Blessings of Rain

Rainy days seem gloomy, but the earth gets replenished. The water feeds the soil and dances with nutrients to bring more life. It's a blessing in disguise. We all have blessings in our lives, some in disguise, others obvious. Let's embrace them and spread the blessing!

Moscow, Day 1

Moscow Jewish Leadership Camp
at Lauder Etz Chaim Yeshiva
Winter, 2010

"Priviet, minya zavot Yosef. Ya abazhayu sniek. Ya katAyoos naleezhach luchay fsiyech vas. Katorshka!" That's all the Russian I know so far, and it means:
"Hello, my name is yosef. I love snow. I can ski better than you. POTATO!"

The past 24 hours in Russia have been filled with surprises; thankfully, most of them were pleasant. From rocket ships and backwards glyphs as letters of their alphabet, to shady civilians whom you flag down for a taxi, possibly on their way to the nightclub, or in between drinks, it's a funky ride. Sounds normal, right?

The first day, Thank G-d, was awesome! The kids begged for more activities, and over half of them signed up for the shabbaton!

I shall write more tomorrow, after some sleep, and hopefully, another successful and enjoyable day!

spakonye noch! (good night!)
yosef

Travel Thoughts

airports and busses,
subways and fusses
i fell asleep en route to the city
was rudely awoken by honking horns
i wallowed a moment enduring self pity
slapped myself silly at thoughts of the thorns

those beautiful epics
who weave into relics
and jump on your future
while stealing the past
they linger, frozen in time
just grazing the blast
of now.