HOME & FAMILY

Bright sunlight broke through the haze of the night and Lea Attiya, a widow, woke up abruptly. She looked through her window to the hills and exclaimed, "It's Friday. I must hurry!" The sun, a ball of red fire, was inching its way up over the top of the mountain-horizon. Its rays, like red arrows, spread all over the sky.

PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE
Giving Tefilla an Overhaul
by R' Zvi Zobin

Constant correction interrupts the flow of reading and can seriously undermine a child's self confidence.

How to teach proper pronunciation in prayer...

Blind and Beautiful
by Rifca Goldberg

Part II

"Blind people are NOT their blindness!"

Ever notice how many expressions we use all the time refer to sight? "I see what you mean." "See?"

Last week we met Aviva Barsheshet, blind from birth, who comes to spend a Shabbos with the Goldbergs. (An eye-opening experience.) After the ice is broken, the children take to their new guest.

Bais Yaakov Girls in Yerusholayim Remember Shefford
adapted from a piece by Paltiel Roodyn

Some months ago, many students from Bais Yaakov seminaries in Yerusholayim took part in what was for them a rather unusual evening. They viewed a performance of a play in which all the actresses were Bais Yaakov students. One of the unusual aspects of the performance was that it was entirely in English, despite the fact that the players and audience were Israeli girls whose mother tongue was Hebrew, but they knew the language well enough to understand, enjoy and appreciate the play and its broader message.

CREATIVITY CORNER
Chanuka Sewing Cards
by Devora Piha

Welcoming back Devora Piha and her great craft projects for all ages, this time for the very young.

"Problem solving skill enhancement can come from something as simple as a sewing card if children are given room to do it themselves."

FEEDBACK

It PAYS to read Rosally Saltsman's great tips. After her recent article on money saving appeared ("Double Check," Parshas Vayetze), your editor received a call from a reader who had decided to check her own cell phone bill.

Your Medical Questions Answered!
by Joseph B. Leibman, MD

One of the tremendous miracles of our body is the fine- tuning. Insulin, a hormone we discussed earlier which is involved in sugar uptake into the cells, does not work unopposed. A hormone called glucagon causes sugar release from the cells and body stores into the blood stream. The fine tuning between these two hormones creates an environment which, under normal conditions, allows us to have the extra sugar we need when we have a stressful event, while storing sugars when things are calm.

Poet's Corner

The Garden Gate

by Tziporah* Zien, Haifa

The timeless message of Chanuka throughout the ages: to keep alien, gentile influence out of the Jewish `vineyard.' Hellenists, then, street culture and Internet etc. today.

Look there! Across the yard you'll see the fence!
It borders all the vineyard round about.
If broken, its existence makes no sense.
It's built to keep the thieves and vandals out!

The truth is, there's a gate which opens wide
And if we choose to do so, we invite
The people passing by to come inside,
Provided they respect what's wrong and right.

But if they look inside our humble plot
And think they know a better way to live,
We'll not allow their entry, on the spot!
They'll not convert our fence into a sieve!

For once the gate is open, it allows
The traffic to commence both out and in.
Our tender, precious fruit might leave the boughs
Before it ripens well, to our chagrin.

But if the fruit is nurtured and mature
It will resist all passing phase and fashion!
Our cultivation must be strong and pure
To reap the fruits of heavenly compassion.

Our own dear sons and daughters, come and see
The wisdom which is granted every Jew.
Your life and love deserve a gate and key,
To keep your treasures locked away from view.

We'll help you guard your precious Jewish soul
Which longs to ripen fully on the vine,
While drawing from the root till you are whole
And claim your natural heritage divine.

You'll merit to establish healthy stock,
Which flourishes, creating vintage wine.
Not one of all your seedlings should unlock
The gate to seek false hope from Truth maligned.

Please know, sweet soul, both fence and gate are yours
To help you realize your noble stature.
Why undermine yourself to thus explore?
Come! Comprehend!
THERE IS NO GREENER PASTURE!

* We mistakenly signed her as Esther in previous issues. Sorry.