views
My
Story
for openers
Room For More
Meanings, Especially
About Sukkot
I
Rochel Burstyn
love how when
you’re talking to
someone, it can
be so clear to you
exactly what you
mean; you’re both
nodding away and
then you come to a
sudden crossroads
mid-conversation
and realize you both
meant something
entirely different.
Like when a kid comments on how
ancient someone is, “like, at least, thir-
ty-FIVE!” and you’re cringing because,
darlin’, anyone 35 is a spring chook
(Aussie-speak for chicken) where you’re
concerned …
Sometimes it can work in your favor.
Like the time I was having a bit of a
moan about my weight, and my little
one said, “But, Mommy, you’re very
skinny.” She sounded so sure of herself,
I had to ask her why she thought that.
She started pointing at my face, neck,
hands. “There’s skin, there’s skin, there’s
skin … see, Mommy, I told you; you’re
skinny!”
A different time, my then 2-year-old
was enjoying her ice cream and, after
agreeing to share, started wailing.
“Mommy! You said you were just going
to have a small bite, but really you had
a big one!”
I told her, “Sorry about that. Here,
let me try again. I’m sure I’ll get it right
this time …”
My favorite was when I told someone
we’d gotten an Einstein mask for Purim.
“Cool!” she said. “So, it’s all green,
right?”
Um … WHAT?
“Oh no, wait,” she corrected herself.
“I’m thinking of Frankenstein …”
It’s not just with people; it’s road
signs, too. When I first moved here, I’d
logically assumed that “96” was a nick-
name for “696” — until one day, there
I was, happily driving home, congratu-
lating myself on driving alone for the
first time, when I came to a fork in the
highway with two choices for what I’d
always thought was the same highway.
I was swerving all over, completely
thrown, no idea what I should do. (I
don’t remember what I chose, but I’m
home now, so clearly the story ended
just fine.)
There’s really no more “say-what-
now?” Jewish holiday than Sukkot. In
Australia, a “sook” is a slang term for a
“wimp” so just the name alone takes a
little introduction Down Under …
Then there’s the lulav and etrog.
We’re not decorating with them or put-
ting them in vases or even just holding
them like “normal” people, oh no. We’re
shaking them together — and, go on,
ask any random person the last time
they felt shaking. You’ll hear talk about
earthquakes, being sick with fever,
watching the washing machine, being
frightened (“I was shaking like a leaf !”)
— it’s never an experience anyone’s
looking forward to repeating.
But here we are, year after year, the
unlikeliest people, with an unlikely
combination, shaking the lulav and
etrog in all directions, connecting us to
each other and to God, just because it’s
a mitzvah. Odd? Definitely, but beauti-
ful, too!
We’re also hanging out in the “great
outdoors” (yet another term that
means different things to different peo-
ple. You might picture Mother Earth,
communing with nature, singing in the
breeze … quite different from battling
over the tablecloth with a fierce wind
and drying rain from your chair before
each meal, not to mention the bees
that are as excited about our Sukkot
treats as we are …)
Have a wonderful Sukkot — and I
mean that in the best way possible! •
editorial
It’s Past Time For A New Special
Envoy To Combat Anti-Semitism
I
t’s been 500 days and counting
since the United States had a
Special Envoy to Combat Anti-
Semitism.
It’s a shandah that the Trump
administration has allowed this
post to remain vacant for so long.
Although the office is still listed on
the State Department website, its
final two remaining employees were
reportedly reassigned in July 2017,
according to the ADL.
The post was created by the Global
Anti-Semitism Review Act of 2004,
passed with broad bipartisan sup-
port and signed by President George
W. Bush. The special envoy “develops
and implements policies and projects
to support efforts to combat anti-
Semitism,” according to the State
Department website. The position
was most recently held by Ira Forman,
former executive director of the
National Jewish Democratic Council.
Appointed by President Barack
Obama, Forman was let go the day
President Donald Trump took office.
And for nearly 19 months now, the
important work of the person who
holds this position has not been done.
Since its creation, the envoy’s office
has worked to remove anti-Semitic
Jake Leider gives the credit for
his business, Meditation Works, to
his mother.
“My mom had been into yoga
and meditation for a long time, and
she suggested I try it,” Jake said.
“At that point, I was working hard
all the time, stressed, and willing to
try anything to feel better. I wasn’t
very good at first, but I kept at it,
and it helped. Then she said, ‘I wish
I could bring [teacher] Justin Barnes
to more people, he’s amazing.’ That
sparked the whole concept of
mobile meditation for the stressed
worker. Who doesn’t like having
services come to you? Meditation
Works is like a food truck that
comes to a workplace but offers a
mental health break, 15 minutes at
a time. It’s like any other work
break, but healthier.”
Jake and his mom partnered with
Justin Barnes as the meditation
teacher, and cousin Josh Leider,
and launched their first meditation
truck. The program was so popular,
the truck’s schedule was soon very
full. “We looked into another truck,”
Josh said, “because people
responded to our service, and
looked forward to it. We wanted to
do more.”
Jake turned to Hebrew Free
Loan’s Marvin I. Danto Small
Business Loan Program after a
chance discussion with another
HFL borrower, who suggested it.
“HFL is helping us make a living
out of something we love, and
making it accessible to others,”
said Jake. “The loan is interest-
free, the staff are supportive, and it
feels like they want us to succeed.
It’s such a great resource.”
Click. Call. Give Now.
www.hfldetroit.org
248.723.8184
content from Arabic-language text-
books in the Middle East, partnered
with the Catholic Church in Latin
America to counter anti-Semitism,
pressed for adoption of a work-
ing definition of anti-Semitism in
the European Union and fought
Holocaust revisionism around the
world.
A bill, introduced by Rep. Chris
Smith (R-NJ), would make the Special
Envoy to Combat Anti-Semitism an
ambassador-level position appointed
by the president and subject to confir-
mation by the Senate.
“Jewish communities here and
Health. A fresh start.
A good education.
The next great business idea.
Hebrew Free Loan gives interest-
free loans to members of our
community for a variety of
personal and small business
needs. HFL loans are funded
entirely through community
donations which continually
recycle to others, generating
many times the original value
to help maintain the lives of
local Jews.
6735 Telegraph Road, Suite 300 • Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301
Hebrew Free Loan Detroit
continued on page 10
jn
@HFLDetroit
September 20 • 2018
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