z "st- N `•,1 i I :a.. 1,* t . 1 3; Happy New Year! Get busy with your little honeys and celebrate family (the apples of your eye) on Rosh Hashanah. Stories by Elizabeth Applebaum Special to the Jewish News B y day, David and Tara Stone are exceptionally busy executives. They make big decisions, they work with a variety of colleagues, they hold meetings and they set agendas. But in the evening, as the Jewish holi- days approach, another side of David and Tara Stone emerges. A very different side. That's when the couple sits down in their cozy West Bloomfield home and get out their crayons — sky blue, asparagus, magenta. Then, with daughter Sophia, 3, and son Noah, 1 1/2 ("But he's as intel- ligent as a high school student — really," says Dad), the Stone family creates Rosh Hashanah greeting cards. "We absolutely love the holidays in our home,' said David Stone, associate executive director of the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit, "and one of our favor- ite traditions is making Rosh Hashanah cards together. We get some construction paper, and some scissors and markers and put everything on our kitchen table. Then we just get to work. The kids usually opt for the traditional things: a shofar or apples and honey, and let me assure you, objec- tively, their art is amazing" Both Dave and Tara, who works for BBDO Detroit, enjoy getting together with family for the holidays. Believe it or not, every one of their relatives agrees with Dave and Tara's assessment of their children's artistic skills as brilliant. "When we get together at our home for Rosh Hashanah, we always decorate with pictures that the kids have colored',' Stone says. "And we save them from year to year, because we never get tired of seeing their art." Family Affair In Hebrew, the word for family is mish- pacha; in Yiddish, it's mishpocha. It liter- ally means "family," which means anyone who is a blood relative, or who is related by marriage or who might be related or maybe the entire Jewish people or really close friends. Rosh Hashanah is definitely a time for mishpacha. And so, in short, there is nothing quite so wonderful as a Rosh Hashanah table filled with moms 28 September 17 2009 Tarra and David Stone of West Bloomfield with their children, Sophia, 3.5, and Noah, 18 months and dads, aunts and uncles, stepbrothers, long-lost cousins and even your cranky neighbor who always yells at his dog. Besides the food, it's nice to be able to offer a bit of fun for everyone who comes to the table. • For young children: It's traditional to eat pomegranates on Rosh Hashanah; some believe this is because each has 613 seeds, the same as the number of mitzvot. Ask children to think of 613 things — from the smallest, like changing seasons, to the biggest, like a loving family — for which they are appreciative. Also, Rosh Hashanah celebrates the birthday of the world. Give a gift back to the Earth; volunteer to help pick up trash in your area. • Teens are often certain they know everything. See if they really do when you ask them these questions (answers below): A)What singer said: "I do know that I really love my tribe and a lot of its tradi- tions, especially holidays like Passover and Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur"? B)No word on her plans this year, but in 2008, this celebrity brought her 3-year-old son David to Rosh Hashanah services at the Kabbalah Center in New York City. C)Which comedian says that his favor- ite Jewish ritual is tashlikh? D)"I, Carly" star Miranda Cosgrove loves eating at the Hungry Cat restaurant in Los Angeles, featuring dishes prepared by which popular chef? E)What's the name of the hip, folk-style band whose contributors — Colin Stetson of Arcade Fire, Brian Chase of the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs and Jeremiah Lockwood of the Balkan Beat Box — created a musical project in honor of Rosh Hashanah? Answers: A)Regina Spektor B)Madonna C)Michael Ian Black D)Josh Rosenstein. Check out his Rosh Hashanah brisket how-to on You Tube: http://www.eatdrinkordie.comivideosi 1d21870e0a/rosh-hashanah brisket-josh- rosenstein-from-josh-rosenstein E) The Sway Machinery •And for adults of all ages: Rosh Hashanah is a time of reflection and change. In what way will you change in the coming year? In his book Man's Search for Meaning, Victor Frankl said: "We who lived in the concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. "They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: The last of his freedoms — to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way:"