First Shabbat in September

School started today. No big monumental words of wisdom or spiritual insights. Just~ school started today. Summer ~chofesh hagadol~ is over. Interesting that the weather seems to agree.... cloudy. Very cloudy and much cooler. More like Fall weather. Remember~ we don't get rain in the summer like many other countries, so the arrival of cloudy skies is a sign that the 'rainy season' is about to begin. The puffy white friends that we have missed all summer are back, changing our view. They are promising rain and we do pray that it is not just going to be one big tease!

But, school started today. The 2 Spies have 4 grandchildren that are in school. Three have attended for a while and are sailing along nicely. They are pleased with their teachers, new school building, and seeing their friends again. The big 'gossip' all summer was the swapping-of-the-school-buildings. One school enrollment had grown too big, the other too small. After a protest by some parents, teachers and principles (which didn't do anything to change the situation) the mass exodus began and all the equipment was switched out during the last part of summer. Hopefully, everyone has settled down and will allow the children to enjoy each other and their new environments!

The youngest, aged 4, is not a happy camper. She was not looking forward to going to gan ~ kindergarten~ and her first day was a bit shaky. She has a great teacher and a lot of little girls that want to be her friend. But language is a problem. And language is important to her. She is quite a talker! But....she will learn Hebrew this year~ one way or another.

Going to school 6 days a week ~ yes, I said 6 days~ can be rather tiring. The week may wax long but Shabbat becomes even more precious as a day of resting and being together with family. We all learn to treasure our times of prayer, rest, good food and just 'being'. After a busy week of keeping a fast moving schedule it becomes easier and more delightful to embrace the Shabbat and our times of reflection.

The following video has absolutely NOTHING to do with Israel~ except that we are sitting in a lovely village just outside Jerusalem~ watching it and smiling. We want to share the smile with you.

So, on that note~ we wish all our readers Shabbat Shalom!

Cute Boy & His Dog