Passover April 26, 2024

As the world goes berserk, particularly on Canadian and American college campuses, we are here in Israel thinking about what will come next in Gaza, in the North, and from Iran. I’ll catch you up on these current events but also spend some time discussing Passover, and the days from the Seder last Monday night till today.

It appears that at least one move made by the IDF last week has created some deterrence. Israel sent planes to Iran, Iraq and Syria using radar and avoiding Stealth bombers, took out 3 strategic radar stations and then left before they were detected. Although if you read Iranian news (in Persian?) they said nothing happened except 2 flimsy drones. Satellite images show holes in the ground and targeted destruction. Enough to say we can get past your defenses, you didn’t see us, we hit something significant, but not enough to cause a major commotion.  The reports from Iran appear to show they will not do anything direct for now. 

Meanwhile, there appears to be an evacuation of people from Rafah and a delegation led by Egypt is trying to negotiate either a ceasefire or minimize what it going to happen. I won’t predict, but it looks like an invasion of Rafah is imminent. The north has been very unsettled with daily rockets, but still has been skirmishes without major escalation. If there is a Rafah invasion, will there be an escalation?  It’s hard to tell because again, there is word from Lebanon that they don’t want to get more involved, which clearly is a wise move. Of course, the majority of Lebanese are not Hezbollah, and whether they can be controlled is always a question. Let’s all hope for calmer heads to prevail and for the hostages to be released as soon as possible. 

We also watch with horror, like many of you, of the enormous antisemitic protests going on at American college campuses. Many of you know I graduated from Columbia University eons ago. It’s horribly disappointing to see a bastion of liberal arts learning turn into a showcase for the stifling of debate and the glorifying of radical Islam. This is now happening across the US, and occurred in Ottawa recently. It’s all extremely disheartening. Someone commented to me by email that he doesn’t know where it’s less safe, Israel or universities. Honestly, at least here we know the police will protect us. 

Now, the most important part…family and Seder! We arrived in Efrat about an hour before the holiday was supposed to start, a little later than we planned but such is the traffic as a country all travels to people’s homes for the Seder! We had a whole Mazer contingent; Nomi and Elan were hosting with Shoshana, Shlomo, Nadav, Aryeh and Eitan, and we brought the Petach Tikvah gang, Gila and Ariel with Elisha, Ora and Adi. Jenna was missing, having flown home to Edmonton via Montreal to bring my Mother to spend Passover with Roanne and David and Aviva, and meet Danielle and Brandon’s twins. 

The content of the Seder is interesting. Passover, like all Biblical Jewish holidays, is both based on an agrarian milestone (Spring) and had specific sacrifices for Temple times. When the Temple was destroyed, the Rabbis developed a method of commemorating Passover and ensuring that the history and importance of the Exodus from Egypt, Divine Intervention and a sense of family and community was preserved. The Seder is highly participatory and encourages questions from all participants, especially the children, about the rituals and customs. Elan’s family have mastered the art of getting people to ask questions, no matter how sophisticated you are. For example, there is a part of the seder where we take a vegetable (to represent the Spring) and dip it in salt water, to represent tears of slavery (or perhaps crossing the salty Red Sea). Most people have the custom to use a vegetable like celery, or even potatoes (as long as it grows in the ground.) So how about strawberries? Pineapple? Bananas? Not exactly traditional, but definitely gets people asking questions! They are all fair game. Add some salted caramel and voila, you get everyone into a discussion!  The Seder was full of these types of fun additions; Lego illustrations, an improv play by the kids, a game of Passover Jeopardy, and discussion about important topics like how you can celebrate the holiday of Freedom when some of your brothers are being held hostage. We went on till well past 1 AM and only the youngest went to sleep before the end!

I would like to share a thought that I heard from the Rabbi of our synagogue, Young Israel of North Netanya, Rabbi Baruch Boudilovsky. He introduced a question: if one had a choice to attend the seder at your parents’ home, or at the home of your teacher (professor, Rabbi, mentor…) which should you choose? Many might say they would choose the Rabbi for the spiritual impact and elevated interpretations. However, our traditions says that one should attend the Seder at your parents’ home. Why would that be? There are two important aspects to learning Torah (and this is likely applicable to other areas of study). There is basic information, the laws and their tenants, and how to apply them to a myriad of teachings that make up the Jewish system of halacha, how to govern yourself in the ways of the Torah. The second aspect, as important, is the have the correct attitude. To be able to study Torah, you need to see it as a way of life, as a natural outflow of who you are and what you do. As I said above, this is applicable to all cultures and traditions. The primary building block to develop a positive attitude toward your culture, your religion, your approach to people, or your way of relating to others is formed in your family. It is the nurture of family that guides your nature. Teachers teach the laws and customs; family teaches the love and appreciation of the culture or religion. This is something that can be hard to teach but much easier to embody with the right personal examples. It’s really wonderful for Barbara and I to see Monty and Daniella (who are in the Bahamas with the Wager clan), Elan and Nomi, and Ariel and Gila interact with their children and really set a beautiful example to follow with regards to the importance of the Seder and all other aspects of their lives. 

Post-Seder, what do you do with a whole bunch of kids? Well, considering that in Israel the whole country is on holiday at the same time, you either need to plan way ahead of time to be able to take them any of the most popular places (children’s museum, zoos, etc) which we did not…or choose an interesting but not as well-known place. You also must account for the weather, which was in the mid 30-degree range! On Wednesday, we went to an ancient aqueduct quite close to Nomi and Elan’s home, with inflatables, a natural pool, and an underground hike through the narrow caves, low ceiling, mud up to your thighs and freezing water. Sounds like fun? Well, it was! Perfect setting for a super-hot day. We then celebrated two birthdays, Ora’s, and Elan’s! Of course, only Ora got the bumps!

After dinner, Barbara and I went back to Netanya, and Elan and Nomi and family joined us for a beach day! For those non-beach afficionados, we also found a new escape room that Shlomo conquered and saved the Stark Family from the invaders!

Now we are heading into Shabbat after a whirlwind week, with the Efrat gang just arrived. We will follow this with the last day of Passover in Petach Tikvah with Ariel and Gila and Co. Then we will be in the month of May, with only 3 weeks to go in our Sabbatical in Israel. It’s crazy how time flies. We will be reporting back soon!

We wish you Shabbat Shalom, and Happy and Kosher Passover

Barbara and Bruce

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shlema) to Shmuel Zev ben Rachel Ita

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shelma) to Chaim Tzvi ben Shaindel

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shelma) to Moshe Aharon ben Leah

Happy Birthday to Elan!

Happy Birthday to Ora!

Happy Birthday Jessica!

Happy Birthday to Chuck Wagner!

Happy birthday to Bobby Shaul!

Pre-Passover 2024

I imagine everyone is waiting with bated breath to hear about the last couple of weeks. In particular, how did it go last Saturday night? Let’s rewind the clock a bit. Shabbat last week was in Netanya, with great company, Shlomo and Nadav. Since the Passover holiday is about a 2 week long spring break like affair, there is a lot of down time for older kids, particularly with Passover preparations looming large in most homes. The younger kids (like grade 3 and below) either have day care or ‘camp’ like programs to keep them occupied, but older kids are on their own. So, we decided to help out by picking up Shlomo and Nadav, aged 13 and 10, on Friday and let them hang out with us in Netanya until Monday. Shabbat was fun, with games and discussions, walks and great meals (of course) and when the kids went to bed on Saturday night after a movie, no one was really talking about what was looming. After they went to bed though….

I guess we were alerted something was happening around 10 PM. The news came that Iran was sending 300 unmanned drones. Then that changed to drones and ballistic missiles. Then a few minutes later “unconfirmed rumors” about Cruise missiles. We kept getting news updates and WhatsApps from friends and family all over the place. What were we hearing? Where is your shelter? How long do we have when a siren goes off? What will happen if the drones get through? And so it went. At about 1:40 AM Israel time, sirens went off in the east and south of the country, including Jerusalem and Efrat, where Elan and Nomi live. Our niece Jenna spent time in her bomb shelter, as did Nomi and the kids who were at home. We were alerted by Barbara’s Red Alert app, which she has not only coded to Netanya but to the cities our kids live in. We continued to chat, follow news feeds, and hope that there would be minimal damage. By about 3:30 AM it began to look like most of the drones, ballistic and cruise missiles (indeed the rumors were confirmed) were being intercepted. No sirens in Netanya (nor most of central and costal Israel). Although we slept very little on Saturday night, our grandsons both woke up Sunday morning pretty much unaware of what went on. That was most certainly a good thing!

As you know, the results of this potentially disastrous attack were nothing short of miraculous. First, 99+% of the attacking projectiles were shot down. That in and of itself is amazing. Picture a video game and you are trying to shoot all the enemies. Even the best misses occasionally. 90% would usually be considered good, but this was quite incredible. Second, perhaps a bigger miracle was the cooperation of the neighboring countries. Jordan and Egypt both participated in the defense, with the Jordanian Air Force showing accuracy as good as all the others. No one was killed, though one poor child in a Bedouin community was seriously injured. Now, if you get your news from CNN, you have been getting a steady stream of “The Iranian Attack was more for show than for destructive purposes” or other versions of this, minimizing what actually happened. There are plenty of pictures of the few missiles that landed in open areas or the one that hit an Israeli Airforce base, as well as of others that were shot down. The average ballistic missile that Iran shot is about the length of a Mac truck and has an 800-pound warhead. This was not just a bunch of firecrackers and roman candles. This could have been very destructive. Israel and its allies prevented that, perhaps, as we say, with a bit of divine intervention, but nonetheless this was not just hand-waving on Iran’s part. They retaliated for the assassination of an individual responsible to providing arms and strategy to Hezbollah by attacking major population centres in Israel. Anyone who says that was just a show of force without teeth is trying to cheapen a very dangerous situation and is very misguided. No one wants escalation, but those that are chanting “Death to Israel” are also chanting “Death to America”. We should not turn deaf ears to very loud shouts from Iran. 

So, what else happened? As you know, in general, we try to keep things light. That’s really because there is a lot of light in our life, a lot to be thankful for! The previous Shabbat we were hosted by Elan and Nomi in Efrat, which is always a treat, but also worked out very well as Nomi was going on a work-related trip and asked if we could babysit Sunday afternoon and evening. Of course, we did not hesitate. Saturday evening, we visited Gila’s parents, Geula and Yitzhak Twersky, who live in the nearby town of Neve Daniel. Sunday morning, we had brunch with Debbie and Zev Kessler in Jerusalem; without traffic Efrat is 15 minutes from Jerusalem. 

We were back in Efrat in time for the kids to come home from school and treat them to burgers for dinner. This week, the theme of helping out continued, with having Shlomo and Nadav for 4 days and then Elisha for 2 days. Plus, fter dropping Shlomo and Nadav off on Monday, Barbara took Aryeh out to the mall for Poke Bowls (did I mention our grandchildren were foodies?) and a rocketship ride. Of course, this was not a freebie for the kids. To earn their keep, they had to help with Passover shopping and other choirs, with the payment including made to order breakfasts, nice dinners, and movie nights!  

Passover starts on Monday evening. Passover, as you know, is the holiday of liberation of the Children of Israel from Egypt, 3500 years ago. We will be reciting the Haggadah, which elaborates the story of Passover, and partaking in the customs that remind us of both slavery and bitterness, as well as freedom and redemption. I hope to write more about Passover next week, but I think that Passover comes this year 6 months into a war which has brought much sadness to Israel. Many Passover Seders will have empty chairs, with lost friends and relatives and 133 hostages still missing. With the specter of Iran looming and the Gaza campaign still active (although much less so at the moment), this will be a Passover that will be filled with prayers that we soon see an end to the fighting, the release of the hostages, and building on the cooperation that we saw last Saturday night to create a better situation for all. 

We wish you Shabbat Shalom, and Happy and Kosher Passover

Barbara and Bruce

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shlema) to Shmuel Zev ben Rachel Ita

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shelma) to Chaim Tzvi ben Shaindel

We wish a speedy recovery (Refuah Shelma) to Moshe Aharon ben Leah

Happy Birthday to Elan!

Happy Birthday to Ora!

Happy Birthday David!

Happy Birthday Joshua!

Welcome to Israel Haim Fruchter and the Steckler Family for Passover visits! And everyone else who has decided to come to share in Passover in Israel!

And a shout-out to my mom, Phyllis Mazer who is travelling with Jenna to Edmonton to spend Passover with Roanne, David, Aviva, Danielle, Brandon and her new twin great grandsons!

Shabbat April 5-6

OK, gang, not to stir panic in those of you who observe Jewish holidays, but there are now only 16 more shopping days till Passover, and less if you keep Shabbat. Just saying…

More fun with grandchildren: We had the pleasure of having Nomi and the boys (Shlomo, Nadav, Aryeh and Eytan) on the Shabbat before Purim, while Elan was away. As opposed to the rainy weather the last time we hosted, this was a really nice Shabbat, and we spent time both inside and outside, with lots of games and fun. That week was also Nadav’s birthday, so we continued the precedent for a birthday outing with Savti and Sabi. This includes a made to measure breakfast, an activity and lunch. Nadav chose an Escape Room, which is great because there are tons of them in Israel. We went to one about an Alien Invasion of Earth, which was pretty challenging because a bunch of the clues were really abstract and well hidden. Nadav was amazing, cracking a few codes that were pretty challenging, and we escaped just under the wire! We were able to negotiate a peaceful settlement with the Aliens and averted them destroying the Earth! Boy, I wish all political negotiations went that smoothly. 

To add to the quality time with grandchildren, Gila was in charge of a 2 day hiking trip for the 7 and 8th grades of her school, so after spending this past Shabbat with Elisha, Ora and Adi, we were on pick-up and dinner duty in Petach Tikva! Monday, we made a very typical grandparent bonehead mistake; since it was 30+ degrees here (more about weather below) we decided that after school snack would be ice cream at the newly opened local ice cream place near the kid’s school. This part went very well (only one tantrum over ice cream melting too fast). The next step was dinner which followed a couple of activities, but that was served way too close to ice cream for it to be appreciated! Plus, the sugar high may have made bedtime more challenging that usual! So, learning from our errors, on Tuesday when we picked up Ora and Adi from after school care (Elisha, in grade 4 goes home alone, a 7-minute walk from school) snack was cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, activity was a super calm art project making mosaics, and dinner was a major success with no issues. That led to a super calm bedtime. See, even seniors can learn!!

World-Wide Weather Report: Yesterday my Ring doorbell app chimed so we looked at the front door of our home in Cote-St. Luc. As everyone knows, the winter has been quite mild in Canada this year and there was no snow on the ground for a few weeks. But, April 4th was hit with a vengeance! The Ring camera showed a January like landscape with people all bundled up and the wind blowing like crazy! The news reported thousands of people without power. However, just to make everyone feel better, the first Seder last year was on the evening of April 5th and that was the day of a major ice storm with people losing power for up to 5 days! We are reminded of the lovely candle lit Seder last year among very good company who were all good sports about eating room temperature Seder food. 

Well, in contrast, we are heading into spring here in Israel. As noted above the beginning of the week had high temperatures of 30+ for 2-3 days. It has since moderated to the mid 20’s but obviously no complaints! This allowed up to take a couple of long walks along the beach/boardwalk this week, which was really fun. The weekend will be low 20’s and next week will continue in that pattern. I understand the temperature will rebound in Montreal and Toronto next week too, so hopefully Passover will be celebrated in spring like weather this year rather than on treacherous icy streets!

Strawberry Fields Forever: The need for volunteers for agriculture continues. I bet most of you don’t know that the area around Netanya is very fertile and is home to many farms and orchards. So, following up on last week’s experience as orange pickers, I texted the orange grove people only to learn that they have reached a stage where the only oranges that need picking are ladder-accessible. Despite many willing people wanting to help, they decided that having a bunch of amateur orange pickers on ladders was less than desirable (there are not enough safety nets in Israel for all those “willing but not so able” orange pickers!). There was, however, an urgent appeal for strawberry pickers about 30 minutes from our home, so we were out in the sun at 8:30 Thursday morning (we passed on the 6:30 start time) with a gang of about 10 others harvesting strawberries. No experience needed, just leave the green ones and the white ones to ripen and obviously ignore the mushy and eaten ones!

Allergy Practice in Israel: I bet you are wondering what we are doing here other than seeing family and picking fruit? I have been going to the Safra Children’s Hospital at the Sheba Medical Centre in Ramat Gan 1-2 times per week to work with their food allergy team and develop a lab program for the study of the immune changes in Food Allergy. I am working with a physician named Mona Kidon, and we have planned a project that will examine genetic and epigenetic changes in food allergy. This will likely be a collaboration between Safra, Montreal Children’s and Weizmann Institute although there may be more McGill collaboration as well. I won’t bore you too much with details, but we are trying to understand if there is a difference in genetic changes in older and younger children and in children who have been exposed to conventional peanuts, or a novel, immature peanut developed in Rehovot and used at Safra. Stay tuned! Next week Barbara will update you on her collaboration with Alyne Children’s Rehab Centre!

We are off to Efrat for Shabbat with Nomi, Elan and the gang so that will be all for now. 

We wish you sunny times and Shabbat Shalom!

Barbara and Bruce

Refuah Shlema to Shmuel Zev ben Rachel Ita

Refuah Shelma to Chaim Tzvi ben Shaindel