, DC You are invited to join the members of Women s League at the Jewish Women International s Fourth Conference on Domestic Abuse. Explore ways to empower women and girls, promote healthy relationships for teens and young adults, and support women, children and families affected by abuse. Build concrete skills and learn about practical tools you can bring back to your community. NEW BOOK AVAILABLE Written by Women s League Director of Education Lisa Kogen The women in this galaxy of remarkable Jewish women each demonstrated determination, courage, and imagination that enabled them to challenge the boundaries of gender and social conventions and to forge new paths to enrich our world. This project began as Beauty, Brains and Brawn: The New World Balabuste, the Women s League exhibit commemorating the 350th anniversary of the arrival of Jews in North America. Now expanded to 47 women and with a new title, With Strength and Splendor reflects how Jewish women disassembled old gender roles, shattered boundaries and expanded the options for future generations of women. With Strength and Splendor will make a wonderful gift for adult or teen bat mitzvahs, graduates, teachers, counselors, friends, and family. It is a fabulous title for a sisterhood book discussion or program focus. Cover Price...$39.95 Kol Ishah Members...$31.95 Limit of 3 books, plus $6.50 per book for shipping & handling. Discounts for Judaica Shops available Call to order.