Friday, May 22, 2009

Shavuot- A FUN holiday for Kids!


Shavuot marks the day when Moses received the Torah on Mount Sinai. It is also a nature holiday celebrating the time when farmers brought the first fruits of their harvest to the holy Temple in Jerusalem. Shavuot falls at the time of year when cream and milk are traditionally the richest. It is traditionally a milk holiday rich with creamy delights like blintzes, ice cream and sour cream cakes.


A wonderful activity to do with young children is to make your own butter. All you need is 1/2 cup heavy cream and a jar with a secure cap. Pour the cream into the jar, secure the cap and shake until the cream separates into butter and whey (the liquid). Then our off the whey. You can spread this on bagels or crackers or make your own colorful labels to put on the jar and share with family and friends.


Plan a Shavuot brunch with bagels and homemade assorted cream cheeses. You can make your own strawbwerry cream cheese, veggie cream cheese and even honey cream cheese. Or, create a unique table scape of a mound of cream cheese shaped like Mount Sinai. You can make a small figurine of Moses on top out of baby carrots, peas, etc. using tooth picks. Get creative. Shavuot is a great holiday to celebrate as a family.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

"How To Talk to Your Children About G-d"- The Cliff Notes




This past Friday I joined a group of parents who came to Temple Beth Torah in Wellington to hear what Joel Grishaver (Jewish author, teacher, cartoonist and storyteller) had to teach us and discuss with us about Talking to Your Children About G-d. It was such an interesting and informative session. I really got a lot out of it and wanted to share my brief notes with you because I know you might really enjoy them and be able to use some of the language and tools he shared with us.

When discussing G-d with young children:

1. You must be comfortable talking about G-d before you can do so with your child. Not everyone sees and believes in G-d in the same way. Working on answers to your child's questions about G-d and struggling with them is better than ignoring them.

2. Remember that their questions need answers that you won't have to undo or unteach as they get older.

3. Be honest, "I don't know "and "I'm not sure" are acceptable answers sometimes.

4.Sometimes there are more possible answers to a question and you should leave room for some complexity that is opened ended. By responding, "That's the way the story goes...", you may do this and give your child something to think about.

5. You can provoke questions about G-d by using books and stories. Try this book as a collection of stories YOU can read to your young child: I Have Some Questions About G-d, available at http://www.torahaura.com.another/ good book for parents to read is: When Children Ask About G-d, by Harold Kushner

6. What we want are conversations, every story is the start of a conversation, ask your child, "What do you think it means?'

7. When dealing with kids who are a little older, you can take your conversations to a different level, with responses that include: "Some people think this, some think that, what do you choose?"

Next, Joel challenged the parents to discuss the questions that THEY are most scared of:

  • One parent was scared of her child's question: "How could G-d let my "grandma" or "dog" die?". One way to address this would be to explain to the child that G-d works through people and people did the best they could.

  • Another question was, "How could G-d let the Holocaust happen?". Joel responded with some useful answers to this questions. One was, "G-d did stop the Holocaust, with people, but it took longer than we wanted". Another was, " The Holocaust is really a question about people, not about G-d. Few were guilty and many were responsible."

  • The next question from kids that parents were scared of was, "How do we know there is a G-d?" To this, Joel asked the parents to think about their own answer to this question. He even asked us to categorize our responses into some typical trains of thought: 1. There is no G-d. 2. We can feel G-d inside of us. 3. We can see G-d in nature. 4. We just have to believe. We discussed how we each could relate to these responses (not one is right or wrong) and use them to discuss G-d with our kids. After our discussion, Joel said that sometimes it may be helpful to describe G-d in this way to young kids (and I LOVED this one): G-d is like the WIND. You can't see the wind, you can't draw the wind, but you can see and draw what the wind (G-d) does.

Finally, we discussed that idea that if parents act as if there is a G-d by bringing G-d into your home with "Jewish Stuff" then they kids will start to get a feel for G-d. Put up a mezuzah, may be a lower hung one at child height for the kids. Acknowledge the mezuzah, touch and kiss your hand as you enter the house or room, let your kids know that this sends the message that G-d wants our house to be a place of peace and understanding.

There were so many more thoughts and ideas on this topic to discuss, but we ran out of time. I hope these notes can help you begin a dialog in your home. I plan on purchasing the above mentioned books for myself. I will let you know how I use them and what I found helpful. As always, feel free to contact me with ideas, thoughts and questions of your own about this or any other Jewish family topic.

Thinking about you and G-d,


Amy


a.bergman@cjepb.org









Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Sizzlin' Summer Shabbats


The recent rise in the mercury has made me think about the summer. It's approaching fast and furious. One of things I love about summer is the relaxed schedule and long days. Unfortunately, this usually means hot and sticky days as well. The rhythm of Shabbat is a little different too. Most local congregations still hold services, some maybe at earlier times or in a different venue like a chapel or library versus in the sanctuary. Sometimes the service is lead by a congregant or the Cantor (many Rabbis take time off in the summer). I like this change. It helps me and my kids remember that you can pray anywhere and with anyone. Our home Shabbat rituals vary a little too. Summer afternoons are often spent in the pool to cool off and then seem to seamlessly flow in to dinner time. In the summer on Fridays I bring the candlesticks out to the patio and the challah is put next to the barbecue Shabbat chicken. I have even gone as far as freezing the grape juice in small paper cups with a stick and having "Shabbat grape juice pops" for our outdoor summer kiddish (blessing over the wine). Summer is also the time that many families go on vacation (hopefully to somewhere a little cooler). You don't have to leave Shabbat behind. Did you know that most cruise ships hold short Shabbat services on Friday evenings? I am not joking. I have been to them. They are lovely and warm. The ships provide challah (usually delicious and 4 feet long), wine, service packets and even a person to lead the service. And most cruises leave on Friday afternoons, so this is a great way to get started on your trip and to meet other people on your cruise. This summer we are putting out a "new" Tzedakah box in which we will collect money over the course of the summer to give to specific cause. There are lots of exciting and new ways to celebrate Shabbat in the heat of the summer, all you have to do is keep your eyes open and being willing to think outside of the "Shabbat Box". Do you have any fun and different Shabbat ideas? Email them to me and I will share them: a.bergman@cjepb.org.