Mitzva gorreret mitzvah. Avera gorreret avera.…One good deed engenders another; one bad deed brings on another…
The title of my piece is a mishna that Jews have pondered over the ages. This last week it came to life for me.
Last year Rabbi Aigen of Dorshei Emet approached me to do a four session class for the synagogue based on the videos that I have been generating called "New Jewish Voices". He was aware that I have been videotaping educational events here in Montreal, and elsewhere. Yes, I have developed an archive, however having an archive and teaching a class are two different things: Teaching is a new venture for me and many of the videos had not been edited. How was I going to do all this?
Nevertheless they encouraged me to accept and being a sport, I did.
Last week, we had the first session, and although we had only four people registered, preparing for the class gave me a wonderful opportunity to finally complete something I had wanted to do for two years, to edit the footage I had of Rabbi Lew speaking at Stanford Hillel about Zen Buddhism and Rabbinic Judaism and what they have to tell us about the how to deal with suffering in the world.
However there are three more classes to go.
Well, out of the blue, my friend, Perla Serfaty, invited me to spend a week with her Northern Quebec. I knew that, she was looking for someone to share the time and space while she worked on her book. She asked me if I had anything to do that would similarly occupy me while she wrote. Boy did I! I dropped everything and joined her for a week from Friday to Friday. We did have two breaks: Sunday we returned to the city, she for a personal celebration, and I to take care of a few things: Monday afternoon we were back in the country without cell phone or internet access, and only expensive long distance land line connections i.e. limited... A heavenly oasis for concentrated work. On Wednesday, my friend was to meet a professional colleague from Belgium in Trois Rivieres and I accompanied her on that outing. (Checked my e-mails on the i-phone and made some calls on my cell phone)
In between I reviewed and edited my videos and I now have it "in the can" as they say in film parlance. Here is the line-up of the edited pieces.
1. Dr. Shera Tuchman, a working physician, who has also been
teaching a parsha (weekly bible portion)class for twenty years at her synagogue in Manhattan, and has published two books based on her teaching, "The Women of Braishit " and "The Women of Shemot" and more are on the way, is interviewed in her own home. When asked how this happened, she talks blithely about reading Sartre and More Nevuchim - Maimonides' "Guide for the Perplexed" - at the same time when she started college.
2. A second video of Raba Mimi Feigelson, probably the first Jewish Orthodox functioning Rabbi. (She was ordained in secret by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, z"l of blessed memory and shares about this in the class which she teaches on finding your personal covenantal texts. She also plays the ukelele.
3. Dr. Michelle Friedman, a working psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, She has been hired to teach Rabbis-in-training to sensitize them to the dilemmas they will be encountering and she uses their own rabbinic and biblical sources to do so.
4. I was fortunate to catch Tova Mirvis, the novelist, sharing about her Columbia writing classes. She writes about her background growing up Jewish and Orthodox in Memphis and is candid and under thiry.
5. I also happened to catch Judy Klitzner, an attractive and dynamic tanach (bible) teacher and author speaking about her recently published book: "Subversive Sequels in the Bible": In her hands the bible is actually a feminist tract.
6. And the last was a bonus. Rabbi Daniel Sperber speaking about the halachic underpinnings of why Jewish communal leaders may be women, showing how Maimonides himself is outvoted by those rabbis coming both before and after him, and speaking about the "facts on the ground" in contemporary Israel and the diaspora.
Wow, it is 6:30 am. Perla is still sleeping. Shortly, she will wake up and we will pack the car and drive back to Montreal.
PS She is a great cook too. Much to learn and digest…
The next class is scheduled for Thursday, October 28th. lunchtime, 12 - 1:15 at Dorshei Emet in Montreal.
Hope you can join us.
From Generation to Generation...
This morning I received an e-mail via the Aleph Jewish Renewal list
"The soul of Dr. Samuel Miilgram ascended today, beloved father of Rabbi Goldie Miilgram...
--
Rabbi Goldie Milgram
ReclaimingJudaism.org
I wrote her back.
Dear Goldie,
My heart goes out to you at this time.
You have just lost your first and most important teacher.
Last night, here in Montreal, I had the pleasure of hearing Susanna Heschel speak about her late father, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel Z"l, who I am sure for you needs no introduction.
She brought him alive through sharing about him and in this way we carry all of our great teachers with us forever.
and by the way here here she is on youtube speaking about biblical scholarship with Bob Scott of the Trinity Institute.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3Wq4y8jCuc&feature=related
And here are other clips of Rabbi Heschel himself, all on youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xTAh2txiLc
And may you, Goldie, have the merit of continuing your own wonderful teaching for many years to come.
Hamakom Yenachem otach betoch shaar avelai Tzion ve Yerushalayim.
Abigail Hirsch
514-792-6065
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
Twitter:http://twitter.com/AskAbigail
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Communities
Fondation shalom pour la bien être des communautés
"The soul of Dr. Samuel Miilgram ascended today, beloved father of Rabbi Goldie Miilgram...
--
Rabbi Goldie Milgram
ReclaimingJudaism.org
I wrote her back.
Dear Goldie,
My heart goes out to you at this time.
You have just lost your first and most important teacher.
Last night, here in Montreal, I had the pleasure of hearing Susanna Heschel speak about her late father, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel Z"l, who I am sure for you needs no introduction.
She brought him alive through sharing about him and in this way we carry all of our great teachers with us forever.
and by the way here here she is on youtube speaking about biblical scholarship with Bob Scott of the Trinity Institute.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3Wq4y8jCuc&feature=related
And here are other clips of Rabbi Heschel himself, all on youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xTAh2txiLc
And may you, Goldie, have the merit of continuing your own wonderful teaching for many years to come.
Hamakom Yenachem otach betoch shaar avelai Tzion ve Yerushalayim.
Abigail Hirsch
514-792-6065
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
Twitter:http://twitter.com/AskAbigail
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Communities
Fondation shalom pour la bien être des communautés
The world is a dangerous place...
The world is a dangerous place. One person can still make a difference...
Last week I attended the Abitibi Bowater lecture at Concordia University.
This year they invited Rick Hodes a CNN Hero, who has been a working physician in Ethiopia for twenty two years. He works for a ninety-two year old NGO called The Joint Distribution Committee funded by the Diaspora Jewish community. They have been working in Ethiopia helping Jews and non-Jews. They pay Rick's salary.
Rick has written a book about his work and gave a lecture with slides documenting his work.
I learned some fascinating facts.:
1. There are eighty million people living in Ethiopia.
2. Most of them live on considerably less than a dollar a day.
Rick is doing what he can to treat children with spinal disease and malignant cancer, sometimes by adopting children to put them on his health insurance plan and sending them to the US or India where they can be treated. He now has 17 children living in his house in Adisababa and has treated over 2000 children, many of whom have gone on to be educated and to thrive emotionally, physically and mentally.
I found this video on youtube which is similar to the lecture he gave.
And here is a video of Rick Hodes doing Jewish in his home. Yes he is an orthodox Jew.
He is truly doing the Jewish thing which according to Rabbi Lew is "making every moment sacred."
Knowledge is power.
Below is a description of the current state of affairs in Yemen posted by GLORIA an Israeli research institute.
Comparative Counterinsurgency in Yemen By Jane Novak
Yemen is among the world's most corrupt and least developed nations, factors that explain a long running war in the north and an exploding independence movement in the south. Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Salih deals with legitimate dissent by jailing journalists, shooting protesters, and bombing civilians on a scale that reaches the level of war crimes...
Getting the word out is game changing.
Crude Impact
The other night I watched a documentary on oil and its impact on the African states in which it has been found and exploited called Crude Impact.
Apparently there is greater poverty in those countries like Nigeria where oil has been mined and exported than in those countries that are oil free.
Nigeria has one hundred million people. (The numbers are astounding) 70 % live below the poverty line and also in a state of war caused by the conflict between the Oil companies and the native populations that have been devastated.
What is the moral?
One person can still make a difference and each of us can do something.
Last week I attended the Abitibi Bowater lecture at Concordia University.
This year they invited Rick Hodes a CNN Hero, who has been a working physician in Ethiopia for twenty two years. He works for a ninety-two year old NGO called The Joint Distribution Committee funded by the Diaspora Jewish community. They have been working in Ethiopia helping Jews and non-Jews. They pay Rick's salary.
Rick has written a book about his work and gave a lecture with slides documenting his work.
I learned some fascinating facts.:
1. There are eighty million people living in Ethiopia.
2. Most of them live on considerably less than a dollar a day.
Rick is doing what he can to treat children with spinal disease and malignant cancer, sometimes by adopting children to put them on his health insurance plan and sending them to the US or India where they can be treated. He now has 17 children living in his house in Adisababa and has treated over 2000 children, many of whom have gone on to be educated and to thrive emotionally, physically and mentally.
I found this video on youtube which is similar to the lecture he gave.
And here is a video of Rick Hodes doing Jewish in his home. Yes he is an orthodox Jew.
He is truly doing the Jewish thing which according to Rabbi Lew is "making every moment sacred."
Knowledge is power.
Below is a description of the current state of affairs in Yemen posted by GLORIA an Israeli research institute.
Comparative Counterinsurgency in Yemen By Jane Novak
Yemen is among the world's most corrupt and least developed nations, factors that explain a long running war in the north and an exploding independence movement in the south. Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Salih deals with legitimate dissent by jailing journalists, shooting protesters, and bombing civilians on a scale that reaches the level of war crimes...
Getting the word out is game changing.
Crude Impact
The other night I watched a documentary on oil and its impact on the African states in which it has been found and exploited called Crude Impact.
Apparently there is greater poverty in those countries like Nigeria where oil has been mined and exported than in those countries that are oil free.
Nigeria has one hundred million people. (The numbers are astounding) 70 % live below the poverty line and also in a state of war caused by the conflict between the Oil companies and the native populations that have been devastated.
What is the moral?
One person can still make a difference and each of us can do something.
JOFA: Notes from the Front: conference 3/11 - 3/14/2010
JOFA conference quick notes: 3/11 - 3/14/2010
Wow!!! Were we blown away!!!
(youtube CUTV Concordia University Television)
secretly ordained by Shlomo Carlebach many years ago. She did an amazing Hassidic teaching session. You had to be there, and through the magic of video - you can be. (I hope to post this)
For those of you interested in the Halachic underpinnings of Jewish Orthodox Feminism, I videotaped Daniel Sperber, the Posek: a 45 minute lecture on all of the gory details.
Also, I met and interviewed Susan Weiss, attorney and executive Director of Center for Female Justice, an organization working to ameliorate the Agunah problem in Israel through the Rabbinic and the secular courts and she showed me their installation: "Hanging Out Our Laundry". The Savta Bikorta videos were also shown during film night and can be seen on Youtube.
The last session was with Tova Mirvis, a contemporary Jewish female author of fictional books who grew up in an orthodox community in Memphis and whose first books are set in that setting. She considers herself Orthodox, a working writer, and mother.
By the way she will be coming to MONTREAL this spring to the Jewish Public Library: Don't miss it. info below.
Also ran into Barbara Nirenberg and her husband, Raba Sara Hurwitz and Raba--in-training, Rebbetzin Schier.
PRIOR TO THE CONFERENCE: MEETINGS WITH DR. MICHELLE FRIEDMAN AND DR. SHERA TUCHMAN
Thursday, we interviewed two female powerhouses, both working physicians in Manhattan and also important female Jewish leaders in Judaism, who both consider themselves part of the Orthodox kehillah.
Dr. Michelle Friedman, Psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst made time to meet us between 3 and 3:30 in her private office on the Upper West Side.
At 3pm we were waiting in her spacious lobby. She rode up on her bicycle and ushered us into her office.
She is a young Jewish Orthodox working mother, the instructor on Pastoral Counseling for all the Rabbis, mostly male, ordained by Yeshivat Chovevei Torah. She explained that it is her task to prepare male rabbis to meet the demands that are inevitably thrust upon them by all kinds of human dilemmas,
as they fulfill the role of Rabbi. She explained that they are all eager to "help" and it is her job to train them how best to do this.
She meets with them once a week for a year and starts each class with a dvar torah, based on the traditional sources of Talmud, Torah and Midrash.
Earlier from 1: 30 to 2:30 we met Dr. Shera Tuchman in her own home on the East Side.
She is also about to publish the translation, (from Hebrew,Yiddish, and Polish), of the 35 notebooks of her dear departed grandmother which span the last century from the time her grandmother arrived in New York (1905) to her death about ten years ago.
She showed us her library and her bagful of Jewish texts which she uses each week to prepare for her morning class, which happens regularly on Thursdays and is free and open to the public.
Info about Tova Mirvis coming to Montreal:
The Outside World with Tova Mirvis
Tova Mirvis will discuss the wise, funny, and
wholly unforgettable, The Outside World, a story
of isolation and assimilation, faith and doubt,
destiny and true love – a fascinating glimpse into
a closed community from a writer of singular wit
Tuesday
June 8, 2010
7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Spaces are limited
The other lecture is:
Rashi’s Daughters - Rachel with Maggie Anton
Award-winning author Maggie Anton will speak
about the research behind her best-selling
Rashi’s Daughters trilogy, set in the household
of the great medieval Talmud scholar.
Tuesday
April 20, 2010
7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Jewish Public Library
5151, Côte Ste-Catherine Road
Both sessions:
$36 members/students*
$45 non-members
Individual session:
$20 members/students*
$25 non-members
Advance tickets: (514) 345-6416
Registration: (514) 345-2627 ext. 3042
Refreshments
Abigail Hirsch
514-792-6065
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
Twitter:http://twitter.com/AskAbigail
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Communities
Fondation shalom pour le bien être des communautés
Qui es-tu?
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Finally, the play "Qui es-tu?" will be performed live at:
Location:http:www.sallerichardsauvageau.com
1100 Blvd. Tascherau, La Prairie
Time:7:00PM Tuesday, March 16th
A bus is leaving from Herzliyah High School at 5:45 Sharp, cost $10.
Tickets cost $5. at the door.
This is a joint production between Classe Hélène, a group of high school students diagnosed with autism and volunteer students from Herzliyah Highschool and École de la Magdeleine in La Prairie. (In French)
Une bonne occasion de découvrir le talent des adolescents autistes et de participer à leur action pour venir en aide aux enfants soldats et aux enfants sorciers.
Mme Alby De Barra Baramoto, chanteuse congolaise et M. André André Michel que l'on surnomme le peintre des amérindiens participent à cet événement.
Bienvenue à tous !
Quand le rêve côtoie la réalité…
La pièce de théâtre « Qui es-tu? », une création collective regroupant des élèves autistes et non-autistes de l’école de la Magdeleine, ainsi que des élèves de l’école Herzliah de Montréal sera présentée le 16 mars prochain à la Salle Richard-Sauvageau de l’école de La Magdeleine, à La Prairie, sur la Rive-Sud de Montréal. Réalisée avec la participation des classes régulières ou adaptées, cette production a été mise en scène par Hélène Massé, titulaire d’un groupe d’élèves autistes à haut niveau qui ont mis leur talent à contribution pour créer cette pièce de théâtre.
Julien partage avec ses amis un rêve étrange où se côtoient des personnages réels et imaginaires qui lui feront prendre conscience des idées, des sentiments et du vécu des personnes qui l’entourent. Ses amis lui dévoileront leurs préoccupations et leurs espoirs d’adolescents. De ces échanges naîtra un projet qu’ils partageront avec le public. Des effets visuels et auditifs informatisés créés par les élèves soutiennent cette création théâtrale où la fantaisie et l’humour côtoient le désir d’apprendre, la sensibilité et l’engagement.
Les artistes invités, Mme Alby De Barra Baramoto, chanteuse congolaise, et M. André Michel, surnommé le peintre des amérindiens et directeur de la Maison Amérindienne au Mont-St-Hilaire, se joignent à eux pour les soutenir dans leur projet.
Cette pièce de théâtre se termine avec une invitation adressée au public afin de les soutenir dans la demande qu’ils veulent faire à nos représentants à l’ONU concernant la défense des droits des enfants soldats et des enfants sorciers.
Parrainé par le Ministère de l’Éducation dans le cadre de son programme interculturel en milieu scolaire, cette activité s’inscrit dans une pédagogie différenciée par projets où l’intégration des matières est privilégiée. Une vidéo, dont le titre est « Dans sa bulle, qui ça ? ou l’autisme vu par des adolescents autistes » est en voie de réalisation. Elle témoignera de cette démarche et servira, espérons-le à démystifier l’autisme.
……………………………………………………..
« L'an passé, nous avons découvert les réalités de la 2e guerre mondiale et les génocides africains. « Que pouvons-nous faire devant tant d'horreur? » « Nous pouvons au moins apprendre notre histoire, pour ne pas se faire conter des histoires. » est la conclusion de Simon Cyr. Nous avons décidé de faire un diaporama et d’informer nos camarades de ce que nous avions découvert. Le 18 février, nous présenterons notre diaporama à La Conférence des Droits de l'Enfant, organisée par le groupe Human Promise au Centre Gelbert, à Montréal. Nous avons aussi correspondu avec les élèves juifs de l’école Herzliah. » Marc-André et Pierre-Olivier
« Je suis Olivier Demers et je suis autiste. Vous savez, certaines personnes sont bouddhistes, d’autre sont sikhistes, moi je suis autiste. Non, ce n’est pas une religion. En fait, j’ai ce qu’on appelle le Trouble Envahissant du Développement, mais ça ne me trouble pas beaucoup, rassurez-vous! J’suis un peu distrait et j’avoue que j’aime bien me laisser envahir par mes passions : entre autre, le théâtre et l’humour ! Beaucoup de gens croient que les personnes autistes sont dans leur bulle. Ce n’est pas si vrai que ça. Venez voir notre pièce de théâtre pour nous découvrir sous un autre angle. C’est un rendez-vous à ne pas manquer ! » Olivier
http://monteregieweb.com/main+fr+01_300+Des_autistes_demandent_la_paix_a_l_ONU.html?ArticleID=626976&JournalID=27
Posted by AskAbigail at 12:48 AM 0 comments
Finally, the play "Qui es-tu?" will be performed live at:
Location:http:www.sallerichardsauvageau.com
1100 Blvd. Tascherau, La Prairie
Time:7:00PM Tuesday, March 16th
A bus is leaving from Herzliyah High School at 5:45 Sharp, cost $10.
Tickets cost $5. at the door.
This is a joint production between Classe Hélène, a group of high school students diagnosed with autism and volunteer students from Herzliyah Highschool and École de la Magdeleine in La Prairie. (In French)
Une bonne occasion de découvrir le talent des adolescents autistes et de participer à leur action pour venir en aide aux enfants soldats et aux enfants sorciers.
Mme Alby De Barra Baramoto, chanteuse congolaise et M. André André Michel que l'on surnomme le peintre des amérindiens participent à cet événement.
Bienvenue à tous !
Quand le rêve côtoie la réalité…
La pièce de théâtre « Qui es-tu? », une création collective regroupant des élèves autistes et non-autistes de l’école de la Magdeleine, ainsi que des élèves de l’école Herzliah de Montréal sera présentée le 16 mars prochain à la Salle Richard-Sauvageau de l’école de La Magdeleine, à La Prairie, sur la Rive-Sud de Montréal. Réalisée avec la participation des classes régulières ou adaptées, cette production a été mise en scène par Hélène Massé, titulaire d’un groupe d’élèves autistes à haut niveau qui ont mis leur talent à contribution pour créer cette pièce de théâtre.
Julien partage avec ses amis un rêve étrange où se côtoient des personnages réels et imaginaires qui lui feront prendre conscience des idées, des sentiments et du vécu des personnes qui l’entourent. Ses amis lui dévoileront leurs préoccupations et leurs espoirs d’adolescents. De ces échanges naîtra un projet qu’ils partageront avec le public. Des effets visuels et auditifs informatisés créés par les élèves soutiennent cette création théâtrale où la fantaisie et l’humour côtoient le désir d’apprendre, la sensibilité et l’engagement.
Les artistes invités, Mme Alby De Barra Baramoto, chanteuse congolaise, et M. André Michel, surnommé le peintre des amérindiens et directeur de la Maison Amérindienne au Mont-St-Hilaire, se joignent à eux pour les soutenir dans leur projet.
Cette pièce de théâtre se termine avec une invitation adressée au public afin de les soutenir dans la demande qu’ils veulent faire à nos représentants à l’ONU concernant la défense des droits des enfants soldats et des enfants sorciers.
Parrainé par le Ministère de l’Éducation dans le cadre de son programme interculturel en milieu scolaire, cette activité s’inscrit dans une pédagogie différenciée par projets où l’intégration des matières est privilégiée. Une vidéo, dont le titre est « Dans sa bulle, qui ça ? ou l’autisme vu par des adolescents autistes » est en voie de réalisation. Elle témoignera de cette démarche et servira, espérons-le à démystifier l’autisme.
……………………………………………………..
« L'an passé, nous avons découvert les réalités de la 2e guerre mondiale et les génocides africains. « Que pouvons-nous faire devant tant d'horreur? » « Nous pouvons au moins apprendre notre histoire, pour ne pas se faire conter des histoires. » est la conclusion de Simon Cyr. Nous avons décidé de faire un diaporama et d’informer nos camarades de ce que nous avions découvert. Le 18 février, nous présenterons notre diaporama à La Conférence des Droits de l'Enfant, organisée par le groupe Human Promise au Centre Gelbert, à Montréal. Nous avons aussi correspondu avec les élèves juifs de l’école Herzliah. » Marc-André et Pierre-Olivier
« Je suis Olivier Demers et je suis autiste. Vous savez, certaines personnes sont bouddhistes, d’autre sont sikhistes, moi je suis autiste. Non, ce n’est pas une religion. En fait, j’ai ce qu’on appelle le Trouble Envahissant du Développement, mais ça ne me trouble pas beaucoup, rassurez-vous! J’suis un peu distrait et j’avoue que j’aime bien me laisser envahir par mes passions : entre autre, le théâtre et l’humour ! Beaucoup de gens croient que les personnes autistes sont dans leur bulle. Ce n’est pas si vrai que ça. Venez voir notre pièce de théâtre pour nous découvrir sous un autre angle. C’est un rendez-vous à ne pas manquer ! » Olivier
http://monteregieweb.com/main+fr+01_300+Des_autistes_demandent_la_paix_a_l_ONU.html?ArticleID=626976&JournalID=27
Posted by AskAbigail at 12:48 AM 0 comments
3/10/2010 tweets going to NYC
These are my tweets for this morning - a quick way to update you on what I am doing now that could be of interest.
Today, third to last rehearsal: "Qui-est tu" play to be premiered next Tuesday, 6pm in La Prairie, in French, by HS students, autistic+ non
Also videotaped short segment of Rabbi Steinmetz speaking about the son of Hamas who chose to spy for Israel and what it teaches us. 5 minutes ago via web
videotaped Sara Hurwitz, THE female orthodox rabbi doing what she does best, teaching Jewish texts and ideas to MEN AND WOMEN OF all ages.
Tomorrow will be in in New York City for capturing more segments on Jewish feminism with Sonia Sarah Lipsyc and attending the JOFA conf wknd
Now I have to research my sister's situation. She is dealing with unexplained swelling one year after successful lymphoma treatment. ideas? half a minute ago via web
My nephew, Eliav is visiting from Israel and will be here till Sunday.
I spoke to two of the in-charge doctors: Anita's doctor is on vacation.
So far all tests are negative for cancer and even the test for inflammation is not confirmed and yet she has been experiencing swelling all over the body and even it has extended to the brain which is why she is in the hospital right now for symptomatic treatment and continuous assessment.
Have to get going,
To be continued,
best to you all,
Abigail
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
Twitter:http://twitter.com/AskAbigail
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Communities
Fondation shalom pour la bien être des communautés
Today, third to last rehearsal: "Qui-est tu" play to be premiered next Tuesday, 6pm in La Prairie, in French, by HS students, autistic+ non
Also videotaped short segment of Rabbi Steinmetz speaking about the son of Hamas who chose to spy for Israel and what it teaches us. 5 minutes ago via web
videotaped Sara Hurwitz, THE female orthodox rabbi doing what she does best, teaching Jewish texts and ideas to MEN AND WOMEN OF all ages.
Tomorrow will be in in New York City for capturing more segments on Jewish feminism with Sonia Sarah Lipsyc and attending the JOFA conf wknd
Now I have to research my sister's situation. She is dealing with unexplained swelling one year after successful lymphoma treatment. ideas? half a minute ago via web
My nephew, Eliav is visiting from Israel and will be here till Sunday.
I spoke to two of the in-charge doctors: Anita's doctor is on vacation.
So far all tests are negative for cancer and even the test for inflammation is not confirmed and yet she has been experiencing swelling all over the body and even it has extended to the brain which is why she is in the hospital right now for symptomatic treatment and continuous assessment.
Have to get going,
To be continued,
best to you all,
Abigail
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
Twitter:http://twitter.com/AskAbigail
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Communities
Fondation shalom pour la bien être des communautés
Blog'jour: Notes from the Front
Blog'jour: Notes from the front:
From Friday February 12 - Friday, February 19th. 2010
My new strategy for this blog:
My days are so full that I plan to use this blog as an update of my thoughts and activities during the week with video clips and links.
I am finding that if I don't write these things down right away, they get lost and never get done. And my weeks are really full.
So here goes starting with today and going back one week to last Friday. I hope you find it interesting enough to come along on my journey.
I AM GOING TO GIVE YOU THE HIGHLIGHTS.
FRIDAY FEB. 12TH
3 -5PM
A once in a lifetime opportunity to INTERVIEW SUSAN WEIDMAN SCHNEIDER, Chief editor of LILLITH MAGAZINE: http://www.lilith.org/about.htm?PHPSESSID=cefc972d8a1127aeeca4c70b7c14a7e7
I grabbed a cab and picked up FRAMBOISE BABULOT and SONIA SARAH LIPSYC.
We had a Tunisan cab driver on the way there. he immediately icked up Sonia Sarah's North African French accent.
SHABBAT RETREAT at DORSHEI EMET:
Pot luck Friday night and the opportunity to listen and interact with Susan Weidman Schneider
SATURDAY NIGHT:
BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR LEA BENEGBI AT MY PLACE WITH
ALBERT NIRENBERG LAUGHOLOGIST EXTRAORDINAIRE , FILMMAKER AND
GAZETTE COLUMNIST
MONDAY;
Work at home feverishly to find a caretaker for my sister for when she returns from day surgery tomorrow.
TUESDAY:
surgery cancelled: work at home with Framboise
5:15 I grabbed a cab and pulled out my camera. (I have been systematically recording my cab rides and conversations with cab drivers, they are an amazing source of wisdom and very cooperative.) This time it was a Jewish Morrocan cab driver, pretty much the same demographic that we were about to discuss. He gave me his name and it is on the video which he said I could feel free to use and I will post it later for those of you who want to share my cab ride.
5:30 focus group at CJA Federation on developing future services for seniors
As I walked into the Gelber center (5151 Cote St. Catherine) I said hello to a woman entering and as we gave each other a second look we both realized that we did not know each other. I asked her where she was going and she told me she was going to a meeting of the LYMPHODEMA SOCIETY !!!!
WOW....
My sister has been dealing with this for the last three months. Nobody knows how to treat it. I had to take two minutes to check this out.
Sure enough the Lymphodema society was having its meetings: one in
English: one in French: They meet 3-4 times per year and have some very nice handouts and a permanent office and tel. number:
514-979-2463
AQL/LAQ
Association québécoisedu lymphoedème
Lymphodema Association of Quebec
I also got the number of this sweet woman to give to my sister for a personal contact. thank you.
The FEDERATION meeting was lively, approx.10 people from various areas of Montreal and varying demographic configurations.
TERRY TRAGER will report on the meeting on their website and invite anyone in the community to also voice their opinion.
My own review;
Concerns are for health and cultural services in a Jewish social milieu as people age.
Services for Jews are sparser in the suburbs.
There is an interest in grassroots involvement in creation and functioning of all programs and a request for an ongoing information service to help people seeking services including volunteer opportunities.
Check out their website to express your own opinion.
I met some amazing people there and we exchanged contact information.
From there I took a taxi to the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue to catch:
TUESDAY NIGHT LEARNING AT THE SHAAR
Here I participated in a class with Alice Lehrer,
"Whats the "good" in Judaism? a brief History.
and then an amazing class by Rabbi Howard Joseph, Rabbi emeritus of the Spanish and Portuguese synagogue on, "The Religious dynamics in the music and poetry of Leonard Cohen"
followed by a special rendition of Cohen's Halleluyah by Alon,a young musicam intern from Israel.
WEDNESDAY
AM
I discover BBC world radio program: Witness, a fiveminute segment of live witness to history accounts: today the account of a Jewish prisoner who survived the bombing in Dresden under Nazi guard.
PM
Working at home with Framboise, we lose our computer connection.
We go over to CUTV and participate in the filming of the Vegan Iron Chef program
at Concordia U. Lots of vegan munchies and cool video.
Late afternoon:
I learn that my sister has been admitted to hospitl for tests. I pass the camera equipment to framboise to film the Jewish/Christian dialogue meeting at the Reform Temple that evening and head over to the hospital and home to bed. Whew!!! She is pleased that she will get a speedy assessment.
THURSDAY
8- 9 am meet with my trainer Steve Hoather: another amazing session feeding both body and mind. this time we talk about health and wellness and disability. (I record this on the i-phone and hope to publish it eventually perhaps even here in future.)
12:15 Michael Yeung picks me up to go to the Cummings Centre to videotape the Human Promise Conference on Human Rights.
PROGRAM SPEAKERS: 1- 4 pm
Allii Carr: at 28 years old she has 9 years of international volunteer experience and is in the process of building a school for disabled children in Ghana,West Africa called Happy village International:
Murray Levine replaced a guest who could not show up on short notice and shared about his fundraising efforts over the last thirty years for all kinds of causes.
Hélène Massé's students (autistic) from École de la Magdeleine in La Prairie
presented a powerpoint which they created on the plight of African child soldiers and child witches.
Ky'oksing Kirunga a field representative for the Stephen Lewis Foundation spoke about HIV/AIDS in Africa and the work the foundation is doing in this area.
Maya Smith and Nick Pang, interns in the Faiths Act Fellowship, presented a project that all present participated in.
The message to all was "you are powerful and you can make a difference"
I think I will stop here.
Oh yes, my sister was discharged from the hospital yesterday. The cat scan was negative.
We spoke this morning and she agreed with Dr. Bali that she needs to take a deep breath and go with the flow as the body heals itself.
G-d bless you all!
what a week!
Shabbat shalom...
Abigail Hirsch
514-792-6065
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Community:
Fondation shalom pour la guérison des communautés
From Friday February 12 - Friday, February 19th. 2010
My new strategy for this blog:
My days are so full that I plan to use this blog as an update of my thoughts and activities during the week with video clips and links.
I am finding that if I don't write these things down right away, they get lost and never get done. And my weeks are really full.
So here goes starting with today and going back one week to last Friday. I hope you find it interesting enough to come along on my journey.
I AM GOING TO GIVE YOU THE HIGHLIGHTS.
FRIDAY FEB. 12TH
3 -5PM
A once in a lifetime opportunity to INTERVIEW SUSAN WEIDMAN SCHNEIDER, Chief editor of LILLITH MAGAZINE: http://www.lilith.org/about.htm?PHPSESSID=cefc972d8a1127aeeca4c70b7c14a7e7
I grabbed a cab and picked up FRAMBOISE BABULOT and SONIA SARAH LIPSYC.
We had a Tunisan cab driver on the way there. he immediately icked up Sonia Sarah's North African French accent.
SHABBAT RETREAT at DORSHEI EMET:
Pot luck Friday night and the opportunity to listen and interact with Susan Weidman Schneider
SATURDAY NIGHT:
BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR LEA BENEGBI AT MY PLACE WITH
ALBERT NIRENBERG LAUGHOLOGIST EXTRAORDINAIRE , FILMMAKER AND
GAZETTE COLUMNIST
MONDAY;
Work at home feverishly to find a caretaker for my sister for when she returns from day surgery tomorrow.
TUESDAY:
surgery cancelled: work at home with Framboise
5:15 I grabbed a cab and pulled out my camera. (I have been systematically recording my cab rides and conversations with cab drivers, they are an amazing source of wisdom and very cooperative.) This time it was a Jewish Morrocan cab driver, pretty much the same demographic that we were about to discuss. He gave me his name and it is on the video which he said I could feel free to use and I will post it later for those of you who want to share my cab ride.
5:30 focus group at CJA Federation on developing future services for seniors
As I walked into the Gelber center (5151 Cote St. Catherine) I said hello to a woman entering and as we gave each other a second look we both realized that we did not know each other. I asked her where she was going and she told me she was going to a meeting of the LYMPHODEMA SOCIETY !!!!
WOW....
My sister has been dealing with this for the last three months. Nobody knows how to treat it. I had to take two minutes to check this out.
Sure enough the Lymphodema society was having its meetings: one in
English: one in French: They meet 3-4 times per year and have some very nice handouts and a permanent office and tel. number:
514-979-2463
AQL/LAQ
Association québécoisedu lymphoedème
Lymphodema Association of Quebec
I also got the number of this sweet woman to give to my sister for a personal contact. thank you.
The FEDERATION meeting was lively, approx.10 people from various areas of Montreal and varying demographic configurations.
TERRY TRAGER will report on the meeting on their website and invite anyone in the community to also voice their opinion.
My own review;
Concerns are for health and cultural services in a Jewish social milieu as people age.
Services for Jews are sparser in the suburbs.
There is an interest in grassroots involvement in creation and functioning of all programs and a request for an ongoing information service to help people seeking services including volunteer opportunities.
Check out their website to express your own opinion.
I met some amazing people there and we exchanged contact information.
From there I took a taxi to the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue to catch:
TUESDAY NIGHT LEARNING AT THE SHAAR
Here I participated in a class with Alice Lehrer,
"Whats the "good" in Judaism? a brief History.
and then an amazing class by Rabbi Howard Joseph, Rabbi emeritus of the Spanish and Portuguese synagogue on, "The Religious dynamics in the music and poetry of Leonard Cohen"
followed by a special rendition of Cohen's Halleluyah by Alon,a young musicam intern from Israel.
WEDNESDAY
AM
I discover BBC world radio program: Witness, a fiveminute segment of live witness to history accounts: today the account of a Jewish prisoner who survived the bombing in Dresden under Nazi guard.
PM
Working at home with Framboise, we lose our computer connection.
We go over to CUTV and participate in the filming of the Vegan Iron Chef program
at Concordia U. Lots of vegan munchies and cool video.
Late afternoon:
I learn that my sister has been admitted to hospitl for tests. I pass the camera equipment to framboise to film the Jewish/Christian dialogue meeting at the Reform Temple that evening and head over to the hospital and home to bed. Whew!!! She is pleased that she will get a speedy assessment.
THURSDAY
8- 9 am meet with my trainer Steve Hoather: another amazing session feeding both body and mind. this time we talk about health and wellness and disability. (I record this on the i-phone and hope to publish it eventually perhaps even here in future.)
12:15 Michael Yeung picks me up to go to the Cummings Centre to videotape the Human Promise Conference on Human Rights.
PROGRAM SPEAKERS: 1- 4 pm
Allii Carr: at 28 years old she has 9 years of international volunteer experience and is in the process of building a school for disabled children in Ghana,West Africa called Happy village International:
Murray Levine replaced a guest who could not show up on short notice and shared about his fundraising efforts over the last thirty years for all kinds of causes.
Hélène Massé's students (autistic) from École de la Magdeleine in La Prairie
presented a powerpoint which they created on the plight of African child soldiers and child witches.
Ky'oksing Kirunga a field representative for the Stephen Lewis Foundation spoke about HIV/AIDS in Africa and the work the foundation is doing in this area.
Maya Smith and Nick Pang, interns in the Faiths Act Fellowship, presented a project that all present participated in.
The message to all was "you are powerful and you can make a difference"
I think I will stop here.
Oh yes, my sister was discharged from the hospital yesterday. The cat scan was negative.
We spoke this morning and she agreed with Dr. Bali that she needs to take a deep breath and go with the flow as the body heals itself.
G-d bless you all!
what a week!
Shabbat shalom...
Abigail Hirsch
514-792-6065
Blogger: http://askabigail.blogspot.com/
Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/askabigail
AskAbigail Productions
Shalom Foundation for Healing Community:
Fondation shalom pour la guérison des communautés
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