Peg and Sid's blog: Connections, Culture and Cocktails

Busy week ...

Started the week (Sunday and Monday) by going to our regular classes. After the Monday class I had lunch with my friend Bevie, who I've known for close to 50 years. And she looks almost the same as she did back then. It was supposed to be a quick lunch because she had things to do, but as usual when we get together it's not less than 3 hours. On the way to lunch we popped in for a quick tour of the new Ibis Hotel that (finally) opened on Ben Yehuda Street. It, like most things in Israel, has been under construction for years longer than it should have been.

We had a bat mitzvah on Tuesday night. Naturally I couldn't show up without a visit to my hairdresser, Nabil. I met Batsheva at the salon, we both had our hair done and then went to lunch. Another 3 hour event.

By their head covering shall you know them. There are a number of communities on the spectrum of orthodoxy here. Most of our friends are modern orthodox, known in the vernacular as "kipa srgua" (knitted kipa). Just as it sounds, the men wear crocheted kipas and many of the married women cover their hair with scarves or hats, sometimes but not always. Women in this group are usually more participatory in religious activities, but not at the same level as men. (Feminist alert: You are not a man and never will be. There is no such thing as "gender neutral". Get over yourselves.) The idea of having a bat mitzvah for girls is fairly recent. Because girls don't participate in the same way boys do, a bat mitzvah is usually just a party, reminiscent of a sweet 16. Still this is a way to acknowledge that at age 12 girls are excepted to take on the role of an adult Jewish woman.

We went to the bat mitzvah of the granddaughter of good friends of ours from Chicago. I love these events. It's not about the party, it's about continuity. Another generation assuming the role of a Jewish adult. Of course, there is context. The grandfather is a survivor of multiple concentration camps. For him to see his grandchildren living in Israel, growing up religious, maintaining the values, practices and traditions, has a meaning that far exceeds the usual grandparents' and parents' nachas (pride).

Proud parents Miryam and Eli, with bat mitzvah daughter Yael

Saba (grandfather) and Yael

Batia and Arnold

The culture part of this week's post was on Wednesday afternoon. We've seen the permanent exhibits at the Israel Museum a thousand times; unless there's a special exhibit we usually don't go. This time there were four. We spent the whole afternoon there, which tested the limits of endurance. The exhibits were excellent, spanning archaeology, mythology, literature, clothing, photography and video.

We had lunch yesterday with Doris and Norm, friends from Chicago who are literally the accidental immigrants. They came on a visit a couple years ago and never went back. A health issue occurred that made it pretty much impossible for Norm to travel. They were fortunate to have people who cleaned out and sold their home, and shipped the items they wanted to keep. We got together with them during our last visit (summer 2018). They looked fantastic then, and continue to do so. They have a great apartment, kids, grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren who keep tabs on them, and have never been happier. They are both in their 90's and have been married 72 years.

After visiting Norm and Doris, we went to our friend Ida's for cocktails. She's a great cook and hostess and has delightful friends. A wonderful way to unwind.