Absence

 One of the great pleasures, (and there are many) of visiting my sister in law and brother in law in Santa barbara is the sunsets.

Each time we turned the corner onto their street at the end of the day there was yet another color show.

Most days I would miss the very best color

But the sunset, even not at peak colo,r is wonderful.

Yesterday was our first full day at home.

We don't always get a terrific sunset but when my yellow living room glows I know I need to go in to check out the color-show in the Western sky. It just felt like a nice welcome home.

Today I woke up to the sad news that a college friend had died. I met Dina, (not Dena, who is an entirely different person despite both being friends with one another) my freshman year in college. I was, at that point in my life, testng boundaries. Dina was into maintaining boundaries. We ate countless meals together in college.

Dina and I reconnected at Parents' Night at Camp Ramah in Nyack. It felt like half of my freshman year dorm at Brandeis were there at Parents' Night. I assume that the camp administration had gathered all of the parents to impart SOMETHING of importance, but Dina and I would sit together and catch up and laugh.  We used to run into one another when she decided to become a rabbi and was taking classes not far from my house. We clearly enjoyed one another much more as adults than we did as college students.

Today I Googled my friend Dina and i found this beautiful essay that she wrote about tzitzit. it is definitely worth a read.

יהי זכרה ברוך

Today is Friday, and our fridge has been looking like Old Mother Hubbard's empty larder.  I did some shopping yesterday and lots of cooking today.

יהי זכרה ברוך

I made a new batch of challah.  My husband went out and bought me a dozen eggs so I could properly glaze the challah. 

Tonight's chicken was made with gochujang and the last bit of molasses in a jar.

I bought these small  chickens with their legs daintily crossed at a new kosher market that just opened in our neighborhood. Our usual Costco chickens remind me of linebackers. These pretty chickens remind me of slim chorus girls.

I haven't taken a photo of our roasted asparagus and tomatoes or of the pot of soup that has been simmering since yesterday.

I don't love the melody or the arrangement of the song below all that much but  especially this difficult week I do appreciate the lyrics that speak of the ability of the shabbat candles to give comfort to the suffering.

Shabbat Shalom!