My father once told me that "parents love their children more then children love their parents". He may not have been the first one to say that. I would like to add to that because my father did not live long enough to see his grandchildren. i.e. "grandparents love their grandchildren more then they love their children especially when they raise a grandchild"
More then likley I would not be able to fully understand that if Jill and I had not raised our first grandchild Nechama for nearly eight years. But we did.
We have all read somwhere or have been told by someone that it is G-d who creates everyone. That would mean that parents do not. In a Chumash not long ago a commentary compared that to a butler who fills your glass with the kings wine. You would naturally thank the butler even though it is not his wine, it belongs to the king.
I don't ever remember my three frumie children ever thanking me for pouring their wine.
Too be contiuned.....
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Dear Orthodox Judaism,
In case you were wondering as to my whereabouts these past several months, wonder no more. For now, I have left you. Not for another faith or another version of Judaism. No, you are still and always will be the undisputed and the most authentic expression of Torah there is.
When I was about 47 years old, I, along with my wife embraced everything about you. And when we did, an entire new world open up to us. That world actually empowered me in a way. I met some of the nicest, caring and humorous people one could imagine.
Keeping kosher, wearing my yarmuke everywhere, tzistis, making certain to daven three time a day no matter where I was, wash, bentch ...., nothing could deter me. I do not work in a city where there are other frum Jews. My office is in a suburb that I'm sure has other Jews, but certainly not one wearing his yarmuke pumping gas or shopping at Kroger. It empowered me when people would look at me, some with approval (evangelicals I'm sure), some with no interest at all and of course some with utter disgust. Whatever the reaction, I would nod and slightly smile back at them.
What to do with my four children at the time, two of which were entering the fifth grade, one the second grade and one pre K.? Pull them out of public school and place them in an orthodox day school of course! What a solution. This way I would be certain that they would learn respect for their parents in a Torah enviorment that would remain with them forever! I of course would have to do my part by setting the tone in the house in order for this respect to endure till the end.
In the early stages of this new life style, we would go to the Toco Hills community that so thoroughly embraced us and urged us to spend Shabbos with them by inviting us to their homes. This is where I met those people I referred to above. On Shabbos I would look around and see daughters clinging to their mothers, walking arm in arm with them and fathers walking with their boys, some holding a sefer, some not. It really didn't matter. What did matter was something even greater then the contents of that sefer, i.e a genuine love and respect for the ones that gave these kids life. In years to come, Boy O Boy, what a surprise my wife and I were in for.
To be continued........
In case you were wondering as to my whereabouts these past several months, wonder no more. For now, I have left you. Not for another faith or another version of Judaism. No, you are still and always will be the undisputed and the most authentic expression of Torah there is.
When I was about 47 years old, I, along with my wife embraced everything about you. And when we did, an entire new world open up to us. That world actually empowered me in a way. I met some of the nicest, caring and humorous people one could imagine.
Keeping kosher, wearing my yarmuke everywhere, tzistis, making certain to daven three time a day no matter where I was, wash, bentch ...., nothing could deter me. I do not work in a city where there are other frum Jews. My office is in a suburb that I'm sure has other Jews, but certainly not one wearing his yarmuke pumping gas or shopping at Kroger. It empowered me when people would look at me, some with approval (evangelicals I'm sure), some with no interest at all and of course some with utter disgust. Whatever the reaction, I would nod and slightly smile back at them.
What to do with my four children at the time, two of which were entering the fifth grade, one the second grade and one pre K.? Pull them out of public school and place them in an orthodox day school of course! What a solution. This way I would be certain that they would learn respect for their parents in a Torah enviorment that would remain with them forever! I of course would have to do my part by setting the tone in the house in order for this respect to endure till the end.
In the early stages of this new life style, we would go to the Toco Hills community that so thoroughly embraced us and urged us to spend Shabbos with them by inviting us to their homes. This is where I met those people I referred to above. On Shabbos I would look around and see daughters clinging to their mothers, walking arm in arm with them and fathers walking with their boys, some holding a sefer, some not. It really didn't matter. What did matter was something even greater then the contents of that sefer, i.e a genuine love and respect for the ones that gave these kids life. In years to come, Boy O Boy, what a surprise my wife and I were in for.
To be continued........
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