Monthly Archives: October 2024

Music to our ears; NRO pop concerts

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As we have done since our Mountain Girl was born in 2015, Larry and I are settled into our rental in Summit County, Colorado, to escape the Florida heat and to enjoy family time.
Each summer, we look forward to attending performances of the National Repertory Orchestra (NRO) in Breckinridge.. Eighty young musicians are selected every year through national auditions to perform with the NRO.  NRO alumni may be found in countless orchestras both the in the United States and abroad.  Along with performances at the Riverwalk Center in Breckinridge, the talented performers participate in free “pop up” concerts offered throughout the county. We have fortunately been able to attend several NRO events throughout our stay.
For the past three years, we have attended the Pops concert, led by conductor, showman, and clarinet player extraordinaire Carl Topilow.  Now serving as Conductor Laureate, he was Music Director and Conductor of the NRO for 42 years. In addition to his appearances with the NRO, Topilow is the Founding Conductor and Music Director of the Cleveland Pops Orchestra and has appeared as guest conductor for more than 130 orchestras.  
The son of Jacob and Pearl Topilow, he was raised in Bayonne, New Jersey.  A 2011 article by Violet Spevack in the Cleveland Jewish News spoke of Topilow’s performances in Jewish venues, including at Yom Kippur services and Sisterhood meetings. “Topilow is endearingly ‘one of us,’wrote Spevack, with his Yiddish ta’am (flavor) and chutzpadik (audacious) shticks,” He and his brother and pianist Dr. Arthur Topilow, often perform together, including for a July 2016 NRO event that included klezmer music, the dance-oriented Jewish tradition from Eastern Europe.  
On July 8, 2023, Larry and I brought our then eight-year-old granddaughter to her first concert performance. In the days before the event, we explained to her about the protocols for the concert: her need to sit quietly, to be attentive, to applaud at appropriate times, and to avoid any actions that would distract from other concert goers. Outside of asking if there would be a ‘half time’ (she and her father are huge Denver Nuggets fans), our Mountain Girl was well prepared. She even stood up and yelled “Bravo!” at the appropriate times.
The entertaining concert included themes from The Wizard of Oz, The Lion King, and The Godfather, as well as Topilow’s signature selections from Fiddler on the Roof.  We particularlyenjoyed Topilow’s imitation of the sounds of the shofar on his clarinet — Tikiah! T’Ruah! Shevarim,—played by the illustrious violinist Issac Stern in the movie version of the Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick classic.
Later in the season, we took our granddaughter along with her parents to a performance of The Lion King. The Disney animated classic was shown in its entirety on the big screen above the orchestra as 80 musicians, led by conductor Jason Seber, performed the score in precise timing with every scene. “Once you watch a movie accompanied by the power of a live orchestra, you’ll be spoiled for life,” wrote Shauna Farnell in an NRO article in July 2023. She was right. We loved it!
This year, Larry and I repeated our Pops visit. Topilow and his iconic red clarinet lead a small line of brass and wind musicians into Riverwalk with a somber rendition of “Just a Closer Walk with Thee,” a gospel song frequently played at New Orleans jazz funerals. Once on stage, he led the orchestra in a rousing “When the Saints Go Marching In.” He showed off his clarinet expertise in the final number, the Cantina theme from John Williams Star Wars soundtrack.
Although she was unable to attend this year’s Pops concert, our Mountain Girl was she joined us for the NRO’s showing of Star Wars: The New Hope, again replete with the symphony lead by Jason Seber replacing the entire musical score. The Force was with us, as we enjoyed every minute. 

Sources
A special thank you to Carl Topilow for his input into the article
Farnell, Shauna. “The National Repertory Orchestra presents Disney’s ‘The Lion King’ in Concert Live to Film.” www.nro.org website. July 23, 2023.
NRO website. www.nro.org
Spevack, Violet. “Maestro Carl Topilow, Cleveland Pops mark a decade together.” Cleveland Jewish News. October 4, 2011.
Topilow, Carl. www.carltopilow.com






Come hell or high water, the celebration must go on!

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A version of this story was published in the (Capital Region, New York) Jewish World on October 26, 2016.

As we Floridians were waiting out Hurricane Matthew’s departure on a very rainy, windy Friday, I was thinking about those people up and down the East Coast who were more strongly impacted by the storm. Would their homes survive intact? Will family and friends be safe? Along with these worries, I thought of people who had had the misfortune to be celebrating a special event— a wedding, a bar mitzvah, a retirement party— in the middle of this major weather system. 

What do you do when bad weather creates chaos? Reflecting on our own experiences and the shared experiences of friends and relatives, I’ve learned that most people let their smile be their umbrella—or snow suit!

My brother Jay and his wife-to-be Leslie planned their engagement party on December 28, 1969, in Rockland County. My parents, my sister Bobbie, and I were scheduled to make the trip from Upstate New York the day before when a crippling snowstorm hit the Northeast.  With my father white knuckled at the wheel, we made it down the Northway to Albany only to find the Thruway was closed. Determined that the four of us would not miss the party, Dad continued the trip down Route 9.  What should have taken six hours took us twelve. The storm, which dumped over twenty-six inches of snow by the time it ended, is still recorded as the third greatest snowstorm in Albany’s history. The memories of our ride from hell were forgotten as we celebrated Jay and Leslie’s engagement the next day in sunshine and relatively warm temperatures. 

On  June 12, 1968, Betty Schoenberg was walking into Washington Square Park for   her NYU graduation when the skies opened up, and the rain fell in torrents.  Many attendees —including Betty— gave up and left, but a few hardy souls shivered under umbrellas. The storm made the front page of the next day’s New York Post:  “Soaked! “ the caption read. “The show did indeed go on despite the rain that pelted the assemblage without a letup.”

When Betty got home, she realized that the rain had soaked through her white dress, her black raincoat, and her purple graduation gown. Her clothes were ruined, and her skin had turned black from the raincoat’s dye run-off. She wrote a letter of complaint to the graduation committee, who offered to pay for her cleaning bills. She never did follow through, but almost fifty years later she still has the letter, the dry cleaning receipt, and  a clipping of the newspaper article in her memory box. 

My friend Lynn Urgenson recalls going to her daughter’s college graduation at CW Post on Long Island. The day before the event was warm and sunny, but by that morning, the temperature dropped into the low forties. Lynn wore several layers of clothing over her original outfit, but her only pair of shoes were her sandals. “ I wound up putting my feet into my purse,” said Lynn. “My teeth were still chattering hours after Caren had picked up her diploma.” 

In 2000, a spectacular mid 70-degree day preceded the largest snowfall of the entire winter season in the Capital Region and the second heaviest all time April snowstorm on record.  For the Huber family, it made Debi’s daughter Arielle’s bat mitzvah more memorable. “Some of my husband’s relatives from Florida definitely freaked out,” said Debi, “as they weren’t used to snow at that point in their lives with many years of living in the Sunshine State.” Fortunately, all of the guests had arrived before the freak storm, and the celebration went on as planned—once the parking lot of the synagogue was plowed out.

Not that the weather is always perfect in Florida. Rosanna and Norm Steele’s son and his bride were to be married on the beach near the Steele’s condo on Siesta Keys on September 25, 2004. The day before the wedding, Jeff called his parents to say that he and Julie were getting married that night as Hurricane Jeanne was bearing down on Florida the next day. Fortunately everyone— the caterer, the photographer, the florist, the violinist—worked with the wedding planner to pull the event off as planned. What was to be the rehearsal dinner became the “After Wedding Dinner,” safely held in a near-by clubhouse. The hurricane rolled in as Rosanna was bringing in the last of the food she had prepared. “Luckily, we didn’t lose power until the dinner was over,” Rosanna said. 

The Steele wedding story didn’t end there. With all flights cancelled, all of the out-of-town guests stayed longer than expected in the rented rooms—without power, cable, and air-conditioning. “ The good far outweighed the bad, “ recalled Rosanna.”   We got to spend some very valuable time together as a family.”

Jason  Freeman and Gretchen Walker’s  wedding day in the spring of 2008 was bright and sunny with one small glitch— fifty mile per hour wind gusts. The four chuppah holders  became flag bearers when the white traditional covering shredded in the wind. “The weather didn’t ruin the wedding at all,” recalled Jason, “as everyone relaxed and didn’t worry about the details.” 

Fortunately for us, Hurricane Matthew took a little hook to the right just in time for the Orlando area to miss the brunt of the storm. By Friday afternoon, I had baked a pumpkin bread and invited a group of women over to play mah jongg. Other areas of the coast were not so lucky. And some day, someone in those effected will be sharing the story of a special event in his/her life in which an unwanted guest named Matthew played a part. 

Where did the last fifty years go?

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Come my love and we will wander, just to see what we can find. If we only find each other, still the journey is worth the time. 

Along with school opening and all that is happening in the world, September is a memorable month for Larry and me. 

 Fifty years ago on September 8, 2024, Larry and I got married in Upstate New York. For those who have been reading my column for a while, you may remember many of the stories. We met at a Purim (not porn as some people misheard!) party held by the Jewish singles club in Albany New York. It was love at first sight, and we got engaged six months later. Our wedding was held on a relatively hot September afternoon, the week after Labor Day to accommodate Larry’s parents’ store’s school opening weekend and at two p.m. to accommodate Hebrew school hours. Despite the fact that the rabbi barely knew us, he gave a very long talk, of which we remember nothing. The reception was provided by the Sisterhood, who served chicken, peas (Larry hates peas!), and un-Kosher wine provided by my mother whose label was covered with aluminum foil. The band forgot the words to our first dance (“He Touched Me,” by Barbra Streisand. On reflection, it was a dumb choice. If we got married today, Larry and I would choose “Moon River.”) My father got a little tipsy (totally out of character) and thanked Keeseville National Bank for the loan that paid for the wedding. 

If the wedding and reception was not perfect, our honeymoon was a disaster. Twelve hours into our stay in Quebec City, Larry woke up in agonizing pain from what was later diagnosed as a kidney stone. The next morning, I drove Larry to a hospital and drove myself to a $9 a night rooming house across the street. Three days later, newly relieved of his stone through surgery, Larry sat in the passenger seat while I started the drive back to my parent’s home on Lake Champlain. Mistaking the Canadian kilometer per hour speed limit for the United States miles per hour speed limit, I hit 90. Larry told me to pull over, and he would drive. When we arrived three days early at my parents’ cottage on Lake Champlain, they initially thought the marriage had already tanked. (Fifty years later, despite the fact that I am an excellent driver, I still defer to Larry to drive when we are in the car together.)

Thus began the “getting to know you” stage of our marriage. In that first year, a co-worker of Larry’s noticed that my usually slow-to-anger husband was banging drawers and mumbling expletives under his breath. “What IS your problem?” Helen asked. “Never get married!” Larry shouted. “She leaves her shoes in the middle of the room,” he steamed. “When I got up to go to the bathroom, I tripped over them.”

A half a century later, we have learned to accept each other’s quirks. Larry is a terrible backseat driver; I leave cabinet doors open, lights on, and discarded shoes all over the house. Larry is quiet and private; I am talkative and too forthcoming. Larry thinks often in mathematics and statistics; I am more focused on the written word. Case in point: Larry thought our 49th anniversary was more exciting because 49 has a square route; I had to use this column to share an essay on our fiftieth. In the glow that surrounded our memorable anniversary, I could come up a handful of things about Larry that bother me. Larry came up with fewer. 

When my parents celebrated their fiftieth anniversary, we had a huge party at our home in Clifton Park. The four children and their spouses had chipped in to give Mom and Dad their first ever and only cruise. I will never forget the joy and amazement when they opened up the envelope with the voucher.

Of course, we all thought they were old. As a matter of fact, I had commented earlier that summer that it was a ridiculous that a couple were getting divorced after 35 years of marriage. Why bother starting over at that late stage?

Now, we are the ones celebrating a milestone anniversary. The past fifty years have flown by in a flash, a blur, a nano-second. We have a lifetime of memories and experiences and ups and downs and ins and outs. We have enjoyed working in career fields we loved, raising two children, watching them grow, spread their wings, and fly onto new adventures; sharing friendships; and sharing close family ties only enhanced most recently by mishpachah (extended family) and three grandchildren.

Despite the speed the last half century has sped by, I will not trade one moment of our lives together for anything else. Larry is my best friend, my soul mate, my companion, the wonderful father of my children and the amazing Zayde of our grandchildren. For his 75th birthday, I wrote a list of the same number of things I love about him. In the past year, I’ve added several more. 

How will we celebrate? Our children gave us a weekend at a beautiful bed and breakfast. Later this fall, we will be taking a trip to Italy.. But most importantly, I will never ever lose sight of the fact that marrying my Larry was the best decision I ever made. And thankfully, he feels the same way about marrying me.

Celebrating our Fiftieth in Winter Park, FL

Do Something! The Gift of Giving Back

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For Jews, the High Holy Days is a time for us to turn inward, to reflect on our lives, not only where we have been but also where we hope to go in the coming year. So much of the world needs our help. What can one person do? How can one person make a difference? 

In the Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Tarfon writes,“It is not incumbent upon you to complete the work but neither are you at liberty to desist from it.” That quote has been in my email signature for several years and serves as a reminder to me and those that read it that we can all can make a difference. No, we cannot save the world. But our inability to do EVERYTHING does not give us a pass on doing nothing. 

This truth is found in the often-told starfish midrash. An old man is walking along the beach in which hundreds of starfish have been washed along the shore during high tide. As he walked, he came across a little girl who is throwing the starfish back into the ocean. “You realize that you will not be able to make much of a difference,” the old man tells the little girl. She picked up another starfish and threw it as far into the water as she could. “I made a difference to that one.” 

It reminds me of “starfish” moment. On a recent trip to the beach, Larry and I were walking along the edge of the water. As Larry was enjoying the waves and the birds, I was picking up garbage and sticking it in a plastic bag I brought with me for that purpose. A broken styrofoam cup. A short length of cord. A lone flipflop. And a dozen or so plastic caps from water bottles. 

“You can’t pick up every bit of litter on the beach,” Larry said.

“Yes. But can do something!”

 Yes, Larry was right. I am not going to pick up every piece of litter on a beach. But I can at least fill up a plastic bag with some of it. 

Giving away my freshly baked challahs also gives me a chance to do something Early into the pandemic, I started baking three or four challahs a week. At least one of the challahs went to someone in our community who needed cheering. The first one went to a friend whose wife was in a memory unit at the hospital. Week after week, we delivered challahs to people who had lost their spouse, who faced illness; who got bad news from their families. My small challahs were small tokens of love and caring. My challah baking has slowed down in recent months, and I usually make extras to tuck in the freezer to pull out as needed. It just filled my need to do SOMETHING!

For the past ten years, my writing has been a way for me to feel as if I am making a difference. Initially my writing focused on my family stories. In the past eight years, I have become captivated by telling other people’s stories, the lives of Holocaust survivors. So much has been written already: fictional accounts, memoirs, graphic novels, poetry, plays. Many of have become classics: Elie Wiesel’s Night;Prima Levi’s Man’s Search for Meaning; William Styron’s Sophie’s Choice, and Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl. Then why do I continue to interview Holocaust survivors and their families?

Writing these stories allows me to do my part to make the world never forget. Each story is a statement against Holocaust denial. And having each story published has brought feelings of pride, comfort, and maybe some peace to the subjects and their family. Following Rabbi Tarfon’s advice, my inability to write everything doesn’t mean I cannot continue to do something. 

And what happens when one person joins others to make a difference? Fortunately, I am surrounded by people in my 55+ community who are also doing their part to help people in the greater Poinciana area. Solivita has over 200 clubs, and many of them support the local community. The Do Unto Others Initiative (DUO) has raised over $260,000 in 11 years to support the work of the St. Rose of Lima Food Pantry. Another club, Solivita Friends Helping Those In Need provides similar support for St. Vincent de Paul St. Ann’s Food Pantry in Haines City. Solivita Friends of Elementary Education Schools (SoFEEs) provides nourishment, school supplies and seasonally appropriate clothing to local elementary schools. In the past nineteen years, Stonegate Women’s Golf Association (SWGA) has been able to provide over $300k to local community charities. The Solivita Performing Arts Council (SPAC, Inc.) has raised over $139,000 since its inception, providing grants to help local schools purchase and maintain instruments, fund band and choir concerts, produce school theatrical productions, fund thespian workshops and support art projects. Since 2006, the Solivita African Cultural Club Education Fund, Inc. as given out approximately $225,000 in scholarships to local students. SOLABILITY, a club consisting of individuals of varying abilities, provides activities accessible to all. Members of the Butterfly Club provide financial support for our beautiful butterfly garden; volunteers keep it weeded and in control. Our Book Circle, which has over 30 book clubs under its umbrella, donates books and financial help to Polk County Schools. The Shalom Club makes an annual contribution to the Perlman Food Pantry or Jewish organizations supporting local families. The organizations above represent only a small sample of ways individuals have joined together to help those in need. 

So, yes, one person can make a difference. Wishes for a sweet, healthy 5785. May it be a year in which each of us make a difference. 

My wonderful community, Solivita

Thanks to the leadership of numerous Solivita clubs and organization for providing the information for this article.

Celebrating in the Big Easy

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A version of this story was originally published in The Jewish World and the Heritage Florida Jewish Journal in October 2018.

Simchas and celebrations are wonderful, but New Orleans celebrates every day of the year. A city brimming with restaurants, clubs, and street musicians, it was easy to see why The Big Easy is listed consistently in the top five party cities in the United States. 

First and foremost, it is a city for foodies. The minute my husband Larry and I got into the shuttle taking us and our four friends to our lovely bed and breakfast, our driver Ryan started listing all the restaurants we needed to try. “Cafe Du Monde for breakfast; Napoleon’s for lunch; Arnauds for dinner; Dragos for a snack; Mothers for the debris Po’Boys; Rum House for tacos; Dat Dogs for franks…… ” 

“How many times can we eat in one day?” I asked as I quickly scribbled down the names.

The answer is —errr—more than three. Our first dinner was at the Cochon, where I experienced the milder Creole food while Larry got a mouthful of the hotter Cajun style. We then headed down to Royal and Bourbon Streets, the heart of the evening action. At the Spotted Cat, we listened to a fantastic jazz combo and even got an unexpected treat. The group’s leader announced that his wife had just arrived from Paris. Accompanied by the clarinet, bass, and sax, she sang a beautiful rendition of La Vie en Rosa, Edith Piaf’s signature song. Magnifique!

The next morning, we took a two-hour walking tour of the French Quarter. Our guide Kathy, a New Orleans native, laced her information with colorful stories of the founders, the builders, the business owners, and famous New Orleanians: . musicians Louis Armstrong and B.J. King; writers Truman Capote, William Faulkner, and Tennessee Williams; the pirate Jean LaFitte, and Chef Emeril Lagasse 

When I asked about the Jewish influence, Kathy shared stories about Judah Touro, who funded both the synagogue and hospital that bears his name; Malcolm Woldenberg, a New Orleans businessman whose philanthropy is honored in a park that holds the city’s Holocaust Memorial; and Allan and Sandra Jaffee, natives of Philadelphia who in 1961 turned an art gallery used for occasional concerts into Preservation Hall, forevermore beloved by jazz musicians and fans around the world.

For lunch, we each sampled the muffuletta—a sandwich that is made with Italian charcuterie and a spicy Creole olive salad—al fresco at the Napoleon. An hour later, we boarded the Steamboat Natchez, one of only two true steam powered sternwheelers on the Mississippi River today. On our two hour ride, we had a good view of another of New Orlean’s nickname, Crescent City, as the land sits like a crescent shaped bowl on the banks of the river. We went past industrial parks reflecting the economic importance of the river, areas still recovering from Hurricane Katrina in 2017, and lovely homes almost hidden by rebuilt levees that locals hope will never breach again.

After the ride, we stopped fat Cafe Beignet for the world-famous square pastries. Once finished, we hauled our confectionary-sugar-covered bodies to Drago’s for dinner. After a walk back from Riverwalk, we headed back for a swim and a soak in our B&B’s hot tub before our exhausted bodies fell into bed. 

The next day’s Garden Tour added to our appreciation of another view of New Orleans. Originally developed by the French to keep those pesky Americans out of the French Quarter, the Garden District is known for its tree-lined streets, palatial homes, and fine dining. 

We toured the Lafayette cemetery, an egalitarian final resting place for Christians and Jews; rich and poor; and, unfortunately due to multiple outbreaks of yellow fever throughout the city’s earlier history, the very young and very old.

Because of the high water table, all remains are interred in family or organization tombs, including one for destitute children and one for firefighters. Remember the expression, “I won’t touch that with a ten foot pole!”? We learned the meaning in that cemetary as room for the newly deceased is made by pushing back previous bodies to the back of the crypt with the long pole used for that purpose.We then were escorted past the homes of other famous city residents, including Sandra Bullock, John Goodman, and—the most popular—the Manning family of football fame. 

After tacos at The Rum House, we all boarded the St. Charles streetcar for a ride past Touro Synagogue, Audubon Park, and Loyola and Tulane Universities. Our timing was perfect as it started raining soon after we boarded and came down in torrents until shortly before we departed. That was my only regret that weekend: Larry and I hadn’t chiseled out time to check out the synagogue and meet with one of its rabbis, Todd Silverman, who is the son of long-time friends from Upstate New York. 

Our final dinner was at Arnaud’s, a beautiful five star restaurant off Royal Street. We had reservations in the Jazz Room, where the food, service, and ambiance were wonderful. Our meal was enhanced by a three piece jazz band that at one point stopped by each of the tables to take requests. Larry’s choice of Sweet Georgia Brown was a hit.

The next morning, we all made a dash over to the World War II Museum to view as much as we could in the two-hour window before we headed back to the airport. Yes, New Orleans is known for its music and food, but this fantastic museum is ranked by TripAdvisor as the top attraction in the city, named by USA Today as the “#1 Best Place to Learn US Military History,” and designated by Congress as America’s official museum about World War II. Artifacts and videos brought the terrible war and its history to life. 

We had arranged for Ryan, our original driver, to pick us up at the our bed and breakfast. We gave him a rundown of all the restaurants we had managed to eat our way through in three days. Then Larry and he discussed that night’s upcoming New Orleans Saints/Washington Redskins game. Before boarding our flight, two of our friends tasted po’ boy sandwiches and the rest of us ate pralines, two of the few specialities that we hadn’t consumed in the past 36 hours. It was time to leave The Big Easy—but there was one more surprise left.

Larry and I got home in time to throw in some laundry and turn on the New Orleans Saints and Washington Redskins football game. Drew Brees threw a 62 yard touchdown pass that resulted in his overtaking Peyton Manning’s record—another hometown native— to become the National Football League’s career passing leader. When I texted my “mazel tov” to Ryan, he texted back a thank you and a picture of the scoreboard proclaiming the Saint’s quarterback’s accomplishment.

Between the levees on the Ole Mississippi and the levity on Bourbon Street, I may not want to live in New Orleans. But Larry and I are already thinking of another trip. After all, we need to spend more time in the city’s museums. We need to enjoy a visit with Todd, and we have at least another 1,200 restaurants to try. As they say in Louisiana creole, “Laissez le bon temps rouler!” (Let the good times roll!) 

10/18/18

As a Jew, I will not vote for Donald Trump as he fails to reflect my values. [Revised 10/10/2024]

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On November 5, 2024, Americans will be voting in what many view as the most consequential elections in our history. As I make my selections, it will be imperative that my choices reflect the values that are important to me not only as a Jew but also as a human being, those values concerning freedom, truth, justice, equality, intelligent leadership, and empathy. 

In a recent poll by the Jewish Democratic Council of America, 72% of Jewish voters backed Vice President Kamala Harris, and 25% supported former President Donald Trump. In 2021, the Pew Research Center published “Jewish Identity and Belief, ” a study based on a survey of Jews as to what attributes are most essential to being a Jew. Based on five of its most essential, here are some of the possible reasons why so few Jews back candidate Trump:

“Remembering the Holocaust:” DonaldTrump has praised dictators, including Vladimir Putin (“a genius” and savvy”) Victor Urban (“fantastic”); and Kim Jung-un (“tough, smart guy.”) This alone should disqualify him for office. Taking a page from his dictator friends’ playbook, he recently posted on his website Truth Social that he will lock up political opponents.”“WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences.” Furthermore, according to the Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA), Donald Trump has mirrored the fascist rhetoric of Hitler and Mussolini through his antisemitic tropes, including the vile “duel loyalty” lie. He has accused Jewish Democrats as hating Israel and their religion, calling them “fools” and needing to have “their head examined.” On September 19, 2024, Trump asserted, “If I don’t win this election the Jewish people would have a lot to do with that,” (Note: Jews make up only 2.5% of the U.S. adult population).Even J.D.Vance, Trump’s vice president choice, wrote privately to an associate in a 2016 email that he viewed Trump as “America’s Hitler.”

Trump’s recent rhetoric has been as disconcerting if not more dangerous. In two separate talks to Jewish groups in Washington D.C. on September 19, Trump asserted, “If I don’t win this election the Jewish people would have a lot to do with that.” 

His comments were immediately excoriated by prominent Jewish groups. including the American Jewish Committee. “Whoever a majority of the Jewish community votes for, Jews — roughly 2% of the U.S. population — cannot and should not be blamed for the outcome of the election. Setting up anyone to say ‘we lost because of the Jews’ is outrageous and dangerous. Thousands of years of history have shown that scapegoating Jews can lead to antisemitic hate and violence.” 

“Leading an ethical and moral life:” According to the Washington Post, Trump made 30,573 false or misleading claims over the 4 years of his presidency. Along with six corporate bankruptcies, his legal woes include indicted or alleged crimes including Trump University, hush money payments, sexual abuse and defamation, falsified business records, and attempts to overthrow the results of the 2020 election show. Most recently, Trump’s lies about the federal response to Hurricane Helene, with claims that hurricane money was spent to house illegal immigrants, has complicated the recovery. “It is paramount that every leader, whatever their political beliefs, stops spreading this poison,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates wrote in the memo, adding: “This isn’t about politics — it’s about helping people.”

‘Working for Justice and Equality in Society:” Coupled with his being on the wrong side of the law as enumerated above, Donald Trump has known to align himself with and has emboldened dangerous far-right wing extremists. He dismissed the neo-Nazi and white supremacists’ 2017 deadly demonstration in Charlottesville, North Carolina, with his infamous,“There were good people on both sides.” He has disparaged immigrants, the disabled, Gold Star parents, veterans, prisoners of war, veterans, Haitians, Blacks, Muslims and, as noted above, all his political opponents. 

“Being Intellectually Curious:” In 2018, Trump defended himself against negative reports regarding his mental capacity to handle the presidency with a tweet stating he was “very smart” and “a very stable genius. On 5/21/2021, New York Times reported on information shared by 10 then-current and former officials involved in the president’s intelligence briefings. They stated Trump frequently ignored information with which he disagreed, veered off in tangents, demonstrated a short attention span, and relied on conservative media and friends for information. 

“Caring about Israel:” Trump repeatedly states that as president he did more for Israel than any other president, citing the 2020 Abraham Accords. As we commemorate the first anniversary of the October 7, 2023, massacre, however, his rhetoric demonstrates his serious lack of support for Israel. His initial comments a few days later were to praise Hezbollah, another terrorist group, as “very smart,” Recently, on the event’s first anniversary, he used a conservative talk show’s podcast to put the spotlight on his own grievances.“Israel has to do one thing. Israel has to get smart about Trump,” he was quoted in The Times of Israel,” because they don’t back me.” John Bolton, Trump’s former national security advisor, warns that the former president cannot be trusted. “ Trump’s support for Israel in the first term is not guaranteed in the second term, “ said Bolton, “because Trump’s positions are made on the basis of what’s good for Donald Trump, not on some coherent theory of national security.”

When someone shows you who they are,” wrote Maya Angelou, “ believe them the first time.” This election day, we can choose a path, a future in which democracy can continue forward. Please join me in voting for Kamala Harris.

Sources:

Britzky, Haley. “Everything Trump says he knows ‘more about than anybody.’” Axios. January 5, 2019.

Cillizza, Chris. “Trump’s ‘very stable genius’ tweet shows he isn’t.” CNN. January 7, 2018. 

DeValle, Lauren et. Al. “Jury finds Trump must pay $83.5 million to E. Jean Carroll. CNN. January 26, 2024. 

“Hear Trump praise dictators at New Hampshire rally.”CNN. November 12, 2023

Holmes, Kristin Andrew Millman,  “Trump praises ‘fantastic’ Viktor Orbán while hosting Hungarian autocrat at Mar-a-Lago for meeting and concert.” CNN March 3, 2024.

Jewish Democratic Council of America Website https://jewishdems.org/

Kelly, Laura. “Trump says ‘Jewish people would have a lot to do’ with his loss ‘if that happens.” The Hill. September 20, 2024.

Kessler, Glenn, Salvador Rizzo, and Meg Kelly. “Trump’s false or misleading claims total 30,573 over 4 years.” Washington Post. January 24, 2021.

Magid, Jacob.“Trump: ‘Israel has to get smart about Trump, because they don’t back me’”The Times of Israel. October 7, 2024.

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Rodriguez, Sabrina and Justine McDaniel. “As Trump makes false claims about hurricane relief, White House calls it ‘poison.’” Washington Post. October 4, 2024

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Like the White Rabbit, I am late!!

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A version of this article originally appeared in the Jewish World News, a bi-weekly subscription-based newspaper in upstate New York.

One of the advantages-or maybe disadvantages-of being Jewish is that we have two opportunities a year to make resolutions: our sacred Rosh Hashanah and our secular New Year’s Day.   

My Rosh Hashanah resolution came directly from a comment from my husband.  Larry had just had surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon, and he spent the High Holy Days in a Lazy Boy with ice packs on his huge cast.  Services started at 9 am, and I was still getting ready at 10 a.m.

“You’re running late,” he commented, as I dashed back and forth in front of his spot in the family room.  “You seem to be doing that a lot lately.”

Initially I wanted to make some snide remark about how taking care of his needs as well as all the household responsibilities that he had not been able to do as a result of his surgery had contributed to my problem. 

As I spent time in synagogue reflecting on my morning rush, however, I realized that my lateness was not limited to those last few weeks.  Friends had been left waiting at restaurants, movie theaters, and book stores, with a quick telephone call from me saying, “I’m running a little late! Should be there in 10…or 15 minutes.” And this had been going on for a while.

Lateness was not an issue for many years, especially when I was teaching. I used to be the first one at a party or restaurant, and I made sure I was at doctors’ office with time to spare. For my twenty five years of teaching,  I was in my classroom on time, and I became impatient with the stragglers.  It was when I moved out of the classroom into an administrative position that my ability to be on time became a question.

My new job required that I wear many hats.  I was responsible for public relations, institutional research, grant writing, special events, as well as any “duties as assigned.”  Although I enjoyed what I did, my job often required that I multi-task; as a matter of fact, my boss felt strongly that the ability to handle numerous balls in the air was a sign of a good administrator.  As a result, I got into the habit of not only working on numerous projects at one time, but also switching quickly from one task to another.  In order to handle the myriad of responsibilities, I also found myself trying to complete just one more thing.  As a result, I was always sweeping into a meeting a couple of minutes late. Of course, since everyone I worked with were also trying to multitask, I was not always the last one in conference room.  Larry also noticed it on the home front, as my necessity to finish up something resulted in my coming home one or two hours late.

These bad habits carried into my personal life, and even when I retired, I still found myself trying to squeeze in “one more thing” before heading out the door. Whether it be making that phone call or paying that bill or putting away that load of laundry, I always was running late, just like that proverbial White Rabbit in Wonderland. Which was where I was on that Rosh Hashanah

Since September, I have worked hard to focus on being on time. That means being ready  in advance. No last minute showers. No running around trying to find the sweater I planned on wearing. No, the new me is dressed, ready, and packed up ten minutes before any estimated time of departure.

Or not.  Despite best intentions, it doesn’t always work out.  I can try my best, but life does get in the way.  On Tuesday, I was heading out the door to  the YMCA when my brother and sister-in-law called, and we chatted for fifteen minutes.  Pulling the car out of the garage, I realized it had started snowing, which meant it took twice as long to make the four mile trip. Once I got to the Y, I ran into Tim, who caught me up on his winter running woes, and Lily, who shared with me that she was celebrating the holidays with her children from Chicago.I finally got on the elliptical, and it took me about five minutes to untangle the wires on my earbuds.  I had to cut my ride short to make it to class, which, because of the snow, was comprised of the instructor and four brave souls. OK. I tried! And I did get to class on time, unlike the unfortunate soul who showed up at 11:55 (Friday start time) for our 11:30 am Tuesday class.

So, for the secular New Year, my resolution is to continue my quest to be on time.  Whoops! look at the clock!  Need to cut this short to get to an 11 o’clock spin clas……

A version of this article originally appeared in the Jewish World News, a bi-weekly subscription-based newspaper in upstate New York.

What’s your resolution? White Rabbit vows to be on time.

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“I’m late / I’m late / For a very important date. / No time to say “Hello, Goodbye”. / I’m late, I’m late, I’m late.” White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll

Lewis Carroll’s classic novel has always been one of my favorite children’s books, and I often dreamed of being Alice, falling down a rabbit hole, and meeting the Chesire Cat and the Mad Hatter.. I never realized until recently that I wasn’t Alice.  I was the White Rabbit.

My epiphany came on Rosh Hashanah, while I dashed around getting ready to leave for shul.  My husband, who was unable to attend services due to recent leg surgery, commented on the fact that I was still trying to leave at 10 am, an hour after services began. “You’re running late,” he commented. “You seem to be doing that a lot lately.”

Initially I was going to make some snide remark about how taking care of his needs as well as all the household responsibilities that he had not been able to do as a result of his surgery had contributed to my problem.  I, being the good wife, bit my tongue and headed out to shul.

As I spent time in synagogue reflecting on my morning rush, however, I realized that my lateness was not limited to those last few weeks.  Friends had been left waiting at restaurants, movie theaters, and book stores, with a quick telephone call from me saying, “I’m running a little late! I should be there in ten or fifteen minutes.” And this had been going on for a while.

The irony in this situation is that I have always been the Calendar Queen. For years, I lugged around a Franklin Planner, meticulously writing down every appointment and writing elaborate To-Do lists.   I was always the person given responsibility for event planning and date tracking.  For at least twenty years, I have been secretary of my book club.  If anyone needs to know what book we are reading, or which member is hosting, or what date we are meeting, I am the person.  Now that I have moved from the Franklin Planner to the electronic version, I drive Larry crazy with all the dings and beeps and twills that signal an upcoming event.  It’s just that all these reminders don’t get me out the door when it is necessary. To paraphrase Marilyn Monroe, “I’ve been with a calendar, but I’ve never been on time!”

Lateness was not an issue for many years.  For my twenty-five years of teaching, I was in my classroom on time, and I became impatient with the stragglers.  It was when I moved out of the classroom into an administrative position that my ability to be on time became a question.

My new job required that I wear many hats:  I was responsible for public relations, institutional research, grant writing, special events, as well as any “duties as assigned.”  Although I enjoyed what I did, my job often required that I multi-task; as a matter of fact, my boss felt strongly that the ability to handle numerous balls in the air was a sign of a good administrator.  As a result, I got into the habit of not only working on numerous projects at one time, but also switching quickly from one task to another. (Do you hear the sounds of balls bouncing?)  In order to handle the myriad of responsibilities, I also found myself trying to complete just one more thing.  As a result, I was always sweeping into a meeting a couple of minutes late. Of course, since everyone I worked with was also trying to multitask, I was not always the last one in conference room.  Larry also noticed it on the home front, as my necessity to finish up something resulted in my coming home one or two hours late.

These bad habits carried into my personal life, and even when I retired, I still found myself trying to squeeze in “one more thing” before heading out the door. Whether it be making that one phone call or checking Facebook or finishing my Cryptoquote, I often was running late, just like that proverbial White Rabbit in Wonderland. Which was where I was on that Rosh Hashanah morning.

So I decided then and there that I would start the new year with the resolution to improve my track record for promptness. I would stop multi-tasking, No last minute phone calls. No checking emails. No last minute laundry folding. No, the new me would be showered, dressed, ready, and packed up ten minutes before any estimated time of departure.

Or not.  Despite best intentions, it doesn’t always work out.  I can try my best, but life does get in the way.  Recently, I was heading out the door to the YMCA when my brother and sister-in-law called, and we chatted until I begged off, saying I had to get out the door. Pulling the car out of the garage, I realized it had started snowing, which meant it took twice as long to make the four-mile trip to the Y. Once I got there, I ran into Tim, who caught me up on his winter running woes, and Lily, who shared with me that she was celebrating the holidays with her children from Chicago.I finally got on to the elliptical, and it took me about five minutes to untangle the wires on my earbuds.  I had to cut my ride short to make it to class, which, because of the snow, was comprised of the instructor and four brave souls. OK. I tried! And I did get to class on time, unlike the unfortunate woman who showed up at 11:55 (Friday start time) for our 11:30 am Tuesday class, a feat I had pulled myself on a few occasions.

One of the advantages-or maybe disadvantages-of being Jewish is that we have two opportunities a year to make resolutions: our sacred Rosh Hashanah and our secular New Year’s Day.   So, for the secular New Year, my resolution is to continue working on the promise I made to myself this past September to be on time.  Whoops! look at the clock!  Need to cut this short to get to the Y for an 11 o’clock spinning clas……

A version of this article originally appeared in the Jewish World News, a bi-weekly subscription-based newspaper in upstate New York.