Yom Ha'Kippurim

With Yom Kippur starting at 4:50, I had Seudah Ha’Mafseket with Garce and her parents at 4:00.  We had a uniquely chopped and totally delicious salad, as well as chicken with potatoes and vegetables.  And the world’s best Pita- not a joke.  It was a great meal, with a great balance of filling and not too heavy.  Plus I love being in the presence of the Almo family… They welcomed me with totally open arms, and made me feel very at home.  After the meal we took the six-minute walk to the beautiful Sephardic synagogue, where we prayed for just less than three hours.  My first thought, by the way, upon opening the 661-page machzor was that in only twenty-five hours I would be looking at the last page.  I didn’t really know if I would be present for all of the pages, but I knew that I would feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of Arvit tonight.  Let’s put that thought on hold while I share more about my day today…

Shacharit started this morning at 6:45 AM, and amazingly Garce, her Dad, and I were actually present for that.  Garce and I were the only females in sight for quite a while, which was nice because we got to sit wherever we wanted.  As in-to Shacharit as I was, there was definitely a period of time where I was really fighting sleep.  In order to combat that issue I decided to assume my regular standing position, which thankfully turned out to be quite effective.  Sadly Garce wasn’t feeling so great so she had to head home at some point in the morning.  One of the first women to come after us was this woman who I thought really didn’t like me because I was “disrupting her prayers” last night by standing near the doorway.  After Garce had left I found out that this woman actually really liked me… She asked me many times if I wanted to sit next to her because, “my constant standing was making her tired.”  Of course all of these quotations are translated from Hebrew, because that is the only language that I thought she spoke.  However, as soon as I said that I was from America she flipped on a random English switch and that is how we proceeded to converse. 

In order to share with you lovely people the most exciting part of my day I must first explain the layout of the Synagogue.  Similar to SBH or BCMH, the women's section sits above and wrapping around the men's section.  However, unlike those two Synagogues, the women's section is about fifteen feet about the men's section, and some of the men sit facing the women.  In order to combat the whole men-looking-at-women-during-Tefilah thing, the women's section is hidden by white curtains which have the ability to be moved to the side.  Hopefully you understand the layout...  So, in the front row sat two women, at opposite ends, who both completely and totally refused to close the curtains.  Even though the Rabbis were very blatantly telling the two women to close the curtains, they continued to keep them open.  Then a little bit of a riot broke out... This woman who was clearly of the opinion that the shades needed to be closed, went over to one of the women and ripped the curtain out of her hands and yelled at her with very fast Hebrew words.  Of course the woman sitting in the front wasn't feeling that, so she grabbed the curtain, pulled it back, and yelled back in faster Hebrew words.  Haha.  So basically for like three minutes of Torah reading there was a real-live, loud, cat-fight screaming and grabbing match happening just above the Mizbe'ach.  All the other women were just looking down and hoping that the cat fight wasn't as loud and attention-calling as it was, and trying not to laugh hysterically at the ridiculousness of the extent of the argument on the Day of Repentance itself.  

Though they eventually calmed down, the argument re-surfaced when everyone came back to synagogue after an hour break for Mincha.  The woman who wanted the curtains to be closed yelled even louder and used even more Hebrew words to convey her feelings to the woman at the front.  This, for your information, took place during Selichot of all times, and it was even more difficult than the first round for the rest of us to continue to focus on tefilah and avoid laughter.  But we made it work, and eventually the woman who wanted the curtains to be closed just let it be. 

Moral of the story is... Despite the excitement I managed to remain in Tefilah from 6:45 until the break and from Mincha through Arvit.  In other words, I not only survived, but actually enjoyed, about ten hours of Tefilah.  Good work, me.  Haha.  For real though, the Tefilah was great... Super similar to EB/SBH, but there were definitely things I missed about being at EB.  Hands down, the number one thing I missed was the Ladino Booklet.  That thing is awesome, and I wish it could be implemented into the Tefilah in synagogues world-wide.  Another thing I really missed is the complete and total spaciousness that is available.  The last thing I'll mention that I missed about Seattle is seeing all of my people in Synagogue.. It was kinda lame not being able to look around and see the smiling faces of people I've known for my whole life. But I guess that did contribute positively to my ability to stay focused on Tefilah all day long.  

Now let's talk about the things that were totally and completely new to me, and unique to Israel.  First of all, the whole city shut down.  Streetlights were all flashing yellow, there were literally no cars driving, and everyone walking was clearly dressed for Yom Kippur and said "Shana Tova" or "G'mar Chatimah Tovah" as we passed each other.  Secondly, as opposed to the phrases that people scream 'Amen' to at EB like, "... open the gates of Refuah Shelemah," people scream 'Amen' to phrases like, "Let it rain in The Land in its proper time."  Cool, and interesting to hear that.  

Now I'm going to talk about random things that I want to mention, haha.  

1) My Bubbe used to say, "The first one to step off the sidewalk always gets mowed down by the cars."  Well, I usually try live by this.  But, I've learned that in Israel you just gotta walk.  Doesn't matter if the pedestrian guy is red or green, you just look both ways and walk if there aren't cars.  Ye who wait for the green pedestrian will never get anywhere.  That's my advice, haha.

2) The temperature difference between Jerusalem and Ramat Ef'al is totally ridiculous! It's actually cold at night in Yerushalaim, and it's a perfect temperature all night long in Ramat Ef'al.. It's also so much hotter during the day where I live than it is in Yerushalaim. It's crazay!

Tomorrow we have shopping in B'nei Brak for a Lulav and Etrog, then building a Succah, then going bowling.  I'm definitely going to have a chill morning... Maybe get a workout in or something.

I hope everyone had an easy fast and meaningful Yom Kippur! Good luck to those in Seattle who still have a couple of hours to go!

Shana Tovah U'metukah :)