If you enjoy eating meat

Full disclosure first: I have not eaten any meat or chicken for almost 30 years. We were living in Sharon at the time I finally stopped. Although I had never been a big meat eater and perhaps toyed with the idea before then, we had a number of friends in the Sharon community who were vegetarians, and that convinced us that it was possible. Although Dina and Barry both continued to eat meat, Simmie has stuck with it, even with a husband who is a devoted meat eater. I do eat fish occasionally but otherwise have never had any desire to turn back.  

If you enjoy eating meat and chicken and want to continue to do so, you will probably not want to see the new documentary “Eating Animals.” The film, directed by Christopher Dillon Quinn, is based on the 2009 Jonathan Safran Foer book of the same name and is narrated by the actress Natalie Portman.

Even if you only consume meat and chicken infrequently, you probably do not want to spend a lot of time thinking about the details of how the animal goes from the field or the cage to your local butcher or grocery store. The truth is that there is no way to completely avoid the realization that eating meat and chicken means taking of life, and economic considerations mean that the animals’ lives are far from idyllic. But providing safe food at a cost most families can manage is no easy feat, and the suffering of the animals is generally accepted as part of the way we humans have lived since the beginning of time.

So, while I do recommend this documentary, I can certainly understand that, in my case, they are preaching to the choir. And I imagine that the vast majority of folks who will see it have a similar outlook.

Meanwhile, I was able to find a couple of pictures of some great-looking kids on the Camp Ramah website. I am waiting to get the login information for Camp Yavneh to see if I can find pictures there as well.

Have a great weekend!

   

Love,

Rebecca

26 June 2018

Red letter date

It was a very busy few days and I am only now (mid-day Tuesday) sitting down to post about this past weekend. My usual routine is to start a new document with the date at the top. When I found myself typing “26 June” I realized that today is a sort of red-letter day in my personal history. It was on this date in 1969 that my family (parents and four siblings) left our home in St. Louis to relocate in West Hartford, CT. Ten years later, on the 26^th of June in 1979, I was hospitalized with pre-eclampsia during my second pregnancy. Fast forward to 1989 when I had my first bout of pneumonia that eventually led to the realization that I had a rare form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Despite the traditional Jewish belief in the permanence of something that has happened three times, I am glad to say that the last two occurrences of the 26^th of June in a year ending in 9 were more or less uneventful.

Meanwhile, we had a lovely day with Maya on Friday the 22^nd. We took her to “Rock On Adventures” where she had a lot of fun climbing. 

Then we went to “Monster Mini Golf.” We then returned to our apartment where we made her some macaroni and cheese and ate while watching the movie Coco. When the movie ended we headed over to Friendly’s for some ice cream. It was a busy and fun day.

On Sunday morning Barry and I took Julia to the Providence Children’s Museum. She is just the right age for this now so it was great fun. 

We headed back to her house for lunch and all ate sandwiches on fresh bagels Dina had picked up that morning. Then Barry and I took Joshua and Ella to a local movie theater where Barry and Joshua saw “Solo” while Ella and I saw “Incredibles 2.” To be honest, I think the movie could have been much better with a lot less violence, but when I shared that thought with Ella I could see she did not see the movie as having been particularly violent. Is it just a matter of what we become accustomed to seeing?

Our four older grandchildren are now all at summer camps for a month. We are hoping to have some time with Julia and Noah while their older siblings are away. We have plans for the four older ones to come to New York in late July and August for what they call “Camp Nana/Sabba.” With all four going to camp we could not schedule four separate weeks this year, so Maya and Ella are coming to New York together. They share a lot of interests in food and activities and their relationship as cousins is far less intense than sisters tend to be. It should be a lot of fun.

Enjoy the nice weather!

Love,

Rebecca

Corpse Flower

Now here is something I had never heard of until receiving an e-mail from the New York Botanical Garden. First, here is a description from Wikipedia:

Amorphophallus titanum, also known as the titan arum, is a flowering plant with the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world. The titan arum's inflorescence is not as large as that of the talipot palm, Corypha umbraculifera, but the inflorescence of the talipot palm is branched rather than unbranched.

Due to its odor, which is like the smell of a rotting corpse or carcass, the titan arum is characterized as a carrion flower, and is also known as the corpse flower or corpse plant (Indonesian: bunga bangkai – bunga means flower, while bangkai can be translated as corpse, cadaver, or carrion). For the same reason, the title corpse flower is also attributed to the genus Rafflesia.

And here is a link to the live stream of a corpse flower at the New York Botanical Garden. 

And here is a link to time-lapse photography showing what this plant does. 

Wow!

Love,

Rebecca

Won't you be my neighbor?

Even if you do not think you are looking for a very sweet walk down memory lane, I highly recommend the documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” which is a wonderfully enjoyable story of the life, times, and considerable accomplishments of Fred Rogers. The filmmakers must have worked with a small budget because much of the old film footage is poor quality; I assume these days there are ways to fix that but they must involve significant and costly effort. If anything, though, the poor quality contributes to the charm of Fred Rogers, who was able to communicate simple ideas so wonderfully to children and adults.

Even if this film is not playing anywhere near you, I would imagine that it will eventually be shown on PBS stations around the country.

What better time is there than now, when the news is flooded with anger and suffering and negativity, to be reminded of the simple joys in life?

Love,

Rebecca

Everything's coming up roses

No month of June in New York is complete without a visit to the Rose Garden at the New York Botanical Garden. The weather has been magnificent the past couple of days, so we packed up a picnic lunch and took a midday break to see this year’s display.

The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden is among the most popular destinations at the Garden from May to October, when more than 650 varieties of roses are in peak bloom. The roses planted here include heirloom varieties selected for their intoxicating perfumes and modern selections chosen for their resistance to disease and pests as well as their beauty. The sights—and scents—are truly dazzling.

Designed by landscape architect Beatrix Farrand in 1916, this garden was completed in 1988 with the support of David Rockefeller and named after his wife Peggy, a horticulturalist and conservationist who loved roses. The Rose Garden has received many international awards and is considered to be among the world’s best rose gardens.

These pictures speak for themselves.

Love,

Rebecca

An amazing weekend

Our family gathered up in Sharon this past weekend to celebrate another milestone: our Ella becoming a Bat Mitzvah. As you can see, the family planned a very full weekend.

We started the festivities on Thursday, when five of the ladies went together to have their nails done. This is not something I ever do but I just had to join in! Barry keeps washing all the dishes. Maybe I’m on to something….

As you look at the invitation, it helps to know that “Tefilat Nashim” is a reference to a prayer service for women that is led by women. Ella led “Kabbalat Shabbat,” the Friday evening introductory prayers, delivered a “D’var Torah” (words of Torah) following the Shabbat morning prayer service, and led “Mincha,” the afternoon prayer service, including reading a portion from the Torah. She was skilled and poised and, to use a sports metaphor her brother would appreciate, totally hit the ball out of the park. After Mincha, various family members spoke, and then Dina and Aaron sponsored a catered dinner for a large group of friends and family.

Meanwhile, Dina had done an amazing amount of preparation: all of the immediate family and some out of town guests ate dinner Friday night and lunch on Shabbat day prepared by Dina, with a little help from Simmie, at Dina and Aaron’s home. I am still exhausted just thinking about how much Dina was able to do, all the while looking relaxed and jubilant.

Here are the words I shared with the group:

Dear Ella,

Here we are, celebrating our third grandchild coming of age in less than a year. One might think that this gets a little tired, but amazingly it does not. Joshua and Eliana and you, Ella, are such amazing and different young people that sitting down to write words to share has been a brand new and refreshing challenge each time.

When your mom and your aunt were young, it seemed like your Sabba and I had each cleverly managed to have our own little clone. But as our daughters grew, it became clear that, looks aside, our girls were not simply duplicates of their parents: in fact, they were far better versions of us. If I was Version 1.0, then your mom was clearly Version 2.0, an enormous enhancement to Version 1.0. It should come as no surprise that one of the many strengths of Version 2.0 is that she is a much better mother than Version 1.0 was. And now, in you, we have Version 3.0.  It is hard to imagine a better or more perfect version, one that could outdo your intelligence, your caring nature, or your bright smile that simply lights up a room, and it is hard to imagine a more patient or loving a big sister for Julia and Noah. And even though he might be reluctant to admit it, Joshua must know how truly blessed he is to have you on his team.

Ariel has clearly done a fine job helping you prepare for this day. I wish I could have worked with you more, but sometimes life gets in the way of the things we want to do. Not wanting to completely abandon my role, a few weeks ago, I asked you if you would lein for me. I could see you were somewhat reluctant, but then I think you realized how much this would mean to me and you agreed to do it. I will forever cherish those moments, as I will forever cherish the many blessings that have allowed me to be here and celebrate with you today. Thank you for continuing to fill my life with joy and sunshine. I love you, Ella Bella!

On Sunday morning, nearly 70 friends gathered at Launch Trampoline Park. The kids had a great time bouncing and then Dina and Aaron showed a photo montage while everyone at birthday cake and other treats. Barry and I provided goody bags for everyone to take home.

We drove back to New York on Sunday afternoon so that we could get up first thing Monday morning and head down to MSKCC for my 6^th treatment. That is why I have been somewhat delayed in posting all of this.

Have a great week!

Love,

Rebecca

One sappy movie, one compelling movie

Many thanks to all of you who reached out with advice for and commiseration with the sciatica. The quickest and easiest thing to do was a massage, which I did, and seems to have helped quite a bit. I am still exploring options for some of the other ideas you have so graciously shared.

I am also happy to report that I have continued to get around well enough to see a couple of movies.

The first was not one I would ordinarily want to see, but thought I was in the mood for some lighter fare, so we went to see “Book Club.” This star-studded tale of four women, played by Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Mary Steenburgen, and Candace Bergen, who have been reading and discussing books for over thirty years was, to put it mildly, a huge disappointment. The silly story line and poorly written script did not deserve the talents of these four terrific female actors who were joined by a most able set of male actors, including Richard Dreyfuss, Craig T. Nelson, Don Johnson, and Andy Garcia. The best I can say is that if you have nothing else to do and are looking for a relatively mindless couple of hours, this may be the movie for you. On the other hand, both your time and your money are almost assuredly worth much more.

Today we went to see “A Kid Like Jake,” starring Claire Danes and Jim Parsons as Alex (a stay-at-home mom who had practiced law before her son was born) and Greg (a psychotherapist) Wheeler, parents of five-year-old Jake. Although the director of Jake’s preschool (played by Olivia Spencer), a friend of Alex and Greg, tries to make them aware that their son is different with descriptions like his enjoyment of “gender-expansive play,” they do not seem to take seriously his increasing insistence on seeing himself as a girl.

This is not necessarily a topic we had ever given much thought until quite recently, when we became aware that someone we know has a pre-school age child who appears to be gender non-conforming. Although the child’s mother has been speaking and writing about this experience, it is not my place to provide any of the details here except to say that I am not sure we would have gone to see this film if not for our awareness of that family.

The film gets off to a fine start and paints a warm portrayal of a loving couple who are devoted parents to their unusual little boy. Much of the film portrays their struggle with coming to terms with their child’s gender non-conformity. They only become fully accepting of his situation in the final minutes of the film, and somehow they move from nearly devastated to well-adjusted with their new reality within an unrealistically short period of time. I wish the film would have spent less time on some of the side-stories (for example, about one of Greg’s patients) and more on how the family was able to take that leap and appear to “live happily ever after” in the closing scene. Still, it is a moving story and worth seeing.

Have a great week!

Love,

Rebecca