Sites and Sights of Israel

Had a great time with those of my classmates who were able to attend the conference in Jerusalem. We celebrated five years since we were ordained! Here, we are giving the typical Israeli hand-gesture which means, "Wait!"

I spent Shabbat in a community called Modi'in, with old family friends of ours. After a wonderful Shabbat service at Kehillat Yozma, I was able to join our friends for a delicious, fun dinner.

A frequent graffiti spotted throughout the country: Am Yisrael Chai - The People of Israel live.

Crazy piles of paprika! At a spice shop in Tel Aviv.

Entrances to the courtrooms at the Israel Supreme Court (located in Jerusalem). Designed to invoke the ancient gates of the Old City, at which the judges would sit and adjudicate.

The Sabra cactus (what we call a Prickly Pear) - Israelis are called Sabras because they can be prickly on the outside, but are sweet and soft on the outside.

A picture of a mountainside village in the Golan.

Jenny Update!

Well, a quick update for those of you who follow my Jenny Craig chronicles. I hadn't weighed in for a few weeks (mostly because of the Israel trip - I didn't want to worry too much about my eating while I was there). Then, it was really hard to get back on track when I returned. I don't know what I was afraid of - but it was so difficult to get up the momentum to go back and weigh in.

I suppose I was scared that all of my hard work, and all of my success, would be so fleeting - that I would come back, weigh in, and find that I had gained it all back. An irrational fear, I know, but my weight loss attempts in the past have never worked. I have a sense of impending doom - like, when it is all going to stop working?

Luckily, I decided to "bite the bullet" - before the triple b'nai mitzvah service I had on Saturday morning, I drove over to Jenny Craig to see if they were open. And they were. I didn't have an appointment, so I just walked in and asked if I could weigh myself. They said yes, and that I could just add the information to my folder.

So, I walked over to the scale, took off my shoes and jacket, and stepped up....

And I was down!!!

So, the new grand total weight loss?

27.2 pounds lost!!

How can this be? I was looking forward to the big "25" pound milestone, and I blew right past it!! I guess I am really internalizing a lot of the new skills I am learning, and I am making lots of good choices. I'm going to keep going, and I hope that this is going to last!!

Hello to Wantagh!

Shalom, all!

Those of you who aren't from New York are probably asking, "Who/What is Wantagh?" Well, it is a lovely community on the South Shore of Long Island. It is known as the gateway to Jones Beach (quite a fun beach, with a fabulous concert pavilion - that's where I saw the True Colors Concert Tour last year).

It is also the site of my NEW JOB!!!

Yes, my friends, I will soon have a new position. I will be in NYC at my current congregation until the end of June, then I will be becoming the rabbi of a warm, welcoming community in Wantagh. As we get closer to July 1, I will share with you more about the transition, my excitement, the bittersweet nature of leaving my current congregation, and all of the rest.

This is the major reason that I haven't been posting much lately, but I couldn't tell you about it just yet. I have been heavily involved in interviews since November/December, and I really wasn't sure where in the country I would wind up. I was primarily focusing my job search in the Chicago and the NY areas, though I interviewed in many other locations just to spread a wide net.

And, for some reason, a divine hand is keeping me here in New York. I have felt such an incredible sense of homecoming with this new congregation. It already seems like it is a match made in heaven (literally!!).

(I also learned that a number of my new congregants have been reading my blog - so, hello to you!! Leave a comment and let me know that you stopped by!)

Day 1 in Israel

Shalom from Israel!

I departed from JFK Airport on Saturday night, flew for 10 hours and landed safely at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv last night. It was an emotional journey during which I reflected on my two past trips to Israel (I lived here for a year in 1999-2000, then visited again in 2005).

During the first trip, I learned so much - it was the first year of my rabbinical school training (which was five years total). I was engaged at the time, so much of the year was spent pining for my fiance at home (we split up soon after I returned to the States).

Last time I was here, it was very soon after my car accident. I was in so much pain the entire time, and there was so much I couldn't do. I spent much of the trip on the bus, waiting for the group to return.

I am going to post pics soon (it's not working right now, for some reason). Will update more tomorrow!!

This time - I'm healthy!!

When I arrived last night, I said a prayer of thanksgiving and gratitude. It felt like a homecoming. I was surrounded by people speaking Hebrew, I rented a "pelaphone" (Hebrew for cellphone), and I was on my way to Jerusalem. It was dark and rainy out, so I really didn't get to see much of the landscape.

I am here for our annual Central Conference of American Rabbis Convention (the main Reform rabbi professional organization). Last year was in Cincinnati, and this year is in Jerusalem. BIG DIFFERENCE!!! :)

Today, however, I took a day trip with some of my colleagues to the Galilee. Specifically, we visited a site called Beit Shearim, a very famous burial site in Jewish tradition (one of our Talmudic sages of the 2nd century, Judah HaNasi, is buried there). We then traveled to Tzippori, another famous town very close to Nazareth and Megiddo, where the Sanhedrin (the highest Jewish court during the first two centuries CE) once sat before moving to Tiberias.

In Tzippori, we saw the most incredible mosaics - they were found on the floors of excavated 6th century synagogues. They depict images of the Bible, such as Abraham's binding of Isaac, images of Aaron becoming the High Priest, as well as big ole Zodiac. I am fascinated by the Zodiac, because it shows that the Jews were quite influenced by the outside Hellenistic culture and that they adopted some its beliefs/art.

Happy Blogoversary to Me!!!

By the way,

TODAY IS MY BLOGOVERSARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I can't believe that I have been blogging for TWO YEARS! How has that happened?

Which leads me to ask -

What is something amazing that YOU have accomplished over the last two years?

All kinds of updates

Hello, all!!

Yes, it's your lovable old pal, Marci, checking in after a brief hiatus. My life has been on a non-stop path of stress and chaos - not always of a negative nature, but just requiring a lot of time and energy. No matter what, as you would imagine, there is a lot to catch you up on!

First cool thing: I am going to Israel in two days!! You've heard me mention this upcoming trip, and I can't believe that it is almost here! I hope to be blogging about the trip while I am there (at the request of my dear friend, Andi). I will post pictures of my adventures - we are primarily in Jerusalem for the convention, but there are a few trips to Tel Aviv and other communities throughout. I also will be sure to take pictures of the fun times with friends and classmates, including Rabbi Phyllis Sommer (have to travel to the other side of the planet to see her!).

Second cool thing: My Jenny Craig adventures continue to go really well! My latest weight loss total is 24.2 lbs - so close to that 25 pound mark!! I will do my best while in Israel, while not driving myself crazy. But, it continues to be a success, and people are really starting to notice that I look thinner. Woohoo!!

Third cool thing: I had a passport adventure this morning. My passport doesn't expire until the end of April, so I assumed that it was going to be fine for my 10 days in Israel. Yeah, it turns out that it isn't okay at all - your passport needs to be valid for at least six months past your travel dates. When did I figure that part out? On Tuesday!!! and I leave SATURDAY!!! I have to tell you, I am so grateful that the US Department of State offers same-day passports (which costs a pretty penny, but is still available nonetheless) as long as you travel to very specific locations. I called the NYC location first - they didn't have an appointment available until NEXT WEDNESDAY!!! Yep, that wouldn't really help :) So, I looked around on the government's website, and there is a site in Norwalk, CT, which had an appointment available this morning. Thank goodness! So, I shlepped up there, went through the whole routine of standing in various lines, waiting for my number to be called, and finally, after 2 1/2 hours, received my brand-new passport.

This one doesn't expire until 2019. I remember when I got my soon-to-expire passport back in 1999 - I was preparing to leave for rabbinical school (the first year is in Jerusalem), standing at a major precipice in my life, not knowing what was to come over the years to come. I was also struck by the fact that that passport would expire in 2009 - when I would be nearly 31 years old, when I would be five years into my career as a rabbi, and, I hoped, married with kids. Well, the married with kids part hasn't panned out just yet, but I am so happy with where I am. I am healthy, out of pain, enjoying my career, and living with my sister. There are wonderful, profound adventures around every corner. I wonder what will happen between now and the next time I have to renew my passport!!!