I got the rare opportunity today to go from one mitzvah to the next. The day began with a bris milah, welcoming the son of a cousin into the covenant of Hashem. Ah bliss. The baby was cute and cuddly, hardly cried, and the mohel passed the time working on his stand-up monologue.At first I was a bit put off by it. This is an important moment for the baby and his parents. Why all the jokes? But when I looked around, I realized that the mohel was really playing to the crowd, a mixed bag of seculars who really wanted to have lunch.
How secular were they? They thought my husband was a rabbi, which never happens in our crowd. In truth, it's a big deal for people who have little tradition in their lives to have an orthodox bris for their son, and I was proud of them. Even thought the baby's father looked like he was going to faint, and had to be helped to a chair, they did the right thing.
Since the food wasn't really kosher (they call it kosher-style here), I had my family drop me off at the annual Bikur Cholim luncheon, a stunning array of food and exhibits to raise money for an incredible organization. Ladies, I have to say, you are amazing. But unfortunately, it's an organization for women who are not otherwise engaged - in other words, don't have a full time job and/or have the financial resources to devote themselves to a spur of the moment request for help.
I am, unfortunately, not one of these women. But I thank the Holy One, Blessed Be He, that these women exist, and they live in my neighborhood. Ladies, you rule.
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