Silent Rain, Early Rain

One thing for sure. Every year veteran Israelis claim that

"The weather is never like this."

I've heard that so many times, so I decided that the weather is never as "expected," but even I didn't think it would rain so hard before Rosh Hashannah.

OK, according to the goyish calendar it's late, since we had a leap year in the Jewish Calendar. A Jewish Calendar Leap Year means that a month is inserted in the year. We have two months of Adar, late winter, early spring. If we didn't do it, we'd be like the Moslems and have our holidays change season over time.

The Jewish and Moslem Calendars are both lunar, based on the moon and last around 29 days, with slight adjustments. But to keep your seasons and dates aligned, you need a version of the solar, sun, calendar. That's why the Jewish one periodically adds a month.

So this year, our holidays are a bit late according to the solar calendar, but still the first rain is sort of wimpy, not as heavy as we've had. Just in case you don't know, it doesn't rain during the summer in Israel. There's even a special term for "first rain of the season." Sorry, I don't remember it. But I do recognize the smell. Yes, there's a very distinct smell. Suddenly I smelled it on Friday and ran out to take in the wash.

On Shabbat there was a heavy rain, but strangely, I didn't hear it. I looked out and saw everything so wet. My hearing isn't that bad, is it?

Shavua Tov
Shannah Tovah
Have a Good Week and a Good Year