First of all, I thank all of you who made comments or emailed me to congratulate me on the new job. I appreciate all of the good wishes!
As far as some details...the name of the company for whom I will be working is Tlalim. (The name has no bearing on the business. It is named after two girls named Tal, the daughters of the founders). They have been around for many years, and their business is bringing people to Israel on many different types of trips. One of their divisions is geared towards educational tours of Israel of various lengths of time. They are the largest "supplier" of attendees of the popular Birthright program and have brought thousands of people to Israel over the years.
Their website may be seen here: http://www.tlalimgroup.com/default.asp?lang=en
MY position will be a marketing position. I will be responsible for identifying groups (large and not-so-large) in the English-speaking Orthodox communities in North America, who will come to Israel for a variety of trips. Among the different ideas: bringing parents and their kids who will be going to Yeshiva and Seminary the next year in order to check out different schools, learn along the way and do some touring. Other types of trips will be family-oriented; schools; Shuls; and the list goes on and on.
And here is where YOU can help as well! This has been a passion of mine for MANY years, and now I get to do it for my job as well. In order to be succesful, I must identify where there are potential groups looking to put together a trip. If you (or anyone else whom you know) are thinking about a trip to Israel, please be in touch with me about it. I will in the not-too-distant future put out an "official" list of the types of trips. But, in the interim, if there is any interest even now, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I love organizing trips, and I love bringing people to Israel...I am thrilled that I have such an opportunity. If you have any questions about potential trips or if you have someone you think I should contact, please contact me.
In the meantime, I wish everyone a Shabbat Shalom. This will be our 5th Shabbat in Israel and each one is better than the last one!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
I Have Some Catching Up To Do!
It has been a number of days since I last wrote, and some significant things have happened in the interim, so I am going to use this entry to catch up a bit.
1. Aronot...Closets: YAY!!! We finally have aronot. This will allow us to take a lot of items that until now had been in boxes and suitcases and finally put them "where they all belong." It will go a long way to making the clutter less. It took them almost 2 hours to shlep all the parts down the (85) steps to our place and about 3 1/2 hours to assemble. They were quick, efficient and gone.
2. A Job...I HAVE A JOB...Baruch Hashem! I am going to use my next entry to give more details but "b'kitzur" I will be working with a long-established company that runs trips to Israel (educational and other types). My job will be to market various programs to the English-speaking, Dati (Orthodox) communities in North America. I do indeed plan to share much more on that tomorrow when I am more awake..I look forward to sharing these details with you soon. But in the meantime, I must publicly thank HKB"H for enabling the first four weeks of our Aliya to be completely atypical..lift came on time; no horror stories to tell; I got a job etc etc...as is noted in this week's Parasha, we can never think that MY power and MY strength gave me all of this...it is ALL from Hashem!
3. Communications...I finally returned my temporary cell phone today and picked up the SIM-card for the new (permanent) one. Only problem is that the phone was dead, and I was in Jerusalem for many hours with no phone communication and no access to email (no more Blackberry.) I felt SO lost! I just plugged in to charge the phones and will share the number soon...once I remember it!
4. Har Herzl...I was at Har Herzl this afternoon. I was supposed to be there for a memorial service for Avi Grogan (hy"d) but somehow, the signals got messed up, and we never met up. In any event, I took the opportunity to walk into the cemetery to walk around for a few minutes. I walked over to the grave of Herzl and stood there in that huge open area...ALL ALONE. I have been there MANY times before, but this was the first time I stood there completely alone. It was so peaceful and quiet...putting all politics, etc aside...it was a moving moment.
Ok...there is still lots more to write but I am afraid I will be typing gibberish soon; so before that happens I am going off to f78fp-0erg90u7sdvk 0rtjzsgdcv-9urgv;dovfh984,d;vkbnf 0^^*rwegklvhos9...
:)
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
1. Aronot...Closets: YAY!!! We finally have aronot. This will allow us to take a lot of items that until now had been in boxes and suitcases and finally put them "where they all belong." It will go a long way to making the clutter less. It took them almost 2 hours to shlep all the parts down the (85) steps to our place and about 3 1/2 hours to assemble. They were quick, efficient and gone.
2. A Job...I HAVE A JOB...Baruch Hashem! I am going to use my next entry to give more details but "b'kitzur" I will be working with a long-established company that runs trips to Israel (educational and other types). My job will be to market various programs to the English-speaking, Dati (Orthodox) communities in North America. I do indeed plan to share much more on that tomorrow when I am more awake..I look forward to sharing these details with you soon. But in the meantime, I must publicly thank HKB"H for enabling the first four weeks of our Aliya to be completely atypical..lift came on time; no horror stories to tell; I got a job etc etc...as is noted in this week's Parasha, we can never think that MY power and MY strength gave me all of this...it is ALL from Hashem!
3. Communications...I finally returned my temporary cell phone today and picked up the SIM-card for the new (permanent) one. Only problem is that the phone was dead, and I was in Jerusalem for many hours with no phone communication and no access to email (no more Blackberry.) I felt SO lost! I just plugged in to charge the phones and will share the number soon...once I remember it!
4. Har Herzl...I was at Har Herzl this afternoon. I was supposed to be there for a memorial service for Avi Grogan (hy"d) but somehow, the signals got messed up, and we never met up. In any event, I took the opportunity to walk into the cemetery to walk around for a few minutes. I walked over to the grave of Herzl and stood there in that huge open area...ALL ALONE. I have been there MANY times before, but this was the first time I stood there completely alone. It was so peaceful and quiet...putting all politics, etc aside...it was a moving moment.
Ok...there is still lots more to write but I am afraid I will be typing gibberish soon; so before that happens I am going off to f78fp-0erg90u7sdvk 0rtjzsgdcv-9urgv;dovfh984,d;vkbnf 0^^*rwegklvhos9...
:)
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Religious Reflections
One thing that I have not completely addressed on this blog is the RELIGIOUS/SPIRITUAL aspects of Aliya that I have encountered. While some may be too personal to publicly address, others are fine for public consumption.
1. Tefilla...While I have ALWAYS placed a high priority on davening/tefilla/prayer, and I have taught classes over the years in it as well, I must tell you that my kavana (concentration, thought process, etc) is completely different here! First of all, I can daven at the pace I want to and can concentrate more on what I am saying. Since the minhag (custom) in most places is that the one leading the davening waits for the Rabbi to finish his Shemona Esray before the repetition begins, I was always mindful of this and did not want to go too long so as to cause a situation of "tircha d'tzibura" (loosely translated as a burden on those present). I considered it a hazard of being a Shul Rabbi. But at this stage, I feel free to daven as long as I wish, and it has made a HUGE difference in my davening.
2. Mitzvot...I can honestly say that I remember back to the day I put on my Tefillin for the first time. The newness and excitement were palpable. Every time I saw a young man put on his Tefillin for the first time, I tried to encourage him to keep that fervor and excitement as long as possible. Sadly, like most people, the action of day-to-day Mitzvot, such as Tefillin was not always met with the same excitement and fervor as it was when I first put on the Tefillin 37 years ago. HOWEVER, that zeal, excitement and joy at doing "even" the daily Mitzvot has come back VERY strongly, and I am acutely aware every time I am making a Bracha, putting on Tefillin, putting up a Mezuzah, etc, etc, etc. It is SO hard to put into words this feeling of "newness" (that I realistically fear will not last for 70 more years) at doing all of the Mitzvot. It is a wonderful feeling!
3. Closeness to Hashem...One other thing I have always strived to do is fulfill "dvekut Ba'shem" (cleaving to Hashem). At this time of year, for the past 10 years, I would be sitting writing my High Holiday sermons, and summer therefore became intense periods of reflection and introspection. This year, with no sermons to write (although I may STILL write and email out a pre-Yom Kippur "Three Images" speech!), I have had even more opportunity for introspection. The closeness to Hashem, the feelings of "I am HOME"...His home...and that I am (hopefully!) giving Him "nachas" that I/we are here, makes me feel even closer. Put it this way...if you recall the look on your parents' face when you did something that made them proud, you felt a closer bond than before...THAT is what I am feeling now.
4. I have never felt prouder to be a Jew! No further explanation needed on this one...
Once again, Shabbat was magnificent. We actually ate at home, by ourselves, for the first time in months. Back in Chicago, we ate out for a number of weeks before our departure and the first three weeks here, we had invitations every week. It was nice to be alone in our home in Maale Adumim for a Shabbat meal.
Looking forward to a post-Tisha B'Av week coming up. Nice to hear music again!
1. Tefilla...While I have ALWAYS placed a high priority on davening/tefilla/prayer, and I have taught classes over the years in it as well, I must tell you that my kavana (concentration, thought process, etc) is completely different here! First of all, I can daven at the pace I want to and can concentrate more on what I am saying. Since the minhag (custom) in most places is that the one leading the davening waits for the Rabbi to finish his Shemona Esray before the repetition begins, I was always mindful of this and did not want to go too long so as to cause a situation of "tircha d'tzibura" (loosely translated as a burden on those present). I considered it a hazard of being a Shul Rabbi. But at this stage, I feel free to daven as long as I wish, and it has made a HUGE difference in my davening.
2. Mitzvot...I can honestly say that I remember back to the day I put on my Tefillin for the first time. The newness and excitement were palpable. Every time I saw a young man put on his Tefillin for the first time, I tried to encourage him to keep that fervor and excitement as long as possible. Sadly, like most people, the action of day-to-day Mitzvot, such as Tefillin was not always met with the same excitement and fervor as it was when I first put on the Tefillin 37 years ago. HOWEVER, that zeal, excitement and joy at doing "even" the daily Mitzvot has come back VERY strongly, and I am acutely aware every time I am making a Bracha, putting on Tefillin, putting up a Mezuzah, etc, etc, etc. It is SO hard to put into words this feeling of "newness" (that I realistically fear will not last for 70 more years) at doing all of the Mitzvot. It is a wonderful feeling!
3. Closeness to Hashem...One other thing I have always strived to do is fulfill "dvekut Ba'shem" (cleaving to Hashem). At this time of year, for the past 10 years, I would be sitting writing my High Holiday sermons, and summer therefore became intense periods of reflection and introspection. This year, with no sermons to write (although I may STILL write and email out a pre-Yom Kippur "Three Images" speech!), I have had even more opportunity for introspection. The closeness to Hashem, the feelings of "I am HOME"...His home...and that I am (hopefully!) giving Him "nachas" that I/we are here, makes me feel even closer. Put it this way...if you recall the look on your parents' face when you did something that made them proud, you felt a closer bond than before...THAT is what I am feeling now.
4. I have never felt prouder to be a Jew! No further explanation needed on this one...
Once again, Shabbat was magnificent. We actually ate at home, by ourselves, for the first time in months. Back in Chicago, we ate out for a number of weeks before our departure and the first three weeks here, we had invitations every week. It was nice to be alone in our home in Maale Adumim for a Shabbat meal.
Looking forward to a post-Tisha B'Av week coming up. Nice to hear music again!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
I Finally Posted Videos on YouTube
When we moved to Israel, the shul, KJBS, was kind enough to give me a Flip Video camera as a gift. While I have been shooting some video along the way, I only got around now to posting them on YouTube. They are all short (about 30 sec each) and invite you to watch them at your leisure.
1.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y-0WujyKuk (At JFK with all our luggage)
2.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr1pe6I4VJQ (How they got all our "stuff" into our home
3.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_tlCGuup8c (A view from our backyard)
4.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaBaenJ_Z04 (The view inside as we begin to get set up.
1.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y-0WujyKuk (At JFK with all our luggage)
2.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr1pe6I4VJQ (How they got all our "stuff" into our home
3.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_tlCGuup8c (A view from our backyard)
4.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaBaenJ_Z04 (The view inside as we begin to get set up.
Tish'a B'Av at Ground Zero
While I have had the opportunity to be in Israel over the years many times, I have NEVER been here for 9 Av in my entire life. So, I decided that I needed to have "a plan" for the day of 9 Av in order to fully appreciate the day. Last night, I along with a few hundred others, sat on the floor of Pnei Shmuel (the "Down Shul"), in Maale Adumim for Maariv, Eicha and Kinnot. (It was strange for me to not be one of those reading part of Eicha and even stranger to know that the next morning, I would not be sitting and explaining all the Kinnot we would be saying. But, it is a new point in life and things move on!)
On 9 Av in the morning, I got up earlier than I had planned and decided to put my plan into action. I got on a bus here in Maale Adumim at 6:15am and headed to Yerushalayim. I felt that it was the "place to be" on the darkest day of the Jewish Calendar. I was not disappointed...the Kotel plaza was filled with people. Hundreds sat on the stone floor davening and reciting Kinnot. As I sat there and joined in reciting Kinnot as well, I paused to look around. I was looking at the Western Wall, the retaining wall of the mountain upon which stood the Bet HaMikdash, whose destruction we mourn today. Suddenly, I was filled with an overwhelming sense of both sadness and joy. Sadness, as I contemplated the loss of both the first and second Bet HaMikdash. But, I also felt a sense of joy to know that I was sitting at "Ground Zero" so-to-speak. HERE IS WHERE IT ALL HAPPENED! HERE IS THE PLACE FOR WHICH I AND THOUSANDS OF OTHER JEWS ARE RECITING KINNOT! And I felt this sense of peace to know I had the zechut to be HERE...
When I finished and headed back to the Central Bus Station, I paused for a moment near the Davidson Center, home to the Southern Wall Excavation site. I was disappointed that I could not GO to the Southern Wall. It actually is more significant archeologically than the Western Wall, and I wanted to stand THERE...but, at least I could stand nearby and look upon the area where centuries ago, tens of thousands of Jews passed through the (currently sealed) gates to the Temple Mount. I understood with much deeper insight the vast loss we have suffered for thousands of years without our ability to ascend Har haBayit and see a Bet HaMikdash standing there!
I am now back home in Maale Adumim, and I got a very quick reminder of what kind of Galut we still face: I went to change my profile on Facebook to Maale Adumim from Chicago. When I entered in the name, I was surprised to see it come up on a list of names that Facebook recognized. BUT...I was doubly surprised to see the default read: "Maale Adumimm, Palestine." I thought this issue had been resolved. Oh well.. yet another thing to deal with at some point!
Hope that your Tish'a B'Av is meaningful and that you will alll join me next year dancing at the rebuilt Bet HaMikdash!
On 9 Av in the morning, I got up earlier than I had planned and decided to put my plan into action. I got on a bus here in Maale Adumim at 6:15am and headed to Yerushalayim. I felt that it was the "place to be" on the darkest day of the Jewish Calendar. I was not disappointed...the Kotel plaza was filled with people. Hundreds sat on the stone floor davening and reciting Kinnot. As I sat there and joined in reciting Kinnot as well, I paused to look around. I was looking at the Western Wall, the retaining wall of the mountain upon which stood the Bet HaMikdash, whose destruction we mourn today. Suddenly, I was filled with an overwhelming sense of both sadness and joy. Sadness, as I contemplated the loss of both the first and second Bet HaMikdash. But, I also felt a sense of joy to know that I was sitting at "Ground Zero" so-to-speak. HERE IS WHERE IT ALL HAPPENED! HERE IS THE PLACE FOR WHICH I AND THOUSANDS OF OTHER JEWS ARE RECITING KINNOT! And I felt this sense of peace to know I had the zechut to be HERE...
When I finished and headed back to the Central Bus Station, I paused for a moment near the Davidson Center, home to the Southern Wall Excavation site. I was disappointed that I could not GO to the Southern Wall. It actually is more significant archeologically than the Western Wall, and I wanted to stand THERE...but, at least I could stand nearby and look upon the area where centuries ago, tens of thousands of Jews passed through the (currently sealed) gates to the Temple Mount. I understood with much deeper insight the vast loss we have suffered for thousands of years without our ability to ascend Har haBayit and see a Bet HaMikdash standing there!
I am now back home in Maale Adumim, and I got a very quick reminder of what kind of Galut we still face: I went to change my profile on Facebook to Maale Adumim from Chicago. When I entered in the name, I was surprised to see it come up on a list of names that Facebook recognized. BUT...I was doubly surprised to see the default read: "Maale Adumimm, Palestine." I thought this issue had been resolved. Oh well.. yet another thing to deal with at some point!
Hope that your Tish'a B'Av is meaningful and that you will alll join me next year dancing at the rebuilt Bet HaMikdash!
Monday, July 27, 2009
"There's a Cat in the House!" and SOME pics
(The pics above are just a small drop of the many I have. As soon as I can figure out how to post an album and also some video, I will do it. The pics (I believe should be self-explanatory). Once we are set up I will send more pics of the inside of what is shaping up to be a beautiful home BH!
It was 3:30am and all was peaceful in the Shandalov home in Maale Adumim on Motzae'i Shabbat. The cool summer breeze wafted through the windows and all were sleeping soundly. Suddenly, a shout was heard throughout the the house: THERE'S A CAT IN THE HOUSE! Now, if we OWNED a cat, that would not be cause for alarm. but, we do not (and never will) own a cat. Not only that, that meant that some STRAY cat carrying who-knows-what kind of diseases was running through our house. I jumped out of bed only to find the poor little animal running scared through the house. I chased him/her/it downstairs where it got cornered in the Security room. Andy opened the window and it jumped out. Truth is that (due to it being the middle of the night) I was more afraid than the cat, but I was not about to let the cat know that. I had to show him/her/it who was boss. How did he get in? I think that we had left open the door on our mirpesset in our bedroom a little bit and it was able to sneak on in. Won't be making THAT mistake again!
On Sunday (remember, it is a regular workday here), Andy and I went to Zvia to meet with the new Olot Chadashot who will be going to this school and to get a briefing about the upcoming year. This is a semi-private school...full tuition: (apprx) $2500 per year before any kind of scholarhsips etc. That is for High School...for the entire school YEAR...and that is not a typo! Yes, $2500 per year and that includes lunch every single day. (Does it sound like I am making more of a pitch for Aliya maybe!?!)
After spending the day in Jerusalem for a couple of meetings and going out with my in-laws in the evening, it was back home to get a few things done. I left Andy and the girls in J'lem and headed back earlier than they did. As I approached the house, I got the sinking feeling...Hmmmm...I am locked out as THEY had taken keys and I had not! So, all good plans got sidetracked and I just went to the Bet Kenesset and learned for a while awaiting their return with the precious keys!
It is now Monday morning and lots to do. Time to get to work!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Aronot, Cabinets and Shabbat
Aronot...closets. Houses in Israel are notoriously built without closets. This means that if you are the first resident in NEW construction, as we are, you need to go and shop for Aronot/closets. We went to Talpiot on Thursday and the excursion was made shorter by the mere fact that back in May we did most of our "shopping around" for price, quality etc. We ended up for a number of hours in a very small store with one guy running it whose patience was excellent! We truly had a wonderful experience picking out, designing and ordering these closets. They will be delivered and installed (that was part of the deal as I have been doing ENOUGH building!!) on August 4th B'ezrat Hashem. After that point, we can actually stop living out of suitcases and boxes, as our clothing and much of our stuff will have homes in closets!
We also located Home Center, a quasi Home Depot type of facility. It was great to find that kind of store here!!
Friday was a chock-full day as I finished the bookcases (finally), organizing the rest of the Sefarim and a good percentage of the kitchen was unpacked. It also was a day with many people stopping in including a guy to fix our phone lines and install Shabbat clocks for the lights. The clocks work but along the way he disconnected the upstairs A/C, which, of course, I did not realize until an hour before Shabbat! Oh well, back to the drawing board on Sunday, I guess.
Shabbat...what a wonderful Shabbat it was. On Friday night, I had the opportunity to speak (in Ivrit of course) in the Bet Kenesset before Maariv. There were about 150 people there and the feedback was positive. I am VERY glad that I have been working on my Ivrit over these past few years! We ate by a family to whom I am indirectly related to, then it was off to home and much needed rest. Unfortunately, I did not sleep the greatest, but I did get up early for the first Minyan (6:30am). I came home, made Kiddush and learned/read until the afternoon, at which time we took a leisurely walk to Susie and Jeremy Ben David for lunch. They have been SO helpful to us along the way, as have SO many others as well.
One very nice event in the afternoon...Rav Noam and Racheli Balsam (who had spent a few years in Chicago) just had a baby girl. We were invited to their home for Seudah Shlisheet in honor of the new baby. Food, nice singing, a Dvar Torah...all combined to make up a beautiful end of Shabbat experience!
Tommorow, Andy and I go with our youngest, Eliana, to Zvia (the school she will be attending) for a get-to-know-you series of events and we are really looking forward to it! Both Andy and I have visited the school over the past few months and have been VERY impressed on many levels. Hard to believe that my youngest begins High School soon!!
There are some more random thoughts to share but I am tired and heading to sleep. More to come.
Shavua Tov from Maale Adumim, Israel
We also located Home Center, a quasi Home Depot type of facility. It was great to find that kind of store here!!
Friday was a chock-full day as I finished the bookcases (finally), organizing the rest of the Sefarim and a good percentage of the kitchen was unpacked. It also was a day with many people stopping in including a guy to fix our phone lines and install Shabbat clocks for the lights. The clocks work but along the way he disconnected the upstairs A/C, which, of course, I did not realize until an hour before Shabbat! Oh well, back to the drawing board on Sunday, I guess.
Shabbat...what a wonderful Shabbat it was. On Friday night, I had the opportunity to speak (in Ivrit of course) in the Bet Kenesset before Maariv. There were about 150 people there and the feedback was positive. I am VERY glad that I have been working on my Ivrit over these past few years! We ate by a family to whom I am indirectly related to, then it was off to home and much needed rest. Unfortunately, I did not sleep the greatest, but I did get up early for the first Minyan (6:30am). I came home, made Kiddush and learned/read until the afternoon, at which time we took a leisurely walk to Susie and Jeremy Ben David for lunch. They have been SO helpful to us along the way, as have SO many others as well.
One very nice event in the afternoon...Rav Noam and Racheli Balsam (who had spent a few years in Chicago) just had a baby girl. We were invited to their home for Seudah Shlisheet in honor of the new baby. Food, nice singing, a Dvar Torah...all combined to make up a beautiful end of Shabbat experience!
Tommorow, Andy and I go with our youngest, Eliana, to Zvia (the school she will be attending) for a get-to-know-you series of events and we are really looking forward to it! Both Andy and I have visited the school over the past few months and have been VERY impressed on many levels. Hard to believe that my youngest begins High School soon!!
There are some more random thoughts to share but I am tired and heading to sleep. More to come.
Shavua Tov from Maale Adumim, Israel
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