Various kinds of light

Last night was the last night of Chanukah.

Just three of us were home last night. One of the things that is wonderful about city life is the fact that you can fulfill the public display aspect of the mitzvah of lighting Chanukah candles in a really good way. 

Our kitchen is across a courtyard from another apartment building. Several floors worth of our building can see our lit Chanukiyot.I would guess that more people see our candles across the courtyard on one Chanukah night, than the total number of people who saw our candles on Presidents Lane during all of our years of lighting candles there.

It has been unseasonably warm for the past few days. This morning I walked to services in deep fog.

I managed to clean the wax off of our chanukiyot. Lots of boiling water did the trick. 

I also have to make a new batch of havdalah bags. I needed to create fabric for the borders. There was some black satin in my stash that was perfect for the job.

My goal is for the bags to remind the viewer of the night sky I began with smooshes of silvery paint..

I then followed up with some gold. A mix of painted elements and spattered paint does the trick.

The bags are ready to be filled..

Tomorrow I go out for more spices to fill the bags.

And finally the last bit of light for today is a new to me photo of my Aunt Dina and her husband the outrageous Uncle Nathan.

Both Dina and Nathan were deeply beloved by all of their nieces and nephews. Dina was deeply kind and help support my mother family during the depression.She was sensual and warm and expressed love in a way that my grandmother could not. When I told my relatives that I had decided to name my oldest for Tanta Dina they all cried. I knew I had made a good choice.   

Nathan was an outrageous man, a man-child. He was playful so kids adored him. Nathan brought balloons to my grandfather's funeral so my sisters and I wouldn't feel quite so terrible. 

I was born not quite twenty years after this photo was taken. I knew my great aunt and uncle only ans old people. I love seeing them at about my age.