Medura Lag B'Omer Bonfire, Senior Style

When we first moved to Shiloh late summer 1981, we were among the older residents and the few with children old enough to be in school. Now all of us from that time and many who moved to Shiloh years later, are old enough to be in the 55+ group, old enough to enjoy a special range of activities.

Many of us "veterans," or vattikim as we're called in Hebrew are already retired. Consider us as a whole "young seniors," but last night we were all very happy that our Lag B'Omer midura,  or campfire/bonfire had chairs to sit on. Very few of us would have stayed or been comfortable if we had been expected to sit on old rugs and blankets like the kids, or like we had done easily decades ago.

Just like at the Medura Lag B'Omer Bonfires of old, we sang kumzitz style/genre, Israeli folk songs and told stories, plus some Divrei Torah. Unlike the kids, our menu was mostly fruit and watermelon. We do want to stay healthy active seniors for as long as possible, Gd willing.

Gd willing we'll enjoy many more together.

Chag Sameach!

Lag B'Omer, Batten Down The Hatches

Call us a bunch of killjoys, but we weren't part of the Lag B'Omer medurot, campfire scene last night here in Shiloh. And there was even a conveniently located one near the house special for old fogies like ourselves.

As early as right after Shabbat, I had closed all of the windows, including the bathroom ones which usually are kept at least slightly open except on the very coldest of days. I didn't want any of those polluted and even not polluted fumes and smells to make it into my house. One of the last things I caught on the radio news was a report of increased air pollution and a plea to those throwing everything they could find into the flames to be sure to keep out plastic.

I trained my kids from the youngest age that the minute they get home from the campfires, it's straight to the bathroom, strip off all clothes and then shower, including shampoo, lots of soap and rinse well. Then the next day, after the smoke cleared I'd launder everything and hang it to dry.

One advantage of the fact that our neighborhood is getting more and more built up, and our house is surrounded by others, is that the campfires are further away, Baruch Hashem.

Lag B'Omer Campfire for Old Folks

Last night I got an SMS from a neighbor that there would be a "senior citizens" bonfire in her backyard to celebrate Lag B'Omer. I was in a very "social" mood and decided to go. Of course I changed into clothes that could go straight into the laundry, since these fires end up very smelly. And when I got home, I did what I had trained my kids to do all those decades ago. I went into the bathroom, stripped, showered and shampooed. I wasn't going to get my house and good clothes all stinky. 

Now, I'm going to be perfectly honest. Even though I've certainly heard explanations innumerable times on the reasons that Israelis light these fires on the Eve of Lag B'Omer, I just haven't be able to remember any. It just doesn't fit into my brain.

Yes, this was the campfire. Sometimes my Galaxy II Plus actually takes an amazing picture.

Israelis of my generation and a bit younger, certainly older, have a simple set menu for these nighttime events. They add onions and potatoes to the fire for cooking. The kids (younger generation) have added hot dogs and other meat treats to make a midnight feast.

Taking into account that not all of us are mobile/flexible enough to find sitting on the ground and then standing easy, lots of chairs were set up. Besides the traditional campfire baked potatoes and onions, we were served popcorn, baked goods and non-caffeinated teas, sugar on the side for those who still sweeten them.

There were also lots of stories. Some were based on the mystical aspects of Lag B'Omer, while others were more personal about their journeys to Torah Judaism and Shiloh.

Being an "empty-nester," it was nice to be able to go to sleep afterwards and not worry about our children out all night by dangerous campfires.

Great Way to Start the Week, Lag B'Omer and Havel Havelim

Today is Lag, meaning לג  which equals 30 + 3 = 33 b'Omer, the 33rd day of the Omer.  It's a day of celebrations in the middle of the 49 day Omer period, a period of Jewish mourning.

Those forty-nine days are the countdown from Passover, when the Jewish People left Egypt, thousands of years ago, until Moses delivered the Torah from G-d, which is commemorated on the Jewish Holiday of Shavuot.

But it didn't go all that smoothly...

Many of us remember too well the days before there were cellphones, smartphones and all sorts of ways to contact people immediately, check if someone is late, lost, warn others of delays, double-check times, locations etc.  We ask rather rhetorically:

"How did we manage in the days before cell phones?"

One thing was that we had to be more patient, trusting and planned things better in advance.  We knew that since there was no way to contact someone on their way,  we just had to wait a bit longer, or more and trust that there was some perfectly legitimate reason for the delay.  That's what makes the sin of the golden calf, the rapid and impatient building of an idol, that golden calf, so inexplicable and bad.  The recently released from slavery to Pharaoh in Egypt Jewish People had decided that Moses must have deserted them, died or whatever when he didn't come at the moment they expected him and demanded from Aaron that they construct a god, that infamous golden calf.

Obviously they didn't do all of the spiritual growth stuff during the forty-nine days which is very popular now.  See this site for example, A Spiritual Guide to the Counting of the Omer, Forty-Nine Steps to Personal Refinement.

So I'm really glad that we didn't have to wait for Yocheved Golani's LaG B'Omer Havel Havelim.  She posted it last night, after Shabbat after working hard all week on it.  It's full of posts from lots of blogs and other great things, as only Yocheved can do so well.  For more information about Havel Havelim, how to post, host and be involved, join our facebook page.

And have a wonderful week everyone...

That Lag ל"ג 33 B'Omer Stink is Seeping In

I miss the innocence of youth when I could enjoy a good campfire without thinking of the smell.  In Israel Lag B'Omer, the 33rd  day (or more exactly night) of the omer is celebrated at campfires.

According to the Torah (Lev. 23:15), we are obligated to count the days from Passover to Shavu'ot. This period is known as the Counting of the Omer. An omer is a unit of measure. On the second day of Passover, in the days of the Temple, an omer of barley was cut down and brought to the Temple as an offering. This grain offering was referred to as the Omer.
Every night, from the second night of Passover to the night before Shavu'ot, we recite a blessing and state the count of the omer in both weeks and days. So on the 16th day, you would say "Today is sixteen days, which is two weeks and two days of the Omer." The Orthodox Union has a chart that provides the transliterated Hebrew and English text of the counting day-by-day. Or if you'd prefer an amusing (yet still accurate!) Simpsons-themed discussion of the Omer along with an Omer calendar, check out The Homer Calendar.

I even had a Girl Scouts "Campfire Badge" which required me to learn all sorts of campfire constructions shapes and rules.  In those days we roasted marshmallows on sticks in the fire.  Kashrut wasn't part of my life, so I could eat and roast the best marshmallows.

local medurah

But now I guess ever since I was in charge of a family and laundry, I just think of the smell.  I trained my kids to go straight to the bathroom after a campfire, strip and shower, lots of soap and rinse well.  And don't forget to shampoo.

For some crazy reason, I can never remember why there is such a custom. I have heard and read it many times, but... smoke gets in my brain....