Day of Sabbath

by Irene Elkin and Jen Baumann

The Day of Rest, for us it was a day to gather with friends who, in a short time, have become like family.

The day began with a session about Generous Parenting. Lori Palatnik led a very engaging discussion about the roles that parents should take on during the various stages of their children’s lives. With young children, parents are “Directors,” with teens they become “Supervisors,” and with adult children parents need to take on a “Consultant” role. The most important message was that we are teachers of values to our children, and that we must model behaviors we want to instill in them.

Our next session focused on generosity, and that when we see people in need we must not turn away. Givers are more happy.  Lori left us with an important reminder that “when you have nothing, you appreciate everything. When you have everything you appreciate nothing.”

We then walked to the Weber family home for a wonderful Shabbat luncheon and a lively discussion about their Aliyah process and their new life in Israel. The meal ended with delicious chocolate and passion fruit cakes, and our host walked our group back to the hotel via a scenic route, showing us beautiful residential areas. 

After a quick break, we walked to the Old City and ended Shabbat in the Claman’s beautiful home. Our gracious hosts introduced us to the IDF Momentum program. We had an opportunity to hear from several soldiers about their roles in the military, and the positive impact that the Momentum program has had on the lives of thousands of young men and women upon conclusion of their military service. We ended Shabbat with a joyous Havdala service on the rooftop overlooking Kotel.