Give me that fish…if it were you in that sandwich you wouldn’t be laughing at all.
And most important today is I am singing because of a very happy day:
Thank you Hashem on the the engagement of Minna and Nafi!
(Credit Video: Andy Blumenthal)
(Credit Video: Andy Blumenthal and Credit Photo: Minna Blumenthal)
Please see my new article in The Times of Israel called, “The Beauty of Tefillin.”
Like the colorful coat that Jacob gave Joseph to wear, the mitzvah of tefillin that G-d gave us to wear is also filled with spiritual color and the love of Hashem. This is in no way intended as sacrilegious or as trying to change our holy mitzvot. Rather it is an artistic attempt to see the tefillin in a new way that perhaps excites and bring Jews back to this important mitzvah.
Over time, as I continued to learn and grow as a person and as a Jew, I found much of my way back to Yiddishkeit and to wearing my holy tefillin with love and Joy. To me they are forever colorful and full of spiritual energy that are uplifting to me as I pray with them on for Hashem’s everlasting mercy and blessings for all of us.
(Credit Image: Andy Blumenthal)
This holiday outfit has got to win an award.
The matching suit and tie with all the decorative holiday ornaments.
The bright red shirt.
The tree hat with the star on top.
And the dark glasses.
Wow, standout city!
Where do you get clothing like this?
I wonder if I could do this with a menorah too. LOL
Happy Holidays to all. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Thought this was a pretty cool Passover Haggadah.
Shaped like a wine bottle!
Sort of sets the stage for the four cups of wine at the Seder.
I found this Haggadah in Israel, and I’m glad I got a few of them.
Wishing everyone a joyous Passover and Easter holiday! 😉
(Source Photos: Andy Blumenthal)
(Source Photos: Andy Blumenthal
Source Video: Dossy Blumenthal)
Being a heart alone in this world is very lonely, indeed.
Chasing another heart, so that we can pair together makes two less lonely hearts.
Two hearts that beat as one making beautiful music together.
When the hearts are in harmony, we sway and are uplifted flying away into the heavens.
And when the music is discordant, we are forced to retune and to grow wings that we never even knew we had.
Hearts that complement each other, help us face the questions we often fear to ask ourselves.
When these hearts meet, they touch so gently, and like silk they dance a perfect dance.
What is meaningless alone is all of a sudden meaningful with another.
What is too painful to bear by oneself is manageable when shared between two.
And what is joyful is magnified in sweetness when there is someone else to enjoy it with.
One heart chases another until they embrace that long blissful embrace. 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Love this picture that my daughter took in Israel of the Challahs for Shabbat.
So fresh and delicious.
Plenty for all.
G-d’s blessing for a restful Shabbos.
Thank you for sanctifying us with your mitzvot. 😉
(Source Photo: Minna Blumenthal)
There is a buddhist philosophy that life is all about loss and suffering.
The Budha says:
Life is suffering.
Why? Because life is impermanence–whatever we gain, eventually, we must lose.
– Riches, power, people, health, even our memories perhaps.
In a sense, this is like the saying from “War of the Roses”:
There is no winning, only degrees of losing.
However, there is one exception to the impermanence and loss in life:
The only thing that is permanent is our good deeds, and with this we can achieve an everlasting good name for ourselves.
In Judaism, we teach:
A good name is better than fine oil.
Hence, this is the permanence that we strive for in life and in death.
If we can attain a good name through purity of soul then in a sense, we can transcend life’s suffering and impermanence.
By becoming non-attached to all of life’s temporary things, and instead focusing on perfecting ourselves, we can free ourselves from suffering and from this world, and then we can go on in everlasting-peace to the afterlife.
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Please see my article in The Times of Israel called, “The Lesson of the Candy Lane Menorah.”
It was a beautiful ushering in the first night of Chanukah by Chabad of Bethesda, Maryland. The “candy” menorah that they were going to use was somehow destroyed, but Chabad came with a spare–they are terrific…even when things go wrong, miracles can happen, but we have to be prepared like Chabad was tonight.
Happy First Night of Chanukah to everyone! 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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