08/26/2022
Some things you can’t make up.
Was not planning to write a part 2 to last week’s reflections, but sometimes things just seem to write themselves.
When we left last week, we were planning a complicated fridge handicapped shabbos, the Israelis were packing up and our Canadien grandson was planning his return to New York for his junior year at YU.
Shabbos was wonderful with Bob cooking his family favorites including delicious meatballs, steak salad and chicken with rice. Cooking for two, sometimes three when Judah, who has a very limited menu comes for shabbos, is not the same as cooking for a big family or company.
When cooking for two or even three, it’s a whole lot of not much. When cooking for company, it’s show time and making all kinds of fancy. When cooking for family it’s favorites and an amount that is measured by muscle memory.
We were a small family of five with picky eaters and consuming small portions. Our Israelis are a family of 8 adventurous eaters with healthy appetites. When I saw the food prepared, the kitchen is not my space, I questioned if there would be enough.
Ever the cool cucumber, he stared me down and replied with an affirmative and don’t question me, “YES”!
Let’s just say, there were no leftovers to speak of; translates to just enough.
We made it through the hot shabbos with the running up and down the basement stairs and dorm refrigerators. Not the best of circumstances but fine.
On Wednesday, a brand new GE with shabbos function was delivered. It is big enough, makes ice and the lights turn off when they are supposed to. Our clunky big pink fridge that we used for 27 years was replaced by two different state of the art ones in two weeks. Something strange about that?
It does not end here.
Monday morning, on the way home from taking our grandson to YU, Bob had a blowout and needed a new tire. He was not in friendly territory. The car managed to limp into a garage with a kind mechanic who helped him.
A new tire for 200 dollars went onto our summer tab.
Monday afternoon, the Israelis had a 5:40 pm flight; they were ready to go home. They had a great time but missed their familiar, their friends and their beds. It took days to collect their valuables, new and old, mostly new, and pack up. All of their stuff can be summed up into 9 duffel bags, countless carry ons and three roller bags, mostly ours.
How do we get all of them and their luggage to the airport? Our two small cars were barely big enough for the 7 of them and a driver. A sympathetic colleague and friend, Michal, offered her van and services.
Two clown cars of luggage, kids and adults made it to the airport, unloaded onto 4 wagons and the Shapiro family was on their way back from a wonderful summer home to Israel.
We miss them already. In our family, this will always be a special summer.
Did this now mean that the house was done gifting us with a new opportunity for adventure? Seems that that answer is No!
See below for the latest; yes, the ceiling needs its own time in the sun.
We are in a very good place of acceptance; everything is fixed or fixable, the ceiling didn’t fall on anyone, the blowout did not result in an accident and there was more than enough food.
I can’t say that it’s been cheap, fun or easy to deal with the broken and mess. It is what it is and we have to accept what we can’t change.
As we move into the more complicated days of schedules,hard work,change and rushing in circles of errands and appointments, keep that thought in mind.
I hope that I can and that I will.
From the glory of time spent in Israel, to the wedding of our granddaughter, to spending time with our daughters and their family, to the quality time in America with our Israelis;it was a magical time.
The magic continues; this morning we woke up to the news of a baby boy born to our grandchildren in Teaneck.
You have to be grateful for the good times!
Shabbat Shalom
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