Seder Night (and Day)

Don't panic! Pesach is still two months away - but there's another Seder going on in many homes and communities today. It's the Tu b'Shevat Seder and I participated in a communal one for women here in the Lower Galil (Galilee) city of Afula last night - complete with four questions, four cups of wine, a fourteen page "hagaddah" and some very holy ladies.

Yes, I'm Home for the holiday, thank G-d. Being in Israel during the month of Shevat has always been special for me in many ways as it is my birthday month as well as my husband's, and our anniversary month, too. But in between all those personal celebrations comes this one that is national - and spiritual. This holy day is referred to in the mishnah (the basic text of the Oral Law of our Torah) as one of the four "Rosh Hashanahs" of the year. Tu b'Shevat is a very "technical" day with many details regarding the halachic status of fruit grown in the holy soil of Eretz Yisrael. But in kabbalistic terms, it represents concepts such as spiritual renewal and connection to the Land - and I am "all in". 

The spirit of Tu b'Shevat includes my delight in the every-shade-of-green

that I see as I drive around locally and longer-distance and an appreciation for the blessed rains that poured down as Tu b'Shevat began last night. Today, shemesh paz zorachat - a golden sun is shining out from the behind clouds of whites and greys. 

One can usually rely on the almond trees in Israel to blossom 

on schedule though the ones I saw weren't quite as flowery as I had anticipated. But that's ok because the lemon tree in our yard totally makes up for it. Lemon tree in our yard? Did I just say that? I did. And it is. Our lemon tree in our yard.

Well, G-d's of course - but He recently entrusted us to be the caretakers of a small piece of His Land and the apartment that sits upon it. After two years in the works and decades in my dreams, we moved in one month ago for a two-month stay. I am overwhelmed by this gift, humbled by the responsibility and filled with gratitude for Hashem's guidance every step of the way. Enough on that (for now) lest I short-circuit my keyboard with yet another round of joyful tears.

Depending on how old you are and in what circles you've traveled, you may recall this refrain to a popular song. "Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat."

Our little lemon tree is very pretty, indeed. I don't know if I had ever seen a lemon flower until this week but now I know that it truly is a sweet sight to behold. 

At our private Tu b'Shevat lunch today, we will sample a selection of most of the Seven Species for which the Land of Israel is praised (bug-free figs are hard to come by!) and thank G-d "who has given us life and sustained us and brought us to this day" - in more ways than one. Then, when the tithes have been properly separated - and with no apologies to Peter, Paul or Mary - I will bite in (literally and spiritually) to the most delicious lemon I have ever eaten.

In conclusion, we will Remember Jerusalem in the after-blessing which states: "Hashem, have mercy on Israel, your Nation...rebuild Jerusalem, the city of holiness, speedily in our days. Bring us up into it and gladden us in its rebuilding and let us eat from her fruit and be satisfied with her goodness and bless You upon it in holiness and purity. For you, Hashem, are good and do good to all and we thank You for the Land and for her grain and her fruit and her fruit of the vine..." Amen.

Last Night's Seder Table

Wishing you everything Tu b'Shevat has to offer. From the edible to the intangible and beyond!

"Al" Hanissim - For The Miracles

Al Hanissim ("For the Miracles") is, of course, the special addition to our prayers on Chanukah and Purim. "Al" is the transliteration of a Hebrew word not to be confused with the English abbreviation "AI" which, depending on the font you use, looks exactly the same.

Unless you've been living under a rock (which apparently I had been for some time), you know that AI stands for Artificial Intelligence and that Chat GPT is "a generative artificial intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI". I can't explain it any better than that but some people I know quite well have been using this (miraculous?) little tool for some very interesting and worthwhile purposes. 

So I figured it's time to check it out with some artificially intelligent illustration and the addition of a few new paragraphs to my ancient Chanukah POem. (For the original, click here.) So let's see what it can do - with a bit of editing by yours truly...

In Israel today, miracles abound;
from the Sea to the River, they can be found.

With helping hands 

amid the madness,

hope and faith 

replace the sadness.

Chayalim (soldiers) 

home and hugged tight;
aglow all this week 

with bright candlelight.

Yet still we wait 

and count the days
until our hostages return,

for us to sing praise.

As I Remember Jerusalem on this Chanukah's last day, 

I wonder just what her menorahs would say

about miracles now, and those long ago
and more miracles waiting for G-d to bestow...

*****************************************************

Thank you, AI - you're impressive and "smart"

but you can't hold a (Chanukah) candle to words from the heart.

Your images generated just don't compare

to the art we produce with our humanly flair.

So I'll use my own thoughts to compose what I can,

the original way that these blog posts began.

I'll share my own photos, the best that I've got.

(But I'm glad to be out now from under that rock.)

May all your Chanukah dreams and wishes come true 

with revealed good and sweetness, too.