Yet, y’all know how my mind likes to wander and find links and parallels. Even on Valentine’s Day. (That’s a holiday for which I was barred from participation as a child, since it was a”St Valentine’s” kind of day.) So, I don’t have a lot of context for this day.
Continue reading Saint Valentine?
I’m sorry- there will be no post tomorrow (Monday) or Tuesday.
These are the first days of the holiday of Sukot, when work is not permitted.
Continue reading It’s the holiday of “booths”. AKA, Sukot!
Valentine’s Day? That’s what everyone says it is. (It’s also the 19th day of Sh’vat.)
Except, in my tradition, this was a holiday celebrated by others. Given the official name for the day as “Saint Valentine’s Day”, it should surprise no one that it was not part of my routine growing up. A child going to yeshiva (a Jewish [very] religious school) is not to be considering any day involving saints as pertaining to them. (That’s true, regardless of Hallmark’s yeoman efforts to make us all forget that first word of the celebration.)
WooHoo! As I told you on the 13th (which was Friday the 13th), today is the first day of Chanuka. (That also means last night was the first night of the holiday.) It’s not usual that Chanuka virtually coincides with the holiday of Christmas. As a matter of fact, just a few years ago, Chanuka coincided with Thanksgiving. The holiday of Chanuka always falls on the 25th day of Kislev, which has no “fixed address” on the Gregorian calendar.
Continue reading The Festival of Lights
I bet you wonder why I didn’t add anything special to my blog this past Monday. After all, that was the day that America celebrated “President’s Day”. Having killed the holiday celebrating Abraham Lincoln (12th of February) and today (George Washington’s birthday) to combine them for one.
I’m sorry- there will be no post tonight (Sunday) or Monday.
It’s the first day of the holiday of Sukot, when work is not permitted.
Continue reading The First (of 7) Day of Sukot
Darn it! Another “if it’s Monday, we need a holiday” version. I grew up in the days when “Decoration Day” was always the 30th of May. Now, for our convenience, we’ve moved Memorial Day to be the last Monday in May.
Continue reading A time to honor…
Tonight, Saturday night is when the holiday of Shvuot, the Feast of Weeks, begins. It means I- and a bunch of other Jews- are going to spend all night long studying. Just like the Jews did on the first Shvuot, when we (we are supposed to consider ourselves to have been at Sinai when the Tora was given) received the 10 Commandments.
Continue reading All night long!
You know, almost every Friday night, I have a bunch of friends and acquaintances over to share a meal. Because it is the holiday of Shabat, the day the Supreme Being rested- and that means so do we.
Continue reading The 15th? Not the 14th?
Oh, gracious! I thought it was just me. But, now I’m backed by science!
You see, I always thought it was just because I was Jewish that my nerves were on edge with the incessant Christmas music playing everywhere comes the day after Thanksgiving (or even earlier). I was sure it was because when I grew up in Forest City, where all the neighbors’ homes had speakers blaring out songs that I really never learned. Or, when I walked into a store, only to be greeted not by a salesperson, but by the sounds of a Christmas Carol or ditty. And, no, I didn’t care if the songs were written by Jewish folks or not.
Continue reading Stop the Music!!!!!!
